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Robin Hood Ministries is â€œthe charity that means businessâ€ by aiming to raise awareness of poverty and in time, to break the cycle of poverty for the deprived in the world. Robin Hood Ministries empower people to become self-sufficient- to do this they are working with other projects in the developing world that have a similar aim. RHM are also developing training centres and workshops to install an idea of business into the minds of those they are trying to help.

Robin Hood Ministries is linked to a funding model called Robin Hood Partnerships. This is a Business Partnership Scheme that works with many companies all over the UK- so that they can help to reduce poverty and to also improve their own organisations, for example in the following areas: team building, marketing and staff morale. Companies can be one of three types of partners, depending on the amount of involvement and contribution they can offer, these are as follows: Key Sponsors, Service Providers and Integrated Partners

The Performance Solution are working with RHM on their child sponsorship scheme that enables companies or individuals to sponsor a child, in various countries, this is too help improve the quality of life for the children unfortunate enough to be living in extreme poverty. The money that is sent via Robin Hood Ministries is spent on food, education, essential clothing and books, and a contribution to a leisure activity- sometimes a monthly trip out (a treat that you and I would take for granted) and of course money also goes towards medical expenses which is a luxury that very few children in these countries have access to.

Robin Hood also arrange trips so that individuals or representatives from companies can go and get a firsthand experience of the problems that the charity is trying to reduce. These trips are a good way of:

Â· Bringing love and hope to the children and families who are in difficulty

Â· Gain a new perspective of poverty and comparative wealth

Â· The trips can also give a powerful learning experience which some have said is â€˜life changingâ€™.

In 2008, 2 members of The Performance Solution team made a trip to Iasi, Romania to learn how else we can contribute. We saw at first hand how families living in ghetto blocks with no electricity, sanitation or running water are finding it increasingly difficult to feed their children. In addition, rising food prices have made it harder for the Robin Hood programme to feed the 35 children they currently support. As little as Â£3 per month can provide a hot meal three times a week for 2 children., something that is often just a dream in their lives. (DVD of trip available on request.)

Business Coaches4Poverty Relief.

Business Coaches4Poverty Relief is a partnership scheme working with coaching organisations so they can support poverty reduction and improve their own organisation at the same time with a range of socially impacting tools. The scheme raises awareness of poverty so that individuals and businesses are better able to understand the situation of the worldâ€™s poor. At The Performance Solution we are already;

Â· Sponsoring children in Romania and Nepal

Â· Visiting Romania on awareness trips

Â· Donating money that we would have spent on ice cream and deserts on holiday to provide hot meals for Romanian children

Â· Encouraging our associate executive coaches to get involved by;

o Pro bono coaching

o Donating a voluntary percentage of their fees

o Going on an awareness trip

Get involved!

If you would like to help children who long for something nutritious to eat, if you would like to help change the life of a child in need or for more information on Robin Hood Ministries, and Robin Hood Partnerships, the please donâ€™t hesitate to contact them direct or through ceri@theperformancesolution.com

Psychometric assessments incorporate a number of methods used by employers to choose the right person for the job, or to make promotional decisions and assess a development need and interestingly about 75% of medium to large sized companies that we work with, use some form of psychometrics within their selection procedures. The Performance Assessments have over the last year seen an increase in psychometrics being widely used for both selection and personal development. In particular, the development of personality questionnaires, which are popular for feedback and coaching. More employers are seeing the benefits of using some form of psychometric assessment within their selection procedures. The reason is that the Extended DISC assessments are able to measure at a deeper unconscious level which excludes the impact of the environment as a self-assessment that identifies the strengths and development areas of an individual. In practice this means that the result show who the individual actually is and not what the person thinks he/she needs to be in the existing environment This then follows on with the other tools which are available such as the Extended DISC Work-Pair Analysis, which is a tool that combines the results of two individuals into one, user-friendly report. It identifies the styles of individuals, how the styles complement one another, and where the behaviour gaps exist. It also provides information regarding what the individuals should remember, accept and practice when working together. The Extended DISC Team Analysis is a tool that can combine all of the individual assessment results into one report. It shows the team dynamics, the strengths and development areas of the team, and illustrates how the team members are adjusting their behaviors in the existing work environment. While team applications are the most popular uses of the tool, Team Analysis is capable of assessing an unlimited number of individuals. As a result, it enables our clients to perform various, more complicated analyses very cost effectively. Extended DISCÃ‚Â® is a set of integrated assessment tools for enhancing individual, team and organisational performance. One of the unquestionable strengths of the Extended DISCÃ‚Â® System is that it integrates a whole range of tools to provide a flexible solution. For further information please contact Paul Stewart direct on 01225 867 285 or alternatively email on assessments@theperformancesolution.com

Today and unbeknown to most people, NLP forms the basis of much of todayÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½s communication that employees and employers are embracing the term with infinite ease. NLP training courses are becoming widely respected by employers and the NLP techniques have found their way to benefit many courses covering topics such as sales, presentations, planning and team building Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ often without people knowing that theyÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½re learning NLP. The increasing popularity of coaching has also exploited the techniques of NLP through training courses as it provides a strong backbone to addressing personal development and for those seeking to deepen their understanding. NLP training, amongst other tools which provide you with the ability to: Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Improve your verbal and non-verbal communication Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Deepen your appreciation of thinking styles Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Learn techniques for high performance states Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Change unwanted habits for desired ones Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Set goals to fit (and change) your life Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Use language with greater precision Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Perform at your best Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ Enjoy activities you used to fear Within the Human Resources profession, an understanding of NLP can help make the most out of investment in staff by working on beliefs as well as behaviours and by making learning sustainable. NLP is also used in many additional fields including sports, art, health, education, politics, in fact, anywhere that involves human endeavour. For further information about NLP and the courses that TPS run, please contact Ceri Heathcote direct on 01225 867 285 or alternatively email ceri@theperformancesolution.com

The Performance Solution have become one of the leaders of providing Executive Coach training through the support of Managing Director, Sally Vanson Ã¢ï¿½ï¿½ but often she is asked what are the benefits of becoming a coach? Not surprisingly the benefits are both personal and professional. You should be prepared for surprises in the way your whole life will change as you integrate coaching into your life. Coaching has a beneficial effect on personal relationships and peopleÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½s sense of satisfaction in their lives increases. Individuals investigate coach training for different reasons. Some people want to build on their skills and abilities to help others reach their goals. For others, itÃ¢ï¿½ï¿½s more of a personal journey and a time for growth. Whatever your reason, the core competencies and skills you acquire during your training will have a positive impact on your life and in the lives of others. TPS strive to provide coaches with the best set of learning skills which is why such courses as the International Coaching Certificate and Advanced Certificate in Executive Coaching have derived. Currently there is no set standard for coaching, so TPS adhere to and follow the guidelines according to the Association of Coaching. If you would like further information about becoming a coach, or would like to find out more about the training courses, please contact Ceri Heathcote direct on 01225 867 285 or alternatively please email ceri@theperformancesolution.com

Coaching is the largest growth area in training and development* and the most cost-effective way for business managers to help their people learn, grow and confidently take responsibility for solving their own problems. Coaching is increasingly popular as a means of promoting learning and development, according to a survey from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). The tenth annual CIPD learning and development survey found that almost three-quarters (71%) of UK employers currently use coaching in their organisations, compared to 63% in 2007. A similar proportion of respondents (72%) found coaching to be an effective tool. Within organisations that offer coaching to all their employees, general personal development (79%) and helping poor performance (74%) were both cited as the most common purposes for which coaching is used. In organisations that only offer coaching to managers, the survey found that the emphasis shifted towards its positioning as part of a wider management and leadership development programme (61%). According to the survey, more than two fifths of organisations offer coaching to all employees, 39% offer it to directors and senior management and a third offer it to senior managers and line managers/supervisors. Sally Vanson, Managing Director of The Performance Solution says: "Coaching is not just a popular technique but an immensely powerful one for supporting personal development. There is no doubt that coaching has a significant impact both on the individual and for organisational performance. "As coaching helps people to develop, it's a perfect fit for the fast moving knowledge economy in which we operate." The results from the survey also found that the bulk of the responsibility for delivering coaching lies with line managers coaching those who report to them (36%) and to HR and/or learning, training, and development specialists (30%). In addition, over half of organisations (53%) believe that coaching by line managers is the most effective learning and development practice and nearly half (49%) anticipate that even greater responsibility will fall onto line managers in the next five years. The key issue is that coaching is a technique used by managers with other parts of the management toolkit not just by itself, therefore boosting the skills of line managers. Coaching is a win–win solution to workforce development, offering the scope to help employees reach their potential, while improving the competitiveness and productivity of the business as a whole. The survey reports that only eight per cent of respondents evaluate the effectiveness of coaching via a formal annual (or other regular) evaluation process. Two in five (42%) respondents felt that the effectiveness of coaching is gauged by reviews of objectives conducted with line managers, coaches and coachees.