An outline

I have been planning – in conjunction with Ray Middleton – a suite of on-line training courses on using the Pizazz-on-paper and the PIE Abacus (including a working familiarity with PIEs 2).

The courses will come in three levels: ‘entry level’, ‘intermediate’ and ‘advanced’.

 

Entry level

The more basic, ‘entry level’ course is intended primarily for teams of frontline staff and their immediate managers – those who on a day to day basis run their specific services, and wish to develop as PIEs.

Intermediate level

The intermediate level training is pitched to equip all those in middle – to larger organisations who are tasked with 'implementing' a PIE approach in their own service(s).

The intention of the intermediate level is to ensure that those in such middle manager and development roles should be able to feel fully confident that they are 'doing it right'; and fully up to speed. The course ‘adds value’ to what it otherwise freely available on the PIElink, with more in-depth commentary, and curated content.

There is also an hour's 1-1 mentoring that comes with the training package, to provide advice and guidance as needed, to customise and answer/explore any specific questions.

Advanced level

There is also an ‘advanced’ level which is pitched at the rather higher level needed for ‘independents’: that is, for professional consultants and trainers, those who are brought in to facilitate PIEs assessment and/or service development in other agencies’ services.

The intention of the advanced level is to give confidence to frontline services undertaking assessment or service development using the PIEs 2 framework, the Pizazz-on-paper and/or the PIE Abacus, that any trainers or consultants they bring in to assist are fully up to speed with this approach.

 

Accreditation and associate status

The advanced level training also is the passport to two further levels: Pizazz and PIE Abacus  trainer ‘accreditation’, and finally, ‘associate’ status.

The intention of accreditation is two-fold: to give additional confidence to frontline services that the trainers they bring in to assist are fully up to speed, and accredited; and to give full confident to these independents that they are equipped with a deeper grasp of the principles behind the practice; and with additional curated material that may be helpful, in situ.

Accredited trainers will be all those who have competed the advanced level; there is no further ‘test’. But for the advanced level, too, there is an hour's 1-1 mentoring that comes with the training package, to provide advice and guidance as needed, to customise and answer/explore any specific questions.

They then get the status of having been fully accredited to train. At this stage, for the ‘independents’, this is primarily for their own confidence and peace of mind; but if providers and commissioners start to value this, it may eventually be quite significant for independents their own credibility as trainers, on which their market position depends.

Those who have taken the advanced course and been accredited will then be eligible to become 'affiliates'; and affiliates get a share (5%) in the revenue for the first year; like an introductory fee, from the sales of the PIE Abacus for any services that do sign up to the Abacus after their Pizazz training.

Affiliates are then, in effect, marketing the product – and so deserve to be ‘on commission’.

 

Developers

Where suitable, by agreement, ‘affiliates’ will then be invited to be 'developers', ie: of the next stages of the PIE approach. That gives them still more status; but equally, it gives them some say in ensuring that the PIE approach, the Pizazz assessment process and the PIE Abacus software remains up to date and responsive to changes and developments..

It’s not clear yet precisely how this will be funded or incentivised financially; but there will be a way. With 50% of the PIE Abacus revenue split coming to the company we aresetting up, there should, eventually, be plenty to invest. But we must let it evolve, so we are not making firm commitments at this stage.

 

 

The definitive guides to PIEs self-assessment and development for psychologically informed environments. 

 

The training courses:

Ray Middleton's 'entry level' PIEs training.

 

Robin Johnson's PIE leads’ training:

Getting up to speed with PIE self-assessment for your services

This on-line intermediate-level training aims to ensure that all those charged with developing PIEs in their own services can feel confident that they have a good working grasp of the Pizazz, including the PIEs 2.0 and the software version, the PIE Abacus.

NB: On-line training goes at your own pace; and this training includes an allocation of 1-1 personalised mentoring time.

 

Robin Johnson's PIE trainers’ and consultants’ training: 

Getting up to speed with PIE self-assessment for services.

This advanced level training aims to give confidence that you are fully up to speed as a trainer or consultant on PIEs, with an in-depth grasp of the PIE self-assessment programme, the Pizazz, and its on-line version, the PIE Abacus.

External trainers and facilitators will need a still more in-depth familiarity with PIEs and the Pizazz process and the principles. For those contracted to provide support to other agencies, you may want to consider the advanced training, which aims to equip you with all the background to steer a service through its own self-assessment and on to action planning for the future, using the Pizazz and the PIE Abacus.

For those who need to be able to answer: “not just what and how, but why?”