Employee Development
Your professional development and growth are important to us. Our Employee Development programs are designed to enhance the skills, knowledge, and professional growth of every university employee. These programs recognize the unique strengths, aspirations, and developmental needs of each employee.
If you are a new employee and looking for onboarding materials, please visit our New Employee Onboarding webpage.
Power Skills at Illinois
Program Overview
Power Skills at Illinois is an interactive program for employees looking to strengthen their communication, teamwork, and leadership skills to become more effective in the workplace. Participants will learn practical tools to communicate with a purpose, grow effective teams, and develop a language for understanding and cultivating capable leaders.
This certification course consists of three core sessions delivered in a virtual workshop via video conferencing and in person options.
To register for the three sessions below, follow the appropriate register now links.
Communication
Communication
Build skills for communicating in unfamiliar situations, with the goal of developing connections, sharing ideas, and building partnerships. Participants will explore common types of problems and practice skills for resolving ability, motivation, and interpersonal problem situations. Understand complex conversations and practice skills for communicating more effectively in both the speaker and listener roles.
The session will be approximately 3 hours in length.
Teamwork
Teamwork
Explore ways to make meetings more effective, including developing strong agendas and ensuring that three key leadership roles are filled (facilitator, note taker, timekeeper). Practice public speaking and develop more effective communication skills in different contexts to engage the audience. Specific skills for facilitating brainstorming sessions are discussed, along with practical tools for helping groups distill the results of brainstorming into actionable solutions and activities to help spark creativity.
The session will be approximately 3 hours in length.
Leadership
Leadership
Explore different aspects of leadership; reflect on their own leadership skills, values, and goals; and develop a language for understanding and cultivating capable leaders. Learning to identify, reflect upon, learn from, and engage with diverse perspectives is essential to fostering effective relationships and vibrant intellectual environments. Understand your role in modeling ethical behavior appropriately to support research and practice.
Completion Certificate and Badges
Participants who complete all three core sections will earn a certificate of completion.
Target Audience
All current employees
Self-Guided Learning
Coursera
Illinois on Coursera gives Illinois students, staff, and faculty free access to more than 170 non-credit online courses and Specializations. Created by Illinois faculty, Illinois’ Coursera courses provide opportunities to advance your career, explore your interests, or expand your skill set. With Illinois on Coursera you can take any course you want, whenever you want, the way you want. Complete the course and receive an Illinois/Coursera course completion certificate to post on resumes and LinkedIn ©.
LinkedIn Learning
The University of Illinois has contracted with LinkedIn to provide members of the University of Illinois with access to over 1,200 online courses provided by LinkedIn Learning. Access is available today to all students, faculty and staff and titles are broken down into manageable segments to accommodate busy schedules. These video based tutorials are taught by industry experts and available 24/7 for convenient, self-paced learning.
Additional Resources
Check out our Across Campus page to learn more about other workshops, trainings, and development opportunities.