(L-R) Awards host AndrewRyan; Clare Robertson, learning and development manager and SukhiSanghera, learning and development assistant, Berwin LeightonPaisner; Natalie Hill, key account manager, Legal Week
Finalists: CILEx Law School; Dentons; LegalTechnology Core Competency Certification Coalition; Osborne Clarke;Paul Hastings; Pinsent Masons; Reed Smith (highly commended);Stephenson Harwood.
Berwin Leighton Paisner bagged the training innovation prize forits programme to strengthen the technical skills of its businesssupport staff, boosting their professional capabilities andimproving the overall quality of the firm's client services.
That meant creating a technical skills framework that identifiedknowledge gaps and training priorities, then providing workshops tomeet those targets. The framework is also used as a benchmark tomeasure employee performance, allowing managers to assess technicalcompetence against set criteria when carrying out appraisals andpromotions. Starting with its human resources department, thetechnical skills workshops included sessions on themes such asunconscious bias, evidence-based selection and employmentcontracts. Because there was no budget for the programme, the firmhad to rely on volunteers to provide training, both internally andexternally.
In one instance, it invited Macmillan Cancer to help the HRdepartment understand how to support staff managing cancer at work.The training academies now extend to other business supportdepartments, with plans to develop online resources that will allowstaff outside the firm's London office to participate.
A really exciting and well thought-out programme, making use ofinternal resources first and enhancing cross-team and departmentrelationships, one judge enthused.
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