27 Business Strategy courses in Liverpool

The market for professional services is becoming increasingly competitive, with some firms and individuals becoming very effective at winning new work, leaving others lagging way behind. Given the choice between spending time on client work and business development work, we all tend to choose that which we feel to be easier, more attractive and more aligned with our image of ourselves. We stay within our comfort zones, we focus on client work, and we only resort to business development work when we have to, which can also lead to 'feast or famine' syndrome. The programme will help participants: * Understand the professional business development approach and the style that is appropriate for their business and their clients * Follow a process to guide their conversations and business development meetings * Prepare thoroughly for a business development meeting/contact with a client to ensure they use their time efficiently and maximise results * Create a great first impression and professional opening to a conversation * Ask open questions and listen effectively in order to spot opportunities, understand needs and progress the opportunity * Identify and understand buying and decision-making processes and criteria * Skilfully and confidently handle questions and objections * Sell the benefits of their services and approach over those of their competitors * Progress the sale by agreeing next steps and gaining commitment appropriately 1 INTRODUCTION * Aims and objectives of the programme * Personal introductions and objectives * Workshop overview 2 AN INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AND SELLING FOR PROFESSIONALS * What is selling? * Who are you selling to? * The buying experience * What clients want * The four-step business development process * The business development cycle and pipeline management * Upselling and cross-selling as well as winning new clients 3 NETWORKING AND GENERATING LEADS * What is networking? * Networking objectives * It's not what you know but who you know * Asking for referrals and introductions * Making appointments from networking activity 4 OPENING THE SALES RELATIONSHIP/SALES MEETING * What potential customers are thinking * Judging first impressions * Creating positive first impressions * Building rapport and creating interest and impact * Earning the right 5 CORE COMMUNICATION SKILLS FOR PROFESSIONAL SELLING * Overcoming barriers to listening * The art of listening * Questioning refresher * Types of questions * Questioning funnel 6 UNDERSTANDING AND IDENTIFYING NEEDS AND OPPORTUNITIES * Identifying the questions to ask to identify needs and opportunities * Questions to move us through the buying and selling process * Understanding their buying processes * Asking questions that position you as a 'trusted adviser' * The questions that give you a competitive advantage * Knowing when you have asked enough questions 7 INTRODUCING SOLUTIONS * Tailoring your 'pitch' to the client * Speaking the client's language * Using features and benefits * Applying the benefit cycle 8 HANDLING OBJECTIONS AND CONCERNS * Identifying the typical objections and concerns * Understanding why clients raise objections and concerns * Following a structure for handling objections * Handling the price objection 9 GAINING COMMITMENT * Knowing when to close * The art of checking * Recognising buying signals * Small c and big C 10 PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER * Personal learning summary and action plans

The need for key staff to have commercial skills is paramount, as the public sector is increasingly opened up as a commercial market, in which organisations compete against each other and the private sector for contracts. Generating additional income and being commercially aware is vital for this to be a success, and is what many public sector organisations are looking to do. This programme will help you: * See commercial awareness as not just another skill-set, but as a different mind-set * Use a variety of tried-and-tested commercial, analytical decision-making techniques and tools * Define your commercial objectives * Develop a strategic focus * Start looking at service clients as market segments * Analyse, in a competitive context, your service offering * Plan a commercial strategy, prepare for its implementation and see it through to execution 1 WHAT IS COMMERCIAL THINKING? * Understand what it means to be a commercial thinker * Identifying commercial opportunities often involves not only a different skill set but also a different mindset; looking at the services that you provide 2 DEFINING STRATEGIC COMMERCIAL OBJECTIVES * Defining your key commercial objectives * Prioritising your strategic objectives * Two key strategic planning tools: * Resource and Competency Matrix * PESTLE * How to apply these tools to your particular situation 3 DEVELOPING A STRATEGIC FOCUS * Decision-making on how to compete in the markets identified by your strategic objectives requires a strategic focus * Developing strategic focus * A tool for helping you to make those decisions: using the Ansoff Matrix 4 DEFINING CUSTOMER TARGETS * How to think more commercially by understanding who all your customers are and how they differ from each other * how to apply the principles to your areas to identify the type of customers you have and their key characteristics - Customer segmentation * Who are your customers? How do their needs vary? - Scenarios 5 THE COMPETITIVE MARKET PLACE * Understanding the competitive forces at play * Different types of competition * Analysing your competitive environment using Porter's 5 Forces model 6 MEETING STAKEHOLDER EXPECTATIONS * Two simple models to help you identify the key stakeholders who could influence your commercial environment * How to use your stakeholders to help you achieve your commercial objectives 7 IMPLEMENTATION - SYSTEMS, STRUCTURES AND PROCESSES * Effective commercial activity involves working with others to implement ideas and strategies * What do you need to have in place before you implement your commercial strategy? * How to health-check your organisation prior to implementation using the McKinsey 7S framework 8 IMPLEMENTATION - PEOPLE AND CULTURE * A good commercial strategy only works if the people involved buy in to the ideas and if the culture of the organisation is conducive to the effective implementation * How the latest thinking in behavioural economics can help you develop your culture and people to work commercially 9 TOOLS AND CHECKLISTS * Be more commercial within your sphere of influence using a commercial checklist to help you * Using the checklist as a benchmark against the most commercially aware organisations * Using the checklist as a health check - both corporately and individually

In today's competitive business world firms are under unprecedented pressure to deliver value to their shareholders and other key stakeholders. Senior executives in all parts of the organisation are finding that they need some degree of financial know how to cope with the responsibility placed on them as business managers and key decision-makers; monitoring and improving business performance, investing in capital projects, mergers and acquisitions: all require some degree of financial knowledge. The key financial skills are not as difficult to learn as many people believe and in the hands of an experienced senior executive they can provide a formidable competitive advantage. After completing this course delegates will be able to: * Understand fundamental business finance concepts; understand, analyse and interpret financial statements: Profit Statement, Balance Sheet and Cashflow Statement * Understand the vital difference between profit and cashflow; identify the key components of working capital and how they can be managed to generate strong cashflow * Evaluate pricing decisions based on an understanding of the nature of business costs and their impact on gross margin and break-even sales; managing pricing, discounts and costs to generate strong business profits; understand how lean manufacturing methods improve profit * Use powerful analytical tools to measure and improve the performance of their own company and assess the effectiveness of their competitors * Apply and interpret techniques for assessing and comparing investment opportunities in capital projects, business acquisitions and other ventures; understand and apply common methods of business valuation * Understand the role of business finance in formulating and implementing competitive business strategy; the role of budgeting as part of the planning process and the various approaches to budgeting and performance measurement 1 BASIC PRINCIPLES * Delivering value to key stakeholders * Accounting concepts, GAAP, IFRS and common terms * Understanding and using the balance sheet * Understanding and using the profit statement * Recognising the vital difference between profit and cashflow * Understanding and using the cashflow statement * What financial statements can and cannot tell us 2 MANAGING AND IMPROVING CASHFLOW * Sources of finance and their advantages and disadvantages * What is working capital and why is it so important? * Managing stocks, debtors and creditors * Understanding how working capital drives business growth * Understanding and avoiding the over-trading trap * Unlocking the funds tied up in fixed assets: asset backed loans and leasing 3 MANAGING AND IMPROVING PROFIT * Understanding how profits generate cashflow * The fundamental nature of costs: fixed and variable business costs * Understanding gross margin and break-even * How common pricing methods affect gross margin and profit * Effective strategies to improve gross margin * Using value chain analysis to reduce costs * Lean manufacturing methods * Understanding Just-in-time, 6 Sigma and Kaizen methods * Improving profit * Effective and defective strategies 4 MEASURING AND MANAGING BUSINESS PERFORMANCE * Measures of financial performance and strength * Investor behaviour: the risk and reward relationship * Return on investment (ROI): the ultimate measure of business performance * How profit margin and net asset turnover drive return on net assets * Why some companies are more profitable that others * Understanding competitive advantage: cost and differentiation advantage * Why great companies fail * What happened to Kodak? * Using a 'Pyramid of Ratios' to improve business performance * Using Critical Success Factors to develop Key Performance Indicators 5 BUDGETING AND FORECASTING METHODS * Using budgets to support strategy * Objectives and methods for effective budgets * Using budgets to monitor and manage business performance * Alternative approaches to budgeting * Developing and implementing Balanced Scorecards * Beyond Budgeting * Forecasting methods and techniques * Identifying key business drivers * Using rolling forecasts and 'what-if' models to aid decision-making

Generating new leads and new business can be both time-consuming and frustrating. It's not easy - it takes skill, careful preparation and the creation of effective models and methods, even perhaps using formal approaches and scripts. Once generated, a new lead or enquiry must also be carefully managed to maximise the potential revenue it can generate. But it's crucial to get it right. If your company can afford not to worry about getting new business - congratulations! If your company is completely confident that it is performing at peak potential in generating new leads - again, congratulations! But if your company is working in the real world, couldn't your team do with some help, to become even just that little bit more effective, to make the process just that little less painful? This highly practical, intensive workshop gives sales teams the proven strategies and tactics they need to build a sustainable new business pipeline. This course will help participants: * Develop a clear and consistent process for new business development and lead-generation * Master the secret of effective new business development and lead-generation - 'only sell the appointment or next stage of the sales process, not your product or service' * Set and achieve the right level of new business development and lead-generation activity to achieve your personal and organisational sales goals * Apply the key principles of effective prospecting and pipeline management using a proven toolkit and approach * Overcome the most common 'put-offs' when conducting telephone or face-to-face business-development and lead-generation activities * Develop an engaging telephone voice and manner - and a 'networking personality' * Qualify potential opportunities with more accuracy on a consistent basis * Prioritise opportunities and manage their time when sourcing new business * Discover online sources of leads, contacts and referrals * Overcome psychological blocks to cold or warm calling - theirs and the client's * Identify potential prospects - and decision-makers and influencers within target prospects - with greater accuracy * Make outbound sales or appointment calls with improved confidence, control and results * Improve the conversion of calls to appointments by using more effective questions and sales messages * Get past gatekeepers and assistants more effectively * Make the most of your CRM software and systems 1 ONLINE MARKETING - WHAT WORKS! * Workshop overview and learning objectives * Choosing your social media channels * LinkedIn for sales and marketing * Designing and implementing an effective new business email campaign online * Creating a lead-generation strategy online - with case studies * Avoiding common mistakes in social media marketing * Case study: 'Best practice in social media sales and marketing' * Using blogs and video-based marketing (eg, YouTube) * New trends and how to keep your finger on the 'social media' pulse * Twenty essential websites and online marketing tools 2 MAKING APPOINTMENTS BY TELEPHONE * Planning the call, telephone techniques, integrating with email and online marketing * Developing a clear and consistent process to appointment-making * Setting and achieving the right level of telephone activity to achieve your appointment goals * Applying the key principles of effective prospecting and pipeline management generation, using a proven toolkit and approach * Overcoming the most common 'put-offs' to seeing or engaging with you * Overcoming psychological blocks to cold or warm calling - yours and the client's * Identifying potential prospects - and decision-makers and influencers within target prospects - with greater accuracy * Making outbound sales or appointment calls with improved confidence, control and results * Improving conversion of calls to appointments by using more effective questions and sales messages * The five keys to developing an engaging telephone voice and approaching manner 3 POWER NETWORKING * Strategies for networking and B2B referral-based marketing * The importance, and different types, of networking * How to work a room - preparation and strategy * Communication dynamics in networking - the power of the listening networker * Assumptions when networking * Business networking etiquette * Making connections, asking for cards, contact details and referrals, gaining follow-up commitments * Building relationships - follow-up and follow-through 4 DEVELOPING NEW LEADS * Strategies for first-time sales calls * Gaining rapport and opening first-time and new business sales calls effectively * Advanced consultative selling - questioning techniques to quickly and efficiently uncover opportunities, need areas and preferences * Presenting your solution to a new or first-time customer - creating an enthusiastic and compelling personalised and persuasive summary of your proposal * Value message - differentiate your solutions clearly and accurately, with tailored value statements * Presenting the right initial USPs, features and benefits and making them relevant and real to the customer * Smart ways to position price, emphasise value and be a strong player without being the cheapest or leading on price * Learn and use advanced techniques to determine customer needs, value and decision-making criteria in depth on a first-time call 5 ORGANISED PERSISTENCE - CRM AND PROSPECT-TRACKING * Organised persistence - sales tracking, following up on 'sleeping' customers, gaining referrals, time and territory management * Maintaining a good database for maximising new business ROI * Developing a contact strategy with different types and levels of contact * Analysing your contact base using state-of-the-art software and tools * Making the most of your CRM systems and solutions * Understanding that your attitude makes a difference when sourcing new business * Setting SMART objectives for new business development and lead-generation * Practical exercise - setting personal development and business goals * Time management tips to improve daily productivity * New business pipeline management strategies for peak sales performance 6 WORKSHOP SUMMARY AND CLOSE * Practical exercise - developing your new business action plan * Review and feedback

A thorough account of the UK and European legal framework and its requirements as regards managing environmental performance. This course will help staff to understand: * The framework of UK and European legislation and its enforcement * The principal features of the legislation as they apply to your organisation's activity/product/service * The benefit of having an Environmental Management System such as ISO 14001 * How their own actions and decisions can either expose or protect the organisation in relation to its legal obligations 1 INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES 2 INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND ENFORCEMENT * Sources of law (European and UK) * Structure and enforcement * Key legislation 3 INTEGRATED POLLUTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL (IPPC) AND LOCAL AIR POLLUTION AND CONTROL (LAPC) * Pollution and Prevention Control Act 1999 * EC Directives on PPC * The meaning of BAT * Transitional provisions * Fit and proper persons * Control of emissions to air * National Air Quality Strategy 4 PACKAGING AND PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITIES * Who, what and how * The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations * Obligations and exemptions * Registration * Recycling and recovery obligations * Records * Duties of the Environment Agency * Offences * Developments 5 WASTE MANAGEMENT * National Waste Strategy * Waste minimisation (re-use/recycling) * Waste definition * Disposal and recovery * Controlled waste management * Hazardous waste management 6 PROPOSED LEGISLATION AND EC DIRECTIVES * EU Commission's waste and resources strategies * Implementation of ELV (End of Life Vehicles) Directive * WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directive transposition into UK legislation * Other producer responsibility initiatives * Other proposals from the EU 7 CONCLUSION * Open forum * Summary * Close

The importance of building services to the success of an organisation has never been greater and continues to grow. Developers and occupiers are becoming more aware of the contribution that building services make to the well being of occupants and hence their perception of the quality of the working environment. Those involved with the design, construction, maintenance and operation will increasingly be required to deliver building services that demonstrable contribution to the occupier's business. Energy efficiency, carbon management and occupant satisfaction depend substantially on the way building services are designed, managed and operated. To optimise these aspects, an informed strategic approach is essential. Tried and tested techniques and processes are available that, when applied holistically, will deliver substantial benefits. This course reviews best practice in the area and inspires participants to ensure that building services perform at their optimal level. To provide a better understanding of how building services can be designed, managed and operated to: * Maximise occupant comfort, satisfaction and wellbeing * Add value and contribute to the success of the business of the occupier * Improve health safety * Reduce operating cost, energy use, carbon emissions and environmental impact * Optimise cost and value * Provide strategies for continuous improvement and sustainable operation 1 BUILDING SERVICES FUNDAMENTALS * The function of services in commercial buildings and their importance to the core business 2 TECHNIQUES AND PROCESSES FOR OPTIMISING COST AND VALUE * Programmed operation evaluation * Continuous commissioning * Lifetime product management * Performance-based service * Energy efficiency and the scope for environmental improvement 3 MAKING THE BUSINESS CASE AND PREPARING THE STRATEGY * Motivating decision-makers * Empowering those who have to deliver the results * Managing business risk 4 STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING RESULTS * Ensuring that rich and robust feedback is available to support continuous improvement and strategy enhancement * When to get feedback * Why * How * What to do with it 5 CASE HISTORIES AND 'AIR TIME' * Sharing experience and addressing specific issues of interest to participants * Course review * Close

A flexible, modular-based, programme to heighten participants' awareness of ways in which their operations can affect the environment, the principles of environmental management and the practical steps they need to take as individuals and as an organisation to improve environmental performance. Depending on the course modules selected, this programme will give participants: * Increased awareness of relevant environmental issues * A greater understanding of, and commitment to, the organisation's environmental management programme * Preparation for any responsibilities they may have under an Environmental Management System * Further benefits according to options chosen 1 ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS * Definition of 'the environment' * Key environmental issues * Global warming * Ozone depletion * Acid rain * Air quality * Water pollution * Contaminated land * Land take and green belt shrinkage * Resource usage * Habitat destruction and species extinctions. * Option: This module can be used to explain the key environmental issues related to the activities of your own organisation. Diagrams, photos, pictures, examples and statistics relevant to your own organisation are used where possible to illustrate the points being made. 2 ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION * Key elements of environmental legislation affecting the activities of your organisation - including international, European and UK legislation. * Legislation of particular relevance to your organisation - how it affects the operations of your organisation * Option: Legislation can be dealt with according to which aspect of the environment it protects (eg, air, water, waste) or which part of your organisation's activities it affects * Consequences of breaching legislation 3 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS * Overview of what an environmental management system is * How is an Environmental Management System (EMS) designed and put together? * Key elements (emphasising Plan - Do - Check - Review cycle) * The need to continually improve * Pros and cons * Reasons for having an EMS * Benefits of an EMS * Consequences of not managing the environment * Costs of installing an EMS * Explanation of ISO 14001 and EMAS standards and guidance as applicable to the EMSs of your organisation * Overview of your organisation's EMS * How it was set up / is being developed / operates * Who is responsible for it * Key parts of system (eg, environmental policy, objectives and targets) identified and discussed * EMS documentation - what and where it is. * Workshop option: Brainstorm 'Pros and cons' with the participants, come up with all their ideas for good and bad things about EMS and demonstrate that the 'good' list is longer than the 'bad' 4 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES * Define what an environmental impact is and discuss how they are determined, with reference to the EMS * Identify why we want to determine the environmental consequences of operations and activities; how they are used in the EMS for planning, and reducing the impact on the environment * Establish key environmental consequences of construction and operational activities on the site; discuss significance ranking and the control measures in place in your organisation. * Workshop option: In small groups, participants are asked to identify the impact on the environment of your organisation's activities or a part of their activities. They are then asked to rank these impacts in terms of their significance, using guidelines provided to help them be aware of the contributing factors (eg, frequency, severity). For a selected number of the impacts, the participants are asked to identify what control measures there are and which of these they play a part in. All stages can be discussed with trainers as a whole group at various stages during the workshop. 5 PROTECTED SPECIES, NATURE CONSERVATION AND INVASIVE WEEDS * Nature conservation, landscape and visual issues in the planning process - overview of key nature UK wildlife legislation, EIA, appropriate timing of surveys, Hedgerow regulations and landscape and visual impact issues * Ecological issues - ecological legislation, significant species, hedgerows * Archaeology in the development process - why archaeology is important, organisation in the UK, legislation and planning guidance * Construction phase issues and consents - major environmental issues during construction, including water resources and land drainage consents, discharges to land or water, water abstraction, public rights of way, tree protection, waste management, Special waste, noise, good practice pollution control and Environmental Audits * Identification and management of invasive weeds - including legal position regarding management 6 CHEMICALS AND FUELS HANDLING AND STORAGE * How health and safety management is closely linked to environmental management of materials * Planning - what mechanisms are in place for planning materials use; legislation, guidance and policies which define how to manage materials * Materials storage - what are the considerations for storing materials, covering: * Labels: what are the different types and what do they tell us? * Storage facilities: what are the requirements for safe storage of materials (eg, signs, secondary containment, access, segregation, lids/covers) * Handling: safe handling for protecting the environment, organisational procedures, high risk situations (eg, decanting, deliveries), how to reduce the risks (eg, use of funnels, proper supervision, training) * COSHH and MSDS: brief explanation of legislation and its role in environmental control of hazardous materials, how to use the information provided by COSHH assessments * Option: These sessions can be illustrated with photographs/pictures and examples of good and bad storage and handling practices * Workshop Options: Labelling Quiz - quick-fire quiz on what different labels tell us; Build a Storage Facility - participants are asked to consider all the environmental requirements for building a safe storage facility for their organisation 7 ON-SITE CONTROL MEASURES * Overview of the legislation associated with nuisance issues on site and mitigating problems when they arise * Examples of bad practice, including fuel storage tanks and mobile equipment - costs involved with prosecution of fuel spills, remediation costs, management costs, legal fees, bad PR coverage * Identification and management of contaminated land and relevant legislation * Workshop option: Participants are provided with a site plan containing information on site features, environmental conditions and indications of potential issues 8 WASTE MANAGEMENT * Why worry about waste? - a look at how waste disposal can impact on the environment, illustrated by examples of waste-related incidents, statistics on waste production on national, industry-wide and organisational levels, landfill site space, etc * Legislation - overview of the relevant legislation, what the main requirements of the regulations are, what penalties there are, and the associated documentation (waste transfer notes) * Waste classification - a more in-depth look at how waste is classified under legislation according to hazardous properties, referring to Environment Agency guidance * Handling and storage requirements - what are the requirements of the applicable waste legislation and how are they covered by organisational procedures? Examples of good and bad environmental practice associated with handling and storing waste. * Workshop option: 'Brown bag' exercise - participants pass round a bag containing tags each with a different waste printed on. They are asked to pick out a tag and identify the classification and the handling, storage and disposal requirements for the waste they select * Waste minimisation - overview of the waste minimisation 'ladder' and its different options (elimination, reduction, reuse and recycling), benefits of waste minimisation, examples of waste minimisation techniques * Workshop option: Participants are asked to identify opportunities that actually exist within the organisation for minimising production of waste that are not currently being taken advantage of 9 AUDITING * Requirements for environmental auditing of operations * Auditing the EMS * Types of internal and external audits * Requirements EMS standards (ISO 14001 and EMAS) * Carrying out internal audits and being prepared for external audits * Workshop options: * Mock audit 'Brown Bag' - can be used either for trainers to test participants as if they were in an audit situation, or for the participants to test each other and practice their auditing technique. The bag contains tags each with a different topic printed on (eg, waste skips); participants pass the bag round and select a tag; they are then questioned by the trainer or another participant about that topic as if they were in an audit situation. If the participants are auditing each other, they will be provided with a set of guidelines to keep in mind during the workshop. * Virtual auditing - a more practical workshop where participants review photographs of situations/activities relevant to the organisation's operations. They are asked to identify all the good and bad environmental practices that are occurring in the situations. 10 INCIDENT RESPONSE * What should you do when an incident does happen? * What should be in a spill kit? * When should you call in the experts? * When should you inform the Environment Agency or Environmental Health Officer? * Workshop option: The participants are provided with some incident scenarios and asked to develop a response to the incident 11 MONITORING AND REPORTING * Environmental monitoring programmes and procedures * Monitoring and reporting as control measures for environmental consequences * Monitoring and environmental 'STOP' card systems - personal and behavioural monitoring and reporting