Member Article

Walker Morris invests in training to help tackle the challenges of remote working

As people adapt to the new home working environment which is likely to continue for some time yet, leading Leeds law firm Walker Morris is investing in improving colleagues’ performance and wellbeing by given its team access to CPD accredited digital courses from training specialist Quarterdeck which provides a package of bespoke training.

The training business specialises in leadership and people management programmes and started working with Walker Morris last October. Since then, the 450-strong team has benefitted from Quarterdeck’s user-friendly library of over 100 video courses and lessons. Quarterdeck also developed bespoke content for the law firm to help tackle the challenges of remote working post-Covid by focusing on improving the team’s resilience and well-being. The training has seen strong engagement with Walker Morris colleagues having accessed over 1,000 Quarterdeck videos over the last nine months.

Emma Wilkinson, learning and development manager at Walker Morris, said: “Having previously attended one of Quarterdeck’s taster sessions, I really liked their delivery style, and with colleagues facing the challenges of leading and managing hybrid/virtual teams during the last year, the company’s online solution seemed to perfectly meet the training needs we had identified. We were aware that in this unique lockdown situation, the firm’s leaders needed to pull different management levers as they coped with issues around remote supervision as well as providing support to colleagues with potential stress and mental health issues, including helping in areas probably not tackled before, such as resilience.

“The flexibility of options from Quarterdeck Online with the bite-sized on-demand nature of the courses, meant that our people could access the learning as a way to break up their day, at times that suited them. The playlists enabled me to handpick courses for different groups such as new managers and supervisors, trainees etc. I was also really impressed by the ‘Quick Coach’ offering, a chat function that allows individuals to contact the Quarterdeck experts direct for advice about the issues they face and gain a valuable external perspective.”

Laura Bouttell, managing director of Quarterdeck, added: “Walker Morris is a great example of a forward-looking business which is finding new ways of supporting its team as they adapt to the challenges of working in the post-Covid world. “Our practical approach to training, with a focus on solving problems and changing patterns of behaviour, has been well-received by the firm and we are pleased to have been chosen by Walker Morris as its on-demand learning partner for developing leadership and softer skills.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Kilmurray .