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What Is Lunch & Learn? A lunch & learn program is a training or presentation session offered by an organization to employees during a lunch hour. It may be held in employee cafeterias, auditoriums, conference rooms, or even an open space in a department. It's done to inform or inspire employees, cover issues or initiatives, fulfill requirements, or create a workplace of learning, communication and collaboration. Lunch is often provided by the organization, or a department, as an enticement for employees to attend the training and give up their lunch time. If this is not possible, employees are asked to bring their lunch in a brown bag to the session. The learning part of the session usually takes about 40 minutes and starts after attendees have finished eating their lunch.

Organizations find it beneficial to provide lunch & learn programs for many reasons: Improve employee skills Create the learning organization Reinforce the corporate culture Create awareness of critical issues Introduce new initiatives Compliment training and development programs Improve communication throughout the organization Offer it as employee perk (if company provides the lunch) Build team spirit (people who eat and learn together, work better together.) Raise employee morale Establish a caring organizational climate Satisfy state or federally mandated programs such as health and safety requirements A team may do it to start a project ……add your own reason

How to make it successful Design it carefully to offer a blend of information, interest and excitement. Market it effectively, mentioning that lunch will be provided. Select training or presentation topics that are important, fun, or both Highlight the benefits of attending. Invite key, popular people to participate to show leadership commitment and indicate value. Get maximum mileage out of it by promoting its role as a corporate culture builder and morale booster. Don't spend too much on food, yet don't be too stingy either. Moderation is best. Invite speakers from within the organization but make sure they are effective speakers or your program will lose its good reputation fast. You may get speakers from outside. Some local businesses, social or cultural organizations or personalities might send you speakers at no cost. Your training department might want to offer short, fast, and fun Mini-workshops to support their training efforts (See below for ready-to-deliver training programs specifically designed for Lunch & Learn programs.)

The Lunch & Learn Mini Workshops Below offer the following benefits: You get everything you need to deliver a complete training workshop in 45 minutes, to up to two hours if you want. The Leader's Guide takes you step-by-step through the process of delivering the workshop. The high quality PowerPoint slides cover the key learning points, helping you stay on track all the time. The participant's workbook / handouts are reproducible. Make as many copies as you need for one or one hundred participants at no additional costs. The electronic format of the materials makes it easy to customize, adding your own notes, items, ideas, department name, etc. Delivered by e-mail, saving you shipping dollars and time. These workshops are offered at a price not often seen in the world of training. Each complete Lunch & Learn Mini-Workshop is just $119.00

The Power of Teams: A Lunch & Learn Workshop A Team Building and Improvement Workshop in One or Two Hours You get every thing you need to deliver this activity-based session: A Leader’s Guide with step-by-step instructions for every minute of the session. A Participant’s Sheets to reprint and distribute to participants. A set of PowerPoint slides to accompany the materials. A number of activities, exercises, stories, a poem, and discussion points. A complete TEAM Profile, which provides an assessment-style inventory to help participants assess the effectiveness of their team. A Six Part Strategy to strengthen and improve the overall effectiveness of the team. The materials and activities cover the six key factors that impact the effectiveness of any team: Mission & Goals • Roles & Responsibilities Processes and Procedures Commitment & Enthusiasm Interpersonal Relationships and Communication Learning & Continuous Improvement Participants will be able to: Assess the effectiveness of their team, using the TEAM Profile Understand the Six Pillars of Effective Teams Work to improve each of the six pillars Create an Action Plan for increasing the effectiveness of their team. Order The Power of Teams now for $119

Face To Face Communication: One-On-One Influencing Skills to Build Rapport and Achieve Results With Leader's Guide, Participant Handouts, and PowerPoint Slides With interactive exercises and role plays, participants will learn the following powerful speaking and influencing techniques: Give Positive Messages Make “I” Statements Describe The Behavior, Not the Person Focus on the Future Be Specific Use Empowering Language Ask, Invite, and involve Purchase (in MS Word & PowerPoint)for $119.00

Workshop - Developing a Communication Style That Works: How To Develop a Style of Communication That Creates Collaboration and Results With Leader's Guide, Participant Handouts, and PowerPoint Slides Upon completion of the workshop, participants will be able to: Develop awareness of how their personal communication style impacts and shapes the results they obtain from the communication process. Discover the different communication styles available: Aggressive, Passive, and Positive (or Assertive) Understand how each style produces different results Practice and role-play the different styles of communication and assess positive and negative outcomes Develop a communication style that builds trust and respect. Purchase in (MS Word & PowerPoint) for $119.00

Workshop - Develop Effective Listening Skills For Working Together With Leader's Guide, Participant Handouts, and PowerPoint Slides. There has been a lot of emphasis on teaching people how to speak effectively, how to influence others, how to deliver effective presentations, and how to write letters and memos. But there has not been enough emphasis on teaching people how to listen more effectively to reach full understanding, agreement, and collaboration. This Lunch & Learn workshop in one hour, with materials for up to two hours of training, fills this critical need. The program covers: Listening Skills Profile / assessment with interpretations Why is listening a problem? The Three Modes of Listening Listening / feedback exercise Exercise: The Communication Train The Ten Commandments for Effective Listening Listening To Angry People / Customers Purchase (in MS Word & PowerPoint)for $119.00

The Elephant: A Simple Fable About Communication, Perception and an Elephant - A Short 6 Min. Video to use with your Lunch & Learn Workshop This excellent session starter is an animated video that illustrates, in rhyme, the importance of the right focus for our communication and seeing the big picture. It shows how we each see things from our own point of view. It emphasizes the importance of communication between teams, team members and departments. Length: 6 min./ Product Code: LC/430L Rental $120 Purchase $320

Why not add a short 3 to 6 minute video with a touch of humor or motivation to open or end your Lunch & Learn with it? We have a large collection of Meeting Opener videos for you. Click here to review Join the enthusiastic group of professionals who enjoy valuable free ideas from 'Thank God It's Monday' newsletter. Get the Thank God It's Monday Newsletter Email: Send Page To a Friend

Leadership Lessons from Bill Gates People learn best by emulating the behavior of others around them. Instead of reading about the concepts of leadership, we can look at successful leaders to see how they became that way, and use them as role models for our behavior. And who is a better role-model than the man who changed the way we use information for work and for learning, built the most successful computer company in the world, and, in the process, became the richest man on earth? Here are some key leadership lessons we can learn from Bill Gates: 1- Seize the Day: Formal Education Is Not the Only Way! Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard after realizing that he can make an impact on the world right away by starting a software company to utilize new technologies. He realized that sometimes opportunities come knocking only for a short window of time, and one must seize that opportunity or it will be forever lost. 2- Don’t Be In It For Money: Money is not the real motivator. If Gates was concerned about money, he would have stayed at Harvard, ensuring himself a future with a steady high income. Instead, he pursued his dream of developing software for a new world of information usage that satisfied his passion and stimulated his mind. Gates did not pursue money. Money came to him because he offered the world something of great value. 3- Be Competitive, But Not Vicious: While building Microsoft, Gates was certainly very competitive in his business practices, as he should. But as a leader, he did not use an aggressive, abusive, or nasty style of management. His personal demeanor was low-key, courteous, and civilized. If you worked with, or for, some top American executives you will know that this is not very common. Gates managed to stay a decent human being as he grew to be a formidable business leader. What a rare combination! 4- Greed Is Not Good. Contrary to the famous advice of the film “Wall Street” that “Greed Is Good,” Gates teaches us, with his behavior, that vision, humanity, and satisfaction are mush better qualities to have. He could have continued to seek more money and power as most American business leaders do. But he did not believe that greed is a virtue. At the zenith of his years and while he is at the top of his game, he announced he will step down in two years and have someone else guide the global company he built. It takes someone with great personal strength and lack of greed to be able to make such a selfless decision. 5- Give As Much As You Take. Gates has wisely discovered that you can have as much, if not more, happiness in giving as you do in taking. He decided to spend the rest of his life giving away his huge wealth to worthwhile causes like fighting AIDS in Africa and helping libraries in the US. Leaders who find ways in which to give of their time, talent, and wealth tend to lead a more balanced and satisfied life than those who focus on just taking and accumulating. When you hear Gates talk these days, you will hear a positive vision for raising the health and education standards of poor people around the world. This contrasts significantly with other rich business leaders who tend to talk mainly about the stocks, their business success, or just themselves. © 2006 – Francois Basili. If you want to use PowerPoint slides that present the above leadership lessons and a video showing an interview with Bill Gates in a Lunch & Learn session, see below.

Bill Gates in Conversation With Stanford President John Hennessy (A Video Plus PP Slides) Use PowerPoint slides to quickly present Leadership Lessons From Bill Gates (see above article) then use the video to offer more learning from this interesting interview of Bill Gates. Perfect for a Lunch & Learn or part of a leadership development training. Program Highlights: Prototypes of new devices that will change the ways we learn and communicate. The web services dream and future of e-commerce. The critical need for research--what we've learned, and what's on the horizon. In this lively and informative presentation, Bill Gates gives you his perspective on where technology is going from where it is today. Expanding on his belief that we're still "really just at the beginning," he shares his goals for the current decade-advances in networking and application interactivity; increases in reliability and ease of use; and improvements in productivity, as information sharing becomes more and more efficient. During a candid question and answer session fielded by John Hennessy, Gates responds to issues ranging from privacy to security concerns; and from intellectual property protection to current limitations on broadband access. (2002) William H. (Bill) Gates is Chairman and Chief Software Architect of Microsoft Corporation, the world's leading provider of software for personal computers. He began programming at age 13, and by 1974, while an undergraduate at Harvard, he had developed a version of BASIC for the first microcomputer. He formed Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1975. Microsoft today employs more than 40,000 people in 60 countries. Leadership Lessons in PP Slides (2006) Plus a Video VHS / Length: 57 mins. (2002)- Purchase for $119.00

Leadership in a Wired World - (Love Is the Killer App) Video Presentation By Tim Sanders, Chief Solutions Officer,Yahoo and Author of the New York Times best-seller Love is the Killer App: How to Win Business and Influence Friends Highlights: The new value-creators: knowledge, networks, and compassion. The downfall of the barracudas and sharks, and their replacement by the nice and smart.. How "niceness" creates - not just good PR - but bottom-line profits. Tim Sanders doesn't fit the corporate mold. He looks too young; he dresses "mod" and he preaches compassion, telling today's business leaders why they should become "lovecats." But he seems to be on to something. His new book,  "Love is the Killer App" is flying off the shelves, and the rave reviews on Amazon.com average four stars. In this presentation, Sanders explains his advocacy of compassion, and helps us understand why genuine kindness and caring make bottom-line sense. Sanders believes that, in a wired world, nice guys finish first. Prior to becoming a senior member of the Yahoo! management team, Tim Sanders developed audio and video broadcast ventures for broadcast.com's Business Services Division. There he was responsible for the legendary Victoria's Secret fashion show webcast, and worked with a variety of clients including Harvard University, Dell Computers, Intel and Ford Motors. Video type: VHS / Length: 41 mins. (2003)- $95.00

How to Build a Brand: The For Dummies Experience (Video) Program Highlights: The For Dummies experience. Avoid temptations which dilute your message. "Branding" is more than just a current buzzword. A successful brand builds customer trust and loyalty by being easily identifying and consistent in quality and presentation. The IDG Books' For Dummies series set the course for the company's dynamic, brand-focused growth, John Kilcullen describes the strategies and tactics that have taken his brand from one obscure computer manual to a publishing empire which touches on an incredible array of lifelong learning topics, from business to sports, from art to wine, from gardening to home improvement, and beyond. John Kilcullen graduated magna cum laude with a BA in Communications from Fordham College in New York. Before joining IDG Books Worldwide, he spent nine years in various sales and marketing management positions at publishing industry leaders Prentice-Hall, the Bantam/Doubleday/Dell Publishing Group and computer book publisher Que. Mr. Kilcullen has been profiled in the Investor's Business Daily, The New York Times, People Magazine, and USA Today and has been seen in CNBC, CNN, and CNNfn. Video type: VHS / Length: 49 mins. (2000)- $95.00

How Great Companies Achieve Extraordinary Results with Ordinary People - Executive Briefing Video Program Highlights: Common assumptions about workers that are totally wrong. Why money is a terrible motivator. People-centered practices that can double productivity. Challenging the prevailing wisdom that companies must chase and acquire outside talent in order to remain successful, Dr. O'Reilly argues instead that the source of sustained competitive advantage already exists within every organization. O'Reilly's prescription for an overheated labor market: abandon the obsession with hiring high-priced stars and instead, motivate ordinary people to build a great company and achieve extraordinary results. Charles O'Reilly III is the Stanford University Graduate School of Business Frank E. Buck Professor of Human Resources Management and Organizational Behavior. Last year, he was a visiting professor at the Harvard Business School. He holds a BS in chemistry from the University of Texas, as well as an MBA in information systems and a PhD in organizational behavior, both from the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. O'Reilly is the author of Hidden Value: How Great Companies Achieve Extraordinary Results with Ordinary People. Video type: VHS / Length: 52 mins. (2001)- $95.00

The Mastery of Speaking as a Leader (A Video Presentation) Featuring:Terry Pearce, President, Leadership Communication Program Highlights: Reaching both the minds and hearts of an audience. A leader's road map for finding and using your voice to inspire others to take committed action. The critical need for authenticity in public speaking. Today's leaders must connect with their audiences in substantive ways that go far beyond the giving on information. This environment requires that people be committed to actin, not merely to change. Terry Pearce explores and demonstrates ways in which a leader can elevate a public speech into amore powerful and ultimately productive experience for the speaker and the listener. Terry Pearce's career includes 17 years with IBM as an innovator on the cutting edge of marketing. He then spent five years in private diplomacy to the Soviet Union, where he pioneered U.S. business activities in Moscow. He currently serves as director of the Social Marketing Project for the Institute for the Study of Social Change at the University of California in Berkeley, where he also lectures. His book Leading Out Loud was honored as one of the "Best 30 Business Books of 1995" by Soundview Executive Book Summaries. Video type: VHS / Length: 51 mins.(1994) - $95.00

Organizational IQ: Why Smart Organizations Perform Better (A Video Presentation) Includes a free "IQ test" for your company. Nine key principles for engaging your purpose, environment and resources. How high organizational intelligence translates to highly profitable growth. The collective intelligence of organizations can be far below that of its individual executives. Research shows that the "Organizational IQ" of a company is directly correlated to the company's performance. Organizational IQ can be measured and, unlike human IQ, vastly improved. This video comes with an "Organizational IQ Indicator Scoresheet" which you are welcome to submit for a free analysis of your company's IQ. Co-author with David Matheson of The Smart Organization (Harvard Business School Press), Dr. James Matheson has been a Consulting Professor in the Department of Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University since 1967, and recently co-founded SmartOrg, Inc. He received a BS in electrical engineering from the Carnegie Institute of Technology and an MS and a PhD in electrical engineering from Stanford University. Video type: VHS / Length: 54 minutes / $95.00

People-First Management: Creating a Culture of Trust (A Video Presentation) Program Highlights: The cornerstones of good business: credibility, respect and fairness. How to give your employees a vested interest in your company's success. The critical need for setting clear expectations, and acting accordingly. There's more to AFLAC's success than just simply a duck. Granted, this advertising campaign has skyrocketed AFLAC's brand awareness in the US to 89% (up from 8% just a decade ago), and has helped to triple AFLAC's sales since 1997. However, name recognition carries a significant burden. Once you become a household name, any wrong move you make will be remembered. AFLAC's Dan Amos believes that his company's success has come from a reputation for doing the right thing and for putting employees first. When employees trust the company to go the extra mile for them, they go the extra mile for customers. It is this level of integrity and customer service that has created shareholder returns for AFLAC double the market average. During Mr. Amos' 13-year tenure as CEO, the market capitalization of AFLAC has grown from $1.3 billion to more than $16 billion. AFLAC has been on Forbes' "Platinum 400 List of Best Big Companies" for four consecutive years, and Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work for in America" for five consecutive years. Video type: VHS / Length: 50 mins. (2003)- $95.00

The People Side of Great Business (Video) Featuring: Libby Sartain, Senior VP HR and "Chief People Yahoo" at Yahoo! Inc. Great businesses begin with great ideas, but they are sustained only through the dedication and passion of great people. To encourage such employees, Libby Sartain advocates a healthy, high-performance culture based on an environment of loyalty and trust. Such an environment is created by honest, two-way communications; adherence to stated values; and the establishment of clear expectations and rewards. Once this spirit of dedication is in place, your organization's principles and values become self-governing. As a result, your employees' entire energies will be focused on achieving your company's market and growth objectives. Sartain explains how to unleash the power of your company's foremost asset-its employees-and create lasting value. Prior to joining Yahoo!, Sartain was Vice President of People at Southwest Airlines, where she directed all human resources functions. She played a key role in developing an employment brand strategy that helped Southwest double employee growth in six years and fostered the company's reputation as a leading employer of choice. Sartain was named fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources, and she is co-author of "HR from the Heart: Inspiring Stories and Strategies for Building the People Side of Great Business." Video type: VHS / Length: 51 mins. (2004) $95.00