MIND Urges Public Sector Entities to Take Advantage of Training Courses

KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) — The Management Institute for National Development (MIND) is inviting public-sector entities to take advantage of its suite of training programmes.

MIND’S Chief Executive Officer, Dr Ruby Brown, said there is need for ongoing upgrading of skills in the workplace.

“When we get into a particular role within the public service, we would have gotten in based on the competencies we brought with us. However, there is a need to continuously develop and strengthen existing competencies, through learning and development,” she noted.

Brown, who was addressing a recent JIS Think Tank, said that developing competences helps to build confidence, adding that “there is really no replacement for learning and development”.

Part of MIND’s mandate is to provide effective leadership development and management training at all levels of the public sector.

The CEO said that when MIND was established, most of the focus was on management training.  However, with the deepening of the modernisation and transformation thrust, the entity has recognised the need to “fast-forward leadership development across the public service”.

“We have a number of leadership-development programmes, some that are short-term even spanning three days, as well as long-term, going for an entire year,” she indicated.

Manager for Customised Programmes and Delivery at MIND, Latoya Anderson, pointed out that in its programme design and development, MIND consistently analyses the space in which it operates and ensures that the trainers are from a variety of backgrounds, with different levels and layers of experiences.

She said the institute keeps abreast of the demands of the sector by having conversations with various stakeholders, including looking at the newest theories worldwide and conducting regular reviews of programmes.

Business Development and Communications Director at MIND, Marlene Campbell, for her part, said that MIND is committed to delivering first-class relevant solutions to public-sector leaders.

She said the entity’s offerings include scheduled programmes, which focus on the priorities of the Government; customised programmes, where MIND builds, designs and delivers training based on the need of a particular entity; and consultancy organisational development, where the focus is on evaluating how an entity operates and making recommendations for improvements.

She said that there are courses for all levels of personnel in the public service”. from permanent secretary to the ancillary staff, as “leaders can be found in all areas of organisations”.

Campbell further noted that MIND partners with strategic entities such as the Caribbean Leadership Project and the Cave Hill Sagicor School of Business Management “in order to ensure (we) train leaders to exert strategic influence, be proactive, foresee opportunities, be able to entertain diverse and divergent views, and who will help to transform their various structures”.

MIND will be staging a management training conference from July 19 to 20 at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston.