Tailored Training Programs
Helping your people to become confident, engaging and influential communicators in every situation
Good business is about great communication. When your people speak effectively, they leverage your products, services and ideas. But if they lack confidence or skills it can cost you opportunities, time, effort and money.
Speaking to influence and motivate team members, having 1:1 meetings with clients, or persuading stakeholders – the ability of your people to speak well, with presence, conviction and energy in any situation, is a vital part of your organisation’s success.
When you work with me, you’ll get interactive, practical, enjoyable programs, using the latest adult learning principles. All programs are research-based and proven, helping more than 4000 clients in the past 12 years.
I work with your organisation through workshops, training series, personal coaching and personal intensives utilising the Accelerated Speaking Results System.
The ASR System reflects the stages of development speakers move through as they gain skills, experience, confidence and presence, and addresses both content and delivery at increasingly impactful levels.
- Workshop (full or half day) when you need up-skilling in one or two main skills, in a concentrated burst. Ideal for fast knowledge transfer, with some opportunity to practise and reflect
- Training Series Speakers Confluence™ of three workshops, spaced over time. An in-depth approach, covering 1. Confidence and presence 2. High engagement and 3. Persuasion and influence. You get the opportunity to design and deliver presentations and work on impromptu skills, with reflection and implementation in between sessions. Videotaping can also be used
- Personal Coaching is 1:1 or very small group (up to three) tailored coaching to meet your exact needs. There are two levels of coaching available: A. Foundational skills and B. Transitional/Advanced skills.
All three training options use this Accelerated Speaking Results System:
1. Workshop
Workshops. When you need up-skilling in one or two main areas, in a concentrated half or full day burst. Ideal for fast knowledge transfer, with some opportunity to practise and reflect.
Often when clients first contact us, they have clear goals for the workshop content they want – you can find content ideas in the table below.
I also recommend a brief conversation directly with me as well, to check in with your needs and goals. This helps to confirm that what you’re considering is indeed your best solution.
| Want this result? | You Need: |
| Confidence, clear thinking and credibility | Confident Public Speaking Skills |
| Clear structure, writing & visually engaging design | Content Writing and Design Essentials |
| Audience engagement and interaction | Authentic, Effective Audience Engagement |
| Advanced influence, content and delivery skills: for keynotes, conferences and high-level presentations | Speakers Confluence™ Intensive (full day only) |
2. Training Series
Training Series of three workshops, spaced over time. Half or full day. An in-depth approach, covering more skills. Participants have the opportunity to design and deliver a presentation and work on impromptu skills, with reflection and implementation in between sessions. Optional videotaping of presentations is also available, and very effective.
This series gives you more permanent embedded results with a hands-on approach. This is achieved through more time, content creation during sessions (including slides if applicable) and delivery skills practice.
Each participant leaves the training series with a presentation improved, refined and delivered.
3. Personal Coaching
Personal coaching 1:1 or in very small group (up to three), this tailored coaching meets you exactly where you are, skill, experience and confidence-wise. There are two levels: A. Foundation skills and B. Transitional/Advanced skills (for level B, see Speakers Confluence™ Intensive below).
Coaching is most often accessed for these reasons:
- Management team member(s) who need quickly to become more proficient at presenting and communicating
- New role or position in organisation
- Special project starting
- External coaching and feedback is desirable, rather than happening internally
4. Speakers Confluence™ Intensive – 6 hours (choose: 1 day | 6 x 1 hr | 4 x 1.5 hour sessions)
Personal Intensive. This Speakers Confluence™ experience is intended for professionals looking for an edge – to be influential in changing opinion and encouraging action, with high-level content positioning, confidence and delivery skills.
Can be delivered in a 1:1, small group or workshop format.
This VIP full day, 6 x 1 hour, or 4 x 1.5 hour sessions is often requested for a client, management team or key person of influence who are already competent and professional. Ideal for people working towards a significant keynote or important speaking event.
In-house training:
Over 4,500 participants have completed training, coaching and workshop programs with Improve Your Public Speaking since 2011.
I’m based in Melbourne, and deliver programs across both regional areas and capital cities across Australia. I’m also happy to travel to locations not always serviced by other training organisations, which is often welcome!
Online, hybrid or face-to-face: your choice
Every program we offer can be delivered to you online, a hybrid of online and live in room, or fully face-to-face, depending on your location and preference.
Recent examples:
- Three Training series delivered for a building material global company. Delivered 100% online, allowing participants to attend from all over Australia and N.Z.
- Three Training series delivered for an IT global company. Delivered 100% online, allowing business analysts to attend from Melbourne, Bangkok and the Philippines
- Three Training series delivered for a Victorian Shire Council. Delivered 1st two sessions online, 3rd session in person
- Workshop delivered 100% online for an organisation whose Melbourne participants with physical or intellectual disabilities. No travel challenges.
Additional written materials and follow-up:
All participants receive comprehensive emailed handouts for permanent post-training reference, and follow-up calls can also be provided.
When
In-house training is half-day (3 hours) or full-day (6 hours). Please note: Speakers Confluence™ Intensive workshop is full day only because of the depth of material covered.
Numbers
Workshops and Training Series: Participant numbers are a minimum of 4, maximum flexible (up to 100). Your investment in the programs is dependent upon the numbers confirmed.
Personal Coaching: participant numbers are 1 – 3 people.
Each training is a unique and dynamic blend of research and lived experience including:
- Communication skills
- Behavioural science of learning, engagement and influence
- Education
- Resilience
- Psychology
- Emotional and social intelligence
- Leadership
- Performing arts
Our consultants found it a delight and a pleasure working with Sarah. Her modules were constructed with content that were grounded in psychology and human behavior. Her practical tips and approaches were well received too. During her workshops, Sarah was able to draw out the most reluctant of our consultants and make them participate enthusiastically.
The sessions were thoroughly enjoyable while being educational and practical. Thank you, Sarah. We have no hesitation in recommending Sarah’s course to others who are looking for such programs.
Sarah provided my team with practical, useful tools to overcome nerves, improve their speaking skills and engage their audience. She created a warm, dynamic atmosphere which encouraged sharing of ideas and goals. Sarah provided specific, useful feedback for each participant, and was flexible in tailoring her training to the needs of the group as they progressed.
I would highly recommend Sarah, and would use her services again without hesitation. She gets great results, is personable, and expert at what she does.
Sarah Denholm is a great teacher. She is kind and gentle and works in a very positive way with people. She has a knack of building confidence and giving people the skills they need.
Last year I was overseeing the management of a group of 20 projects for a large Melbourne-based company. Sarah was engaged to improve the presentation skills of Project Managers who were expected to present their progress to the CEO and senior board members regularly, and felt unprepared for the task ahead of them. She came into the group, quickly established rapport with all the staff and was able to assist them in a very short timeframe. There was noticeable improvement in the way the staff presented themselves and their confidence grew rapidly.
We felt very privileged to have been able to work with Sarah and I believe that the skills each person gained will stand them in good stead in many roles throughout their careers.
Sarah ran an internal workshop for a group of our Year 11 and 12 student leaders. Sarah was a very engaging and personable presenter. She created a wonderful atmosphere- one in which the students felt extremely comfortable. Unlike many public-speaking workshops, which tend to be very theory-heavy and lecture-based, this workshop was both practical and motivating. The students were given personal, constructive feedback on their presentation skills, and provided with an effective ‘toolkit’ to enhance their public speaking. Thank-you Sarah!” -Elana Ieremidis, Gladstone Park Secondary College, Senior School Student Leadership Coordinator
“In a three-hour session, we learnt that there is much more to public speaking than simply speaking; it is about preparation, mind-set and body language. The Public Speaking Workshop with Sarah was not only tailored to our individual needs, it was also extremely engaging and provided us with an excellent opportunity to develop and enhance our public speaking skills.