Employer Engagement Workshops

A practical Employer Engagement Workshop for IPS Specialists using the Intro–Curious–Engage method

This one-day workshop, available either online (delivered as two half-day sessions) or face-to-face, has been developed from my 10 years experience of engaging with several hundred employers across the country. It's designed to equip your team with the skills, techniques, and behaviours needed for successful employer engagement. This workshop focuses on creating meaningful job opportunities for your service’s clients, aligned with the IPS model, using the proven ICE method.

The ICE method emphasises relationship-building with employers while prioritising client preferences. In this highly interactive session, your team will learn how to:

• Understand the importance of employer engagement in supported employment.

• Research and identify suitable employers and key contacts effectively.

• Influence, engage, and build strong rapport with employers/providers using the ICE method.

• Communicate effectively with employers – what to say (and what to avoid).

• Ask impactful questions to gain valuable insights from employers/providers.

• Keep the door open for follow-up opportunities.

• Handle concerns or negative responses with confidence.

This IPS training often serves as a foundation for my in-field experiential session, helping attendees feel fully prepared to apply their learning in real-world situations.

Empower your team to forge stronger employer connections and create impactful opportunities for your clients. Melting the ice one conversation at a time.

This hands-on Employer Engagement workshop takes place on your local high street, working with real employers to uncover genuine job opportunities for your team’s clients. It serves as a practical follow-up to the ICE Method virtual workshop, allowing participants to apply their newly learned techniques. Alternatively, it can be delivered as a stand-alone session, offering your team the chance to explore effective methods for engaging with employers. So far, I have successfully delivered this experiential workshop to over 100 services nationwide.

During the session, I provide mentoring and coaching to your team members in real time. I begin by demonstrating how to approach and engage with employers, before guiding and encouraging your team to practise these techniques themselves. I offer constructive feedback throughout the session to help refine their approach. 

This practical, interactive method has proven highly effective in transforming mindsets and boosting confidence in employer engagement, with participants reporting a 50% increase in confidence following the training. It’s a valuable experience for both new and experienced team members alike.

Getting the best performance from your SE team starts with a supportive and empowering management style. If you are supervising and managing employment specialists and looking for ideas to help them deal with change, develop, and grow and you haven't done a coaching course or looking for a refresher then this course is ideal for you.

This IPS training covers what coaching is and what it isn’t, when and how to coach in IPS and supported employment, and why it’s effective in developing your team to be the best employment specialists they can be. The session goes onto exploring: 

• The skills you need to be a successful coach and how to develop them
• How people learn and develop through coaching
• The levels of change 
• How to use the GROW model of coaching using IPS/SE based scenarios

This one day workshop can be delivered online (over two half day sessions) or face to face at your premises.