• Course Details
  • Admin & Secretarial
  • Communication
  • Customer Service
  • English
  • HR & I.R.
  • International Trade & Finance
  • Leadership & Management
  • Marketing & Sales
  • Team Building & Motivation
  • Personal Development & Effectiveness
  • Quality Management Systems
  • Safety, Health & Security
  • TQM
• Public Course Calendar

• ILM
• City & Guilds

Chinese or Tamil. However there is a compulsory period for you to learn English, because when you reach secondary level, you must be proficient in English otherwise you will not be able to pass your exams to obtain the Lower Certificate of Education and after that the Senior Cambridge Certificate (Equivalent to our SPM).

I believe that the approach taken by its teaching of English was the correct method. The teachers, whether they taught English, Maths, Science, Geography, History and other subjects, all spoke fluent English. They were able to constantly correct us. Sometimes it was the language, tenses, words, vocabulary, phrases, sentences, spelling, etc. Why they were successful was how they taught the language.

When I first went to school in Primary 1, I was taught pronunciation, beginning with the five vowels – a, e, i, o, u, - We were also taught how to read the correct way. No short cuts. Oral tests were given and we had to pass it, otherwise ‘whoa’ be on us.  We started to learn how to spell in Primary 2. The teachers made us read from our text books with the correct pronunciation and there were tests in which we had to spell the spoken words correctly. In Primary 3, it became more interesting as we were required to read, memorise and act out the nursery rhymes in front of the class. Thus our confidence level increased and we were able to speak in English without any hesitation to any one.

Writing essays, letters, short stories and manuscripts was taught in Primary 4 to improve our written English. Only when we were in Primary 5, we were taught cursive writing. The teachers took the trouble to draw double lines on the black board to show us how to write properly. Those days white board and marker pens were unheard of.  By Primary 6 our primary schools days have come to an end, and we were able to pronounce, speak spell, dictate, write sing, do poetry and even think in English. We must pass the English exams to be able to proceed with Standard 1 in a secondary school. From then on learning the English language gets tougher and tougher and it never ends until you have passed your Senior Cambridge exams. After that if you decide to continue with Form 6 you will continue to learn the English language even if you are placed in the science stream.
I personally think learning the English language is a whole growing-up process that requires guidance, teaching and discipline.

In present day situation, English taught in schools, are a one subject session only. After that they do not speak English as the medium of instruction is in B.M. (except science and maths). Like any other language, to be fluent in speaking English, one must have the opportunity to speak and write in English continuously. Sad to say, the students of today, are unable to do this. It is not their fault. Only those who grew up in an English speaking family, one may find that they are much more conversant with the English language as they have the opportunity to practice speaking with their parents, uncle, aunts, etc. and would probably find it easier to learn the English language.

TNI is trying to give this opportunity to people to come for our English classes to be taught in the way of our predecessors – the correct way. As an adult you may think that it is too late for you to learn English. Our advise is that it is never too late if you want to learn. If you do not want to learn nothing is too early.

So TNI and its partners have designed an English course basically for the working adults to learn the language over a period of time to enable the participants to practice the language until they are conversant and confident to use it. Grammar will be one of the important topics which will be covered in detail. Please refer to the section on LET’S LEARN THE ENGILSH LANGUAGE for more details on the course which has been entitled
 “ PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH WITH CITY AND GUILDS”

This is a qualification based course and those who pass the examination conducted by City & Guilds, will be awarded a globally recognized certificate.

Back to Contents

Coaching Leaders
As the tenure of chief executive officers continues to shrink globally, with two out of every five new CEOs falling in their first 18 months, it has become critical for companies to cultivate internal candidates for top positions.
Corporations are beginning to realize that executive succession pipelines are broken, adversely affecting the ability to identify and nuture future leaders.
This can be alleviated by establishing on-going programmes that correctly identify the highest –potential executives and provide them with meaningful and measurable development.
According to surveys, recruitment and talent retention is perennially at the top of a CEO’s most pressing worries, and for good reason. Having enough capable leaders to execute corporate strategy is a growing concern, one heightened by demographic trends that indicate a continuing shortage of leaders in coming years.

From the field to the boardroom
A concept that has moved from the world of sports to the executive suite, executive coaching is a means to help senior executives manage a constantly changing business environment and refine their leadership skills.
Coaching is not limited only to senior levels, as people all over the world at all levels utilize executive coaches to help them achieve their full potential. The process focuses on the participant’s goals, reinforces learning and change, and increases self-empowerment.
Savvy organizations understand that the development of high potential employees and the continuous development of current executives’ leadership skills are critical to company-wide success.
On the organization level, executive coaches help companies avoid costly management turnover, develop their most talented people and ensure that leaders perform at their maximum potential. Recent research suggests that leaders and executives who receive coaching are more likely to be promoted than those who have not had one-on-one coaching.
Executives who receive coaching have improved working relationships with their direct reports, peers and immediate supervisors. In addition, coached executives experience increase job satisfaction, team performance and organizational commitment. These benefits help to create bottom line results and improve operational achievements

MANAGERS AS COACHES.
HERE IS ANOTHER ASSESSMENT TOOL WHICH CAN HELP YOU TO RATE YOURSELF AS A COACH.

THERE ARE TWO INSTRUMENTS. THE FIRST TO BE COMPLETED BY YOU,  IS GIVEN BELOW.  THE SECOND TO BE COMPLETED BY YOUR DIRECT REPORTS, WILL BE GIVEN IN THE AUGUST ISSUE OF OUR E-NEWSLETTER.
SO LOOK OUT FOR IT!

ARTICLE(S) FROM THE INSTITUTE OF LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT, U.K.,

THE ART OF LEADERSHIP – MOTIVATING THE MASSES

There are many theories on leadership, but one of the most revealing is not a concept but a quote, attributed to Dwight D Eisenhower:
“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it”
The last six words are the key – however tactically brilliant you are as a leader, however inspired your decisions, you are not going to get anywhere unless you can persuade people to follow you.
Motivating employees, and sustaining that motivation over your term as leader, is a major challenge.
As recently as 30 years ago, the vogue was for ‘command and control’ leadership – persuading people to do want you want through intimidation and fear. These days, the most successful leaders appeal to far more positive human emotions.
Leadership academic John Kotter argues that leaders have to appeal to basic but often untapped human needs, values and emotions. We all feel a need for achievement, recognition, self-esteem and a feeling of control over our lives, he argues, and appealing to these emotions can elicit a powerful response. That said, during our research for What Do Leaders Really Do?, it quickly became apparent that truly motivational leaders, who know how to tap into human emotions , are born and not made. Of the 17 leaders we spoke to, a handful could be described as natural inspirational leaders (one or two, in fact, admitted that it was their predominant skill).
Others found that they had to work much harder at motivation – but all had found their own path, with excellent results.
Overall, motivation within an organisation is linked to a large number of factors. Employees will tend to be motivated if they believe in the vision, direction or objectives of the organisation and its leader, feel they are trusted and have been well-informed, have been presented with challenging but achievable goals and feel that their employer truly cares for their welfare. These four points are basic requirements for a motivated workforce, but can still be a challenge for some leaders. Trusting people to do their job is a fundamental element of motivation, but that also means that the leader should be willing to accept that mistakes will be made.
“Motivation is about convincing people that they are capable of great things” Greg Dyke told Quenn’sall goes wrong, so what? It’s about fear – you have to reduce the fear in their lives.”

The Power of Praise
As well as accepting that mistakes will be made, the recognition and celebration of success is a vital element of motivation. Kotter argues that rewarding successes gives employees a sense of accomplishment and helps them feel like they belong in an organisation[Tyar content. A sidebar is a standalone supplement to the main document. It is often aligned on the left or right of the page, or located at the Typically, the leaders we spoke to put this view into practice. Greg Dyke, for instance, told us that he consciously made time while director-general of BBC to celebrate with employees when something had gone well. “On the Monday morning following the concert we covered to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee, for instance, I came into the office and sent a quick email to everyone saying, wasn’t that wonderful? Didn’t we do well? It’s important to say it. Sue Campbell, Head of UK Sport, takes the same view – If someone handles themselves really well in a meeting I will bang on their door and say, well done, good job. It doesn’t matter if you’re six or 60 years of age, it’s good reinforcement when someone says you’ve done a good job.
Several leaders we spoke to made the point that it is much easier for a group of people to pull together if they are facing possible failure.
Martin Johnson, who captained the World Cup-winning England rugby in 2003 and is now the team’s manager, told us that it was much more difficult to keep his team motivated at half time if they were winning than if they were losing. In this spirit, Martin Glenn, the former president of PepsiCo UK and now CEO of Birds Eye Iglo group, said that he has often applied a tactic of creating an enemy if no obvious foe was available. When he became chief executive of Birds Eye it was one of the largest frozen food companies in Europe. “What benefit have any of us gained from being the biggest?” he asked. “We needed an enemy fast and that enemy was chilled food – it’s a bigger market than frozen food. It’s much more fun being an underdog in a turnaround situation than it is being the big beast. Terry Leahy (CEO of Tesco) talks about this all the time” he told us. “When you get to the top of the tree, what you have to do is define the forest as the next target. It’s always about giving people targets”.

Natural Born Leaders
Occasionally, a leader will emerge who could be described as purely inspirational, and we found one in Kevin Roberts, world wide CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi. Kevin;s leadership style is distinctive, but entirely natural. It would be virtually impossible for anyone to emulate it because it’s simply what Kevin does.

Back to Contents

TNI will be conducting professional English classes as well as customized English courses (for corporate clients) using the City and Guilds, U.K. models. For those interested in obtaining a recognized qualification based program in English proficiency are required to sit and pass the City & Guilds examination.  Examinations are conducted under the stringent rules of City & Guilds and those who pass will be awarded a professional certificate by City & Guilds, U.K.
 Please email or call us for details of the English classes and courses that you may want to register.

Who and What is City & Guilds, U.K.
City & Guilds of London Institute Group, is an independent charity founded in 1878 by the 16 livery companies and the Corporation of London, with the broad intent to establish a national system of education.  The grant to the Institute of a Royal Charter of Incorporation in October 1900 by Queen Victoria denoted its acceptance as a recognised part of the constitution and national life of the United Kingdom.

City & Guilds is now UK’s leading and largest provider of vocational qualifications, offering over 500 awards across a wide range of industries, and progressing from entry level to the highest levels of professional achievement. With over 8500 centres in 100 countries, City & Guilds is recognized by employers worldwide for providing qualifications that offer proof of the skills they need to get the job done.

In the absence of the English language as a qualification based skill for foreign students to learn and acquire, City & Guilds, in 1990, purchased the Pitmans Examinations Institute, who were the front runners in the teaching of the English language, and established the Pitmans qualifications single subject awards in business and administration, and English language and they proved to be worldwide winners.

Pitman Qualifications is an awarding body which has been providing qualifications
for over 100 years.
• Since 1990 Pitman Qualifications has been part of City & Guilds International and
  now provides the English language section of the UK’s largest vocational
  awarding body.
• City & Guilds Pitman Qualifications has its headquarters in the UK and has
  agencies worldwide. There are also branches in Eastern Europe, East Africa,
  China, Malaysia, Southern Africa and South Asia.
• City & Guilds Pitman Qualifications examinations are taken by over half a million
   candidates worldwide annually

In 2003, City & Guilds have recruited the Institute of Leadership & Management, U.K. (the largest institute in UK on Leadership & Management) to be their partner thus providing management qualifications, learning materials and membership services throughout the globe.

All candidates undertaking the course in English are able to do it at 3 levels under TNI’s

“PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH WITH CITY AND GUILDS”

They are:
Level 1 – Clerks, technicians, etc.
Level 2 – Supervisors, those aspiring to become supervisors or team leader.
Level 3 – Executives, Assistant Managers, etc.

A pre-course evaluation will be conducted to establish the candidate’s placement at the appropriate level.

Duration of course is about 130 contact hours and depending on the needs and convenience of the candidates, the classes will be conducted once a week over a period of 4 months or twice a week of evening classes.

Registration is on-going and new candidates will be fitted in to a new class or existing classes.

Please call or email TNI for the details.  

Back to Contents

“ON-LINE TRAINING ~ E-LEARNING ~ SELF DEVELOPMENT"

“Do-It-Yourself” – Train Yourself to become a complete and changed person by enrolling into our “On-Line Self Study Program”