Nestle Middle East develops training programmes with the British Council

The British Council will run a total of 22 training courses, in 2002, based on three modules - 'Written Communication', 'Personal effectiveness', and 'Presentation Skills'. Nestle also plans to introduce these courses to its operations in Jordan and Lebanon, later this year.

Malu Pantoja, Training, Development and Communications Manager of Nestle Middle East said: "In 2001, when Nestle Middle East began to look at local training providers, we considered the British Council specifically for its strengths in English language training. However, as our discussions developed, we quickly realised that the British Council's Professional Development courses were highly relevant to our organisational needs.

"The British Council's training methodology fits very well with Nestle's training philosophy and we appreciate their use of tools such as pre-assessments, post- assessments and good follow-up. The quality of the trainers, who are all certified, and their professionalism and knowledge has been fundamental to the British Council's success. The response to the pilot programmes has been very strong and led us to increase the number of courses that the British Council will run this year, and to roll them out to other markets."

Jane Denby, Training Consultant responsible for client relations and Professional Training at the British Council, added: "Good communications leads to clarity and understanding, and consequently better business relationships. The need to inform, persuade, record, present, direct and instruct will always remain critical elements of the business world.

"The British Council's Professional Development team has developed a series of modules to help companies become more effective communicators - internally and externally - and we are delighted with the response from Nestle Middle East.

"In fact, the British Council's Professional Development courses will be launched to the public in April, so that any individual can have access to the same high quality training as multinational companies and be able to improve their English language, communication and management skills, and career prospects as a result."