Whether you’re navigating interviews, Q&A sessions, or engaging in conversations with stakeholders, mastering the art of media training can be the key to success as it keeps the focus ON the things you want to talk about and AWAY from those you don’t.

Here are three key tips I learnt in media training to elevate your communication game:

1. Know your North Star

The key to a good Q&A is don’t answer the question you’re asked, answer the question you wish you were asked. If there’s a crucial message you want to get across, that’s your North Star. Practice answering questions that lead you back there.

Then if they keep commenting on something trivial or something you don’t know well, you can bring the conversation back to what matters.

2. Don’t speak for others.

If somebody says “You must be shocked by your competitors’ collapse” don’t take the bait. Instead say you’ll let that person comment on their situation, and then bring the conversation back to your area of focus.

3. Have command of two or three recent statistics that support your perspective.

You don’t need to be a walking encyclopaedia, but a few stats are very compelling. Make sure they are no more than two or three years old, and that you can cite your sources.

What More Can You Do?

While the strategies above are indispensable, there’s always room for refinement. Here are a few additional tips to enhance your performance during Q&A sessions and interviews:

4. Active Listening: Pay close attention to the questions posed to you. Understanding the intent behind each query allows you to tailor your responses more effectively.

5. Authenticity: Stay true to your brand and values. Authenticity resonates with audiences far more than rehearsed or scripted responses.

6. Bridge Techniques: Master the art of bridging—seamlessly transitioning from the question asked to the point you wish to convey. This technique allows you to maintain control over the conversation.

7. Practice, Practice, Practice: Like any skill, effective communication requires practice. Engage in mock interviews, seek feedback, and continuously refine your approach.

By harnessing these insights and refining your communication skills, you’ll be better equipped to give interviews which drive your vision forward with clarity and conviction.

What else would you add? What do you find helps when you’re involved in Q&A sessions or interviews?

We’ve been privileged to speak with even more edtech and industry thought leaders throughout 2023 as part of our #FinnemoreFireside chats, and the insight they continue to provide to us and our community is invaluable.

Thanks to Catherine Tallis of HFL Education, a long-standing provider of MIS support to schools, for discussing how support teams must adapt as the MIS market continues to evolve.

Thanks to Derek Hills from Ark for sharing your views on where you see AI fitting into technology budgets and the broader education landscape, and what the future of MIS might be.

It’s great to speak with thought leaders from government so thank you to Edtech NED, legislator, schools and education expert Jim Knight for your thoughts on the disconnect between the education and labour market, and the need for a school system which truly meets the needs of learners, communities and employers.

Thank you to Chris Kirk of CJK Associates Ltd for your insight into MAT’s needs in terms of vision, strategy, operating models and governance, and what this means for suppliers – both now and in the future.

Our chat with Lyndon Stickley and Sam Curtis of iplicit is essential listening for everyone with an interest in finance as they discuss the importance of change in the education sector and the need for flexibility and adaptability in finance and management systems

Thank you to Ollie Burnett from the school support team in Coventry for talking to us about all the valuable ways they support their schools, including helping them procure and migrate to their new MIS as a group earlier this year.

Finally, we were delighted to speak with Izzi Dorrian and Ed Butcher, founders of the brilliant Habitude workflow platform, for an insightful discussion on the evolving landscape of MATs, the importance of infrastructure, and the need for a clear vision.

As always, we’ve thoroughly enjoyed making the series and are looking forward to a fantastic 2024!

Have a great Christmas break

Best wishes from Sarah & Nick

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Our latest #FinnemoreFireside is with Izzi Dorrian and Ed Butcher, founders of the brilliant Habitude workflow platform for MATs, designed to solve slow, unreliable or lost admin by connecting people, platforms and data into trackable workflows.

Both Izzi and Ed are from an educational background themselves and it’s a really insightful discussion including:

• The significance of education and why both are involved in the field.
• Importance of stability: Emphasis on understanding policies and processes, especially in times of frequent policy changes.
• Recruitment and retention: Highlighted the challenge of administrative hassles, compliance, and the need for strategic recruitment and onboarding processes.
• MATs’ future challenges: Discussion on the evolving landscape of MATs, the importance of infrastructure, and the need for a clear vision.
• Role of technology: Exploration of the role of technology in MATs, potential improvements, and challenges in adapting to different MAT structures.
• Openness in data: Advocacy for open data among edtech companies, with a focus on collaborative efforts for better data flow and management in MATs.

Our final #FinnemoreFireside of this academic year is with Chris Kirk of CJK Associates. Chris’ work is varied and he and his team support the mission of education by providing strategy, business planning, organisation design, operations, procurement and shared service advice to education organisations.

Chris works extensively with multi-academy trusts on vision, strategy, operating models and governance/finance reviews, so our Q&A session focuses on MATs and their needs, and what this means for suppliers – both now and in the future.

It’s a really insightful discussion and we cover topics including:

• Fostering social responsibility in schools and achieving aspirations through clarity
• How schools can contribute to society
• Finding your mission: understanding and showcasing your unique capabilities
• Unlocking the power of professional networks: how Trusts can make a difference
• The challenge of ensuring adequate support for high-need pupils
• Establishing a culture of consistency: How do you ensure a similar mission statement in new schools/academies?
• The future of school groupings and the natural drift towards ten
• When MATs stand firm and refuse to uphold the Regional Commissioner’s agenda
• What is Collaborative Alignment? Achieving aspirations through group collaboration
• The challenges facing schools as the educational environments change

We’d love to hear your feedback and comments below. Enjoy!

Next in our #FinnemoreFireside series is this Q&A session from before half term with Matt Woodruff, Vice President of Analytics and AI at Community Brands UK.

A data professional and PhD candidate in the field of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence in Education, Matt has a prior background of 25 years in technology applications and consulting in Europe and the US.  He’s founded companies specifically addressing how technology can support more effective decision-making at all levels to improve outcomes and identify ways to be able to ‘do more, with less’ – more important than ever in today’s economic climate.

Matt and I had an insightful conversation about data and machine learning, including:

• What is AI? The acronym is bandied about a lot, and here Matt gives a very strong definition of AI and more importantly Machine Learning
• We talk a lot about the benefits of using contextual data with machine learning
• What is the future of the use of data and how expansive can it support Teachers, Students and Parents
• What needs to change? How ‘open’ should data be?
• How is Community Brands supporting schools, and what’s next for the company?

It’s an interesting listen – especially for those of you like me who are interested in data and where the next innovations in analytics will be. Enjoy!

How successful has the government’s 10-year school rebuilding programme been?  There are 100 school rebuilding projects currently underway, with a third set of 61 schools announced in July, so:

❓ Has it created an effective digital infrastructure?

❓What would/should the direction of government policy on school building and refurbishment under new political leadership?

❓What effect has it had, if any, on pedagogy?

With questions such as these, how do you assess the ongoing rollout and implementation? We’re pleased to be involved in the Westminster Forum Projects ‘Next steps for school buildings in England’ online conference tomorrow where delegates will do just that!

I’ll be speaking on understanding and maximising the benefits of improved facilities on educational outcomes.

The speakers and delegates will also look at issues around support for schools that have not been accepted onto the programme; how can their needs be met?

Chaired by former Minister for Schools & Learners, Rt Hon Lord Knight of Weymouth, there are some great keynote sessions from Jane Balderstone and Rory Kennedy from the Department for Education; Robert Gould, Partner at Barker Associates, and Associate Director Matt Robertson of LocatED. The conference will examine the future of school buildings and the development of the schools estate in England – including improvement of estate quality, the school buildings market, and maximising the benefits of improved facilities.

The agenda looks at:

• improving the quality of the schools estate in England – key priorities moving forward – effective digital infrastructure – developing facilities fit for the long term
• the school rebuilding programme – policy priorities – rollout – lessons learnt so far
• the current school buildings market – strategies for land acquisition
• environmental sustainability and energy efficiency – school buildings for the future – role in contributing to net-zero – cost of running school buildings amid rising energy prices
• benefits of improved facilities – impact on educational outcomes – teaching quality – maximising community use

More info and booking details can be found here.

It should be a thought-provoking day with lots of opportunities for discussion, we’re looking forward to it 😊

Towards the end of 2021, Nick caught up with Andy Kent, CEO and Founder of Angel Solutions who create innovative, web-based applications to help all levels of the education sector. Their tools are used nationwide, as well as internationally, from pupils, teachers and school leaders right through to local authorities and large academy chains.

Some of the questions Nick asked Andy include:

• Your business is unlike many others as you really focus on innovation and culture; what does innovation mean to you?
• What do you think is important for businesses and establishments to consider and take stock of right now, especially after Covid?
• With so many new technologies entering the market, what will your approach be to these new technologies and when to introduce them?
• What advice would you give to edtech businesses and startups?

We’ve split the interview into three parts to make it easier to digest. In part 1, Nick and Andy discuss innovation and culture at the circus (for those of you who have never visited, Angel Solutions offices are themed as a circus), and the impact of Covid on businesses.

Part 2 focuses on their ‘freemium’ model and advocacy, usage data and customer success, and showing value through usage and data. They also chat about changes in edtech and the challenge this creates.

Finally, in part 3 Nick and Andy cover ‘best of breed’ solutions, what’s new in edtech, and the future direction of Angel Solutions.

Enjoy!

Our next fireside chat this year is with education thought leader, Sue Macgregor of Alps Education.

Sue brings a wealth of sector experience to our chat, having had a long and varied career in teaching and leadership, before moving to Alps Education to lead the Education and Product Development teams.

At Alps Education, their focus is on providing the right analytical tools to schools so they have the power to help every student achieve their full potential. Their platforms provide KS4 and KS5 performance insights that help teachers and leaders to celebrate strengths, action any gaps and drive-up student achievement.  

It’s a great fireside chat, and Sue provides loads of insight into:

• Her background in education, the trials and tribulations of Ofsted (and the pride in obtaining ‘Outstanding’ rating), her move into the world of edtech, and why she works at Alps Education
• Her role at Alps Education leading teams including many other former education leaders, and the context and experience that brings
• How tech has to work for the people who use it – not everyone loves data so it must fit in with what they need. Data can’t solve your problems but it can flag potential issues.
• The value and importance of asking the question “So what?”
• The ways assessment policy has changed, and how schools can work without baseline data (as a result of covid lockdowns)
• Given what we’ve all learned through the pandemic and homeschooling, how assessment policy might look in the future; it’s a wasted opportunity to simply return to what we’ve been doing for the last 50 years.
• How Alps methodology is different, and their mantra of “what’s next?” and allowing students to move forward
• What edtech companies should be thinking of when developing new solutions for educators and leaders, both now and in the future.
• The importance of being transparent, and empowering school leaders, teachers and staff
• Future plans for Alps Education, and developments and innovations the education community can expect to see in the coming months and years.

We’ve split the interview into three shorter parts for you to watch and listen to – enjoy!

Following on from our first fireside with the Senior Product Director at IRIS Software in November 2020, we’re delighted to welcome Winston Poyton back for a follow-up conversation – especially given so much has changed in the world of school management systems in the last 12 months alone.

In this fireside chat, Nick and Winston discuss:

• Developments across the IRIS business since our last Q&A session when iSAMS had only just been added to the portfolio
• How IRIS is busy reinforcing its education credentials through building relationships and listening
• Their thought leadership work including this webinar with Lord Jim Knight, and their recently published whitepaper “Are Education Management Systems Future-Fit?”
• The wellbeing challenges faced by schools – especially in the light of Covid – and how technology can help
• The ways in which the MAT landscape continues to evolve and why academies are demanding more
• Innovation and what this means: it’s not just about new tech, but new ways of doing things
• How IRIS is working hard to make sure their customer experience is as intuitive and friction-free as possible

We’ve split the interview into 3 parts to make it easier to digest. Enjoy!

Our first fireside chat of the new academic year is with education thought leader, Duncan Baldwin. Duncan brings a wealth of sector experience to our chat, from teaching positions and his time at Capita SIMS (now ESS SIMS), to influencing government as Deputy Policy Director at ASCL and his current Headship at The Castle Rock School, part of the Apollo Partnership Trust.

In part 1 of this fireside chat, we discuss:

• Duncan’s background (including his encounter with Margaret Thatcher!) and how he has come to hold such a variety of posts across education
• His focus on outcomes, data for improvement, and how he’s helped people understand the asset they have in MIS software.

In part 2 we cover:

• How he’s utilised his breadth of experience within his Headship role
• Government initiatives and how data is used to show they were working
• ASCL policies and initiatives
• His project with SISRA and encouraging school-to-school collaboration

Part 3 focuses on:

• What are the better performance measures out there?
• Duncan’s work with SMID and askEddi on identifying trends
• Why Christmas jumper day is not always the fun thing you think it might be for many pupils!

In part 4 we discuss:

• Unearthing insights by collaborating with other schools on data
• The challenges of MFL – especially when pupils move to secondary school – and the challenges of transitioning from Year 6 to Year 7 in a global pandemic
• The impact of the SixIntoSeven project, developed in partnership with school leaders in response to Covid-19 school closures and cancelled SATs in 2021

And finally, in part 5 I ask:

• What’s next for Duncan, his school and his Trust?
• As an outward-facing education thinker, would he be willing to collaborate with schools and industry further?