Unit 2 - 2.1 Describe examples of effective presentation techniques. 2.2 Select and justify appropriate presentation techniques for a specific creative idea

2.1
An Effective presentation, while difficult to master, can be a critical way of communicating information to other people - be it, for example, for training purposes or pitching a creative idea. There are certain techniques that can be used, which i will describe below, that make for effective communication in general, but can also make a huge difference in how well your presentation will be received by the audience. This ranges from body language to terminology.

A confident, open body language is important when giving a presentation for a number of reasons; it not only helps project your voice (there is nothing worse than hanging your head and mumbling to the floor!) but instills confidence in the audience too and they are therefore more likely to listen (being able to hear your voice is a big help...) and digest what you have to say.

Do your research! Even before attempting a presentation, it is critical to know the topic you will be discussing, and at least have an idea of how your presentation is going to flow, even if you are likely to improvise your "script" along the way.

It is also a good idea to consider the audience and tailor your dialogue accordingly: referencing back to communicating technical topics to those that might not have an in depth knowledge on the subject, avoid jargon if it isn't completely necessary, and depending on the audience, it is important to adapt how formal/informal your language will be. Giving a presentation to your colleagues in a staff meeting can be more informal than discussing figures with a board of directors!

That being said, the right amount of humour can make a big difference to how well received your presentation will be. Again, this depends on your audience and the topic, but using humour or personal interaction throughout can make it more entertaining, and therefore much more memorable. On a similar note, if giving an electronic presentation, the use of pictures or other visual stimulation can also make it more entertaining. Just don't go overboard with clipart. Nobody likes clipart...

A combination of the above techniques can help effectiveness, but it can vary from one presentation to the next, and ultimately comes down to the presenter's confidence.

2.2

When presenting a creative idea, such as a web or print design, I would use a range of visual stimulus, such as an online portfolio of previous design work, a slideshow or even physical copies of print work like posters, banners and fliers. This is important for the type of work that I do, as it is design based, and therefore relies heavily on visual elements and how things physically look to the human eye.

Unit 1 - 3.1 Create and present a professional standard CV, with examples of own work, relevant to a specific job application.

3.1 Create and present a professional standard CV, with examples of own work, relevant to a specific job application

3.2 Discuss strengths and weaknesses in relation to own work and a specific job application

I have listed my specialties and the software packages I use, as well as my level of expertise in each, which gives a good outline of my skill level and proficiency with particular programs. However, I could have put more detail into my hobbies and interests.

Unit 6 - Ensure Your Own Actions Reduce Risks to Health and Safety

1.1 Define hazards and risks

While not exactly the most hazardous industry to be working in, there are still a number of hazards and risks to be aware of in the creative media industry, such as:

Loose Wires that can be tripped over.

Handling electronic equipment - in particular, lighting which may become very hot over time, or lifting heavy objects.

Location, for example filming in a public place or outdoors near traffic.

Working with computers, ensuring there are no liquids or spillages near the electronic equipment or taking regular breaks.

It can also be an issue to be filming or working from height, for example in some cases, when working at over 30 feet high, your insurance becomes invalid.

1.2 Outline key hazards and risks in own workplace, describing safe working practices

Working in both an office and off-site at events, there are a number of potential hazards and risks. There are many computers in the office, which leads to a variety of wires that need to be kept tidy to prevent tripping, as well as keeping the environment well lit and taking regular breaks from looking at the computer screen. Keeping the fire exit clear is also very important.

1.3 Outline key hazards and risks within own job role, describing precautions

There are a variety of hazards and risks for me to be aware of, when working in the office. In the office, most of my work involves electronic equipment such as PCs and Printers, therefore the main hazards to be aware of are ensuring I work in a well lit environment and take regular breaks, as well keeping drinks away from the electronics.

2.1 Identify own responsibilities for health and safety in own workplace and job role under health and safety legislation, explaining the importance of personal presentation and behaviour

My own responsibilities involve ensuring I take regular breaks and use the correct posture at my computer, as well as keeping my work station clean and tidy (including keeping liquids away from the PC) and practicing correct cable management. It is also important to maintain sensible behaviour, i.e not running around the office like a headless chicken or throwing equipment around, as well as wearing appropriate attire (For example wearing Steel toe cap boots or not wearing loose jewellery) . These are all important as they not only effect your own safety but that of others in the workplace too, and there are also laws in place to enforce correct Health and Safety procedures.

According to Health and Safety law, employees are required to:

1 Follow the training you have received when using any work items your employer has given you.
2 Take reasonable care of your own and other people’s health and safety.
3 Co-operate with your employer on health and safety.
4 Tell someone (your employer, supervisor, or health and safety representative) if you think the work or inadequate precautions are putting anyone’s health and safety at serious risk.

(reference: http://www.hse.gov.uk)

2.2 Describe procedures for dealing with risks outside the scope of own responsibility, identifying the appropriate personnel with whom to liaise in own workplace

 It also outlines the correct procedure for dealing with general health and safety issues, that you can't directly deal with yourself:

1 If you are worried about health and safety in your workplace, talk to your employer, supervisor, or health and safety representative.
2 You can also look at our website for general information about health and safety at work.
3 If, after talking with your employer, you are still worried, you can find the address of your local enforcing authority for health and safety and the Employment Medical Advisory Service via HSE’s website: www.hse.gov.uk.

In my own workplace, I would liase with my managing director Denise if I had any problems regarding health and safety issues, as she is also the appointed Health and Safety representative. It is also required by law to maintain a record of any previous accidents. It could also be as simple as discussing an issue with a co-worker that is involved - i.e if their work station has loose wires that could potentially be a hazard, advise them to keep the area tidy.

3.1 Identify workplace instructions relevant to own job

In my workplace, there are instructions and procedures (as required by law) in place which include practices to reduce health and safety hazards, as well as what to do in case of hazardous situations. This includes fire safety, such as identifying where the fire extinguishers are, as well as instructions of how to use the fire blanket located in the kitchen, and identifying the fire exits. It also includes the location of the first aid kit in case of any injury.

3.2 Identify any unsafe practices in own workplace and job role 

The most common unsafe practices in my workplace include incorrect postures while sitting at the computers and drinking tea or coffee close to electrical equipment.

3.3 Check which potentially unsafe working practices present the highest risk to self and others

The unsafe working practices that present the highest risk to me and others in the work place, in my opinion, includes the following: Blockage of the fire exit, this is potentially very dangerous and can effect all people in the work place in case of a fire, untidy work station; loose wires that may be tripped over causing injury. 

3.4 Take action to address any hazards in accordance with workplace procedures and legal requirements

In my workplace, if there is a hazard, I report it to my health and safety representative and make sure it is recorded in the log book in accordance with our health and safety procedure.

Unit 4 - 2 Know how to plan and manage workload

2.1 Describe effective time management skills needed to plan workload

Although I prefer to take a "freestyle" approach to most things I do, it would probably be a better idea to plan out my work, and sometimes it is essential to do so, particularly when tackling a large project or working with several colleges on a mutual task. Time management is essentially the foundation of a plan, especially when you have a deadline to meet, as it ensures that you have a guide as to what you need to get done during what times in order to complete the project. It is useful to have a physical plan on paper or electronically that you can use as reference and to keep track of things you have and haven't done yet, "ticking them off" as you go.

2.2 Describe how to specify and agree timescales, budgets and resources

In order to effectively manage a workload, there are various points to consider, which should form the foundations of your plan:

Timescale - How long do you have to complete certain tasks? Is there a final deadline? I regularly have print work to complete, that is to a strict deadline as it has to be proofed and sent to print in time to be used at an event. I therefore break down my workflow to be able to complete the project in time and without having to rush to get things done last-minute (Mostly...).

Budget - If you are working on a project for a client, or sometimes even if it is in house, how much funds are available? Particularly important if you need to buy any extra software, hire extra personnel, purchase stock images or plugins.

Resources - Who/What will you need to hand in order to complete the workload? For example, which pieces of software will you need to use? Will you need to utilise a specialist (photographer, film director)? What assets do you need? I regularly have to obtain images and copy from various venues for use in our sales support material.

If the project is for a client, agreeing on deadlines and budgets are a necessity and should be carried out before anything else, so that a plan can be made to meet those requirements. As far as resources are concerned, this can be agreed with your manager, or any third parties that may be involved on the project in question.

2.3 Explain how to construct a simple project plan

A project plan can be as basic or in-depth as you require it to be, depending on the project you are undertaking and your own skill with time management. There isn't exactly a strict guide to constructing a project plan, as long as you find a technique that you are comfortable with, and the plan is efficient and actually aids you with completing the project, rather than just being a formality.

The foundation of your plan usually consists of a brief, and getting your head around it should be your primary task. Understanding what is required of you and what the end result needs to be gives you a good starting and end point, and fill in the steps in between, taking into consideration the priorities of each. Then think about the timescale you have to work with and what deadline you have for the overall project, which will make it easier to break down the steps in between into "time slots". Also make note of what resources you will need for each task and how these will take from the overall budget of the project, or whether they will take up some of your allotted time (such as contacting third parties that will be involved). Having a hard copy of your plan, whether on paper or electronically is always useful for reference, and there are pieces of software and apps that can be used to aid you. Even a diary or a Google Calendar can be effective, particularly for time management. There is also software specifically geared toward project management, after a quick Google search, here are some examples: Zoho, Wrike.


2.4 Explain the use of a contingency plan

A contingency plan, or a "Plan B", is a supporting plan which is to be used if your original plan deviates from its intended course.  In other words, if something goes wrong, it's always useful to have a back up plan that will solve all of your issues! (Yeah right). Although it's not essential, it's good practice to have a contingency plan in place whenever you start a project (it could just be for certain points in your workflow), as you never know when life will throw you a curveball.

2.5 Explain the importance of storing work, using version control and observing file naming conventions

Keeping work stored securely is important if you don't want to have to deal with losing a document and having to start all over again! (I'm sure we've all been there before, though.) Not only that, but it is useful to be able to access your work with ease for reference any time you need it. There are certain practices to be aware of when storing your work, and some effective ways of making sure your work is saved securely:

Backups 

Saving your work is one thing, but not having a backup can come back to haunt you if you happen to lose your original document through corruption, accidental deletion or if the system you have saved it on becomes inaccessible.  Having an external hard drive handy so that you can save a copy of your work to it is a good way of keeping a back up. If you don't have one available, there are also Cloud services such as Google Cloud, or Google Docs, which allow you to store documents and files for free, which you can access from any internet connection.


Naming Conventions

Plenty of times I've saved a document, left it for some time and forgotten where I'd saved it. Luckily I have been able to find the document fairly easy with a search, having known what the document was called. In some instances, it is easy to forget what the document was named, making it difficult to track it down if you have saved it somewhere you can't remember. Therefore naming the file something memorable can be useful for tracking it down, even if it is your initials at the beginning or the document name, or the date that you created it, but key words in the title are particularly effective.

Version Control

Version control allows you to essentially "keep track" of your file revisions over time. Lets say you are working on a document that you add to, edit, and update regularly. When saving this document, rather than saving it as one document every time, save it in iterations, adding a date or number to the end of the document each time, for example MySpeech-01/01/13.doc, MySpeech-02/01/13.doc. This means that you can go back to a previous iteration if your latest revision becomes unusable, therefore allowing you to continue from your last version rather than having to start all over again.

Unit 4 - 1.2 Describe examples of challenging behaviours and issues in the workplace, 1.3 Explain the role of the key people to inform in relation to these examples, 1.4 Explain the impact of different behaviours and conduct in the workplace

Not every workplace can be a well-oiled machine, and we are all bound to come across "challengers" at some point in our careers, whether it be rude customers or colleagues that we just don't seem to get along with."Bullying" can still occur in the workplace, when someone takes that extra step beyond exerting their authority, and unless your service is 100% perfect 100% of the time, the "unhappy customer" will no doubt make an appearance. As an employee, not abiding by codes of conduct or company practices can also be viewed as challenging behaviour, such as continuous lateness, bad language or lack of professionalism with clients. More serious issues that can occur include racism, sexism and other forms of harassment that could be displayed by any one at any time whether intentional or not.

Below is a guide to bullying and harassment in the work place, from the gov.uk website:

Bullying and harassment is behaviour that makes someone feel intimidated or offended - harassment is unlawful under the Equality Act 2010.

Examples of bullying or harassing behaviour could include:

• spreading malicious rumours
• unfair treatment
• picking on someone
• regularly undermining a competent worker
• denying someone’s training or promotion opportunities

Bullying and harassment can happen:

• face-to-face
• by letter
• by email
• by phone

The law

Bullying itself isn’t against the law, but harassment is. This is when the unwanted behaviour is related to one of the following:

• age
• sex
• disability
• gender (including gender reassignment)
• marriage and civil partnership
• pregnancy and maternity
• race
• religion or belief
• sexual orientation

What employees should do if they’re bullied or harassed

Employees should see if they can sort out the problem informally first. If they can’t, they should talk to their:

• manager
• human resources (HR) department
• trade union representative

If this doesn’t work, they can make a formal complaint using their employer’s grievance procedure. If this doesn’t work and they’re still being harassed, they can take legal action at an employment tribunal.

Employers’ responsibilities

Employers are responsible for preventing bullying and harassment - they’re liable for any harassment suffered by their employees.

Having anti-bullying and harassment policies can help prevent problems. Acas has produced a booklet for employers, including advice on setting up a policy as well as how to recognise, deal with and prevent bullying and harassment.

(reference: https://www.gov.uk/workplace-bullying-and-harassment)



With regard to these issues, it is important to know what action to take if you witness them taking place and/or are a victim of it. Depending on the structure of the company, there could be a designated person whose role focuses on office relations and issues, such as a HR Manager, or if there is no HR department available, a more senior member of staff such as a line manager, director or MD. There are also third party organisations available that can give advice such as Acas (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) helpline, though attempting to settle the disputes through office procedures first is encouraged.

All of the issues outlined above regarding challenging behaviours and conduct will have some impact on the workplace. If it involves disputes between colleagues, it causes stress for those involved as well as indirectly effecting anyone else in the work place due to a poor working environment, and could therefore hinder the workplace efficiency. If it involves clients/customers, the company's reputation could also be affected.

Unit 4 - 1.1 Describe and compare the cultures of different Creative Media workplaces

With the Create Media industry containing such a variety of companies and areas of expertise, there are bound to be differences between workplaces, environments and interaction.

For example, a high-end photography studio working with prestigious clients will have a different work ethic and atmosphere to a small web design agency working for small local businesses... in theory. When I used to work for a small web design agency, the atmosphere was quite lively; we always had music playing in the office, and "banter" occurred regularly. Some offices tend to have a much more "serious" vibe to them, depending on the work they are approaching.

Taking my previous role as an example again, there wasn't a dress code in place at all, and so everybody (Field sales people aside) tended to dress casually. My current role however requires smarter dress due to the type of clientele we interact with, which also contributes to the "professional" atmosphere of the office and approach to work.

Some workplaces also tend to have strict regulations and practices in place when it comes to things like taking annual leave. Often you will have to give notice, such as with my current role a notice of at least a week prior to your planned time off needs to be given, whereas with my previous role there was a lot more leniency and discretion was used with regard to notice.

The general trend seems to be that smaller companies, particularly those that focus mainly on creative activities, have a much more relaxed approach to conducting work, as long as it is still done in a professional manner and results are still produced. Again, this tends to change depending on a variety of things such the type of clients you are dealing with and the company "image".

Unit 4 - 3.2 Create and justify a personal development plan, 3.3 Describe opportunities for training and development and explain the relevance of those choices

There are a number of areas within my job role that focus on constantly evolving topics such as web standards and programming languages. It is therefore important that I keep up to date with these areas and become efficient at learning the latest techniques and practices in these areas. Below is a plan of action with regard to some of these skills, including opportunities for me to train in these areas:

CSS3 / HTML5

With CSS3 and HTML5 becoming more and more commonly used on the web, it is vital that I learn these standards as soon as possible, to ensure that when they become common practice, I will be able to implement them to my work with ease. With my current knowledge in HTML and CSS, research and "hands on" experience with CSS3 and HTML5 would likely be enough for me to learn the new techniques fairly easily. There are a number of website available that offer in depth tips and tutorials, and other resources for learning, such as: W3Schools, and Trip Wire Magazine, which are free resources for me to educate myself "on-the-fly" when I have any down time at work.

Video Editing

Being able to produce my own video content for the company website and social media channels would be a great boost to my productivity. My skills in this area are fairly basic, so I would need to practice and or take a course in video shooting / editing in order to develop in this area. There are opportunities at my local college, SCCB,  for video editing courses, which would be ideal for learning these skills in an academic environment, as all relevant equipment and software would be readily available.

Photography

Although my Photography skills have already improved drastically, there are still certain areas that I would like to improve upon through practice. This would also give me the opportunity to produce more assets for the company website and social media platforms. There are a variety of photography competitions that I could enter, as well as opportunities at various events that my company stage, where I could gain experience and confidence with photography.