Before coming to your training, please do the following:
This lesson will help you identify the purposes of business partnerships, potential business partners, and associates who are ready to start a business partnership. As you become more alert to these things, you will be better able to prepare associates to move toward a better and more stable job.
From the following list, choose and complete one or more activities that best apply to your situation.
Watch “The Beginnings” video on the Deseret Employment intranet.
As a group, discuss the following questions:
Brainstorm reasons why business partnerships are helpful to associates. Write the ideas on the board.
As a group, discuss any experiences that you or other group members have had with past business partnerships. Address the following questions:
Who was responsible for the timesheets and weekly follow-up with the associate?
From the following list, choose and complete one or more activities that best apply to your situation.
As a group, list on the board unsuccessful or ill-conceived business partnerships and successful or well-conceived business partnerships. Review the Benchmark Checklist, found in the “Lesson Resources” section, Resource 1. Discuss the following questions:
Write down the names of as many nearby companies as you can think of. These companies need not have participated in a business partnership with Deseret Employment in the past. Share your list with the group.
Write down all the people you know with whom you could discuss business partnerships. Share your list with the group.
Divide into pairs and role-play talking to prospective business partners. One person will play a business or contact, and the other will discuss business partnerships and explain how a partnership could benefit the contact’s company. Feel free to use the “Business Partnership” brochure to explain the program. The brochure is also available at store.lds.org.
After a few minutes, switch roles and repeat the role-play.
From the following list, choose and complete one or more activities that best apply to your situation.
As a group, discuss the following questions:
Divide into several groups. Each group will be assigned one of the following scenarios.
With your group, read your assigned scenario aloud. Then discuss the following question:
After a few minutes, each group should share its conclusion with the class.
Annie is an associate who has been out of the workforce for a few years due to raising her young children. Now that they are all in school, she wants to return to the workforce. Prior to becoming a stay-at-home mom, she had worked as an administrative assistant in a busy medical office. She would like to get back into an administrative role but is worried that her skills are out of date and that nobody would want to hire her.
Blake has been at Deseret Industries for several months and has a placement goal of working in a warehouse. His job coach trainer has been working with him on AWARE issues, but he still struggles with hygiene and coming to work on time.
Carly doesn't have her GED and isn't sure what she wants to do vocationally. She thinks she wants to work with kids but isn't sure how she would handle being in that environment. She used to struggle with attendance, but for the past month she has been at standard attendance. There are no other noticeable AWARE behavior issues.
Don has been employed at Deseret Industries for over a year, working for most of that time on the retail floor. He is currently a cashier. His vocational goal is to get a job in retail. He is benchmarked and has no AWARE issues.
As a group, discuss the following questions:
Write down a list of associates who could participate in a business partnership.
Share your thoughts with the rest of the group and record any feedback you receive.
Seek to identify a personal or business gap or need.
Spend a few minutes silently pondering what you've discussed during this lesson. Listen as the Holy Ghost helps you identify areas where you can improve. Record your impressions in your learner's journal under the question “What Lack I Yet?”
Seek ways to close the gap or develop the required talent(s) to meet the need.
With the guidance of the Spirit, create your plan of how you will improve and close the gap(s) you have identified. You may use one or more of the exercises below, your own strategy, or a combination of both. Record this plan in your learner's journal under “What Must I Do?”
After a few minutes, those who are comfortable doing so can share their impressions with the group.
Seek understanding, and then share what you learned.
During the week, focus on implementing the plan you created. Record your impressions or lessons learned in your learner's journal under “Therefore, What?” You will be given time at the beginning of next week's lesson to share your experience with the group.
