The network begins

Following an open space discussion at the Texel SOL conference, we’re reviving the SOL Trainers Network.

We’ve created a group on the SOL website,

The SOL Trainers Network is for anyone who trains people in solution-focused approaches.

This includes those who train coaches, facilitators, managers, teams or other trainers to be (more) solution-focused. It may include trainers of therapists, counsellors, or other more therapy-like applications of SF, though these are unlikely to be the majority of our members, as SOL is primarily about the application of SF in organisations.

Our aims are to provide a useful resource for SOL trainers and to raise the quality of SF training.

We’ll capture what has been useful so far from the network; for example, by making existing resources easier to find by bringing them across from the old website. This new site will enable more connections and more conversations.

Some of the ways we may raise SF training quality include:
Brokering visits to each other’s training sessions – learning from reviewing and being reviewed
Creating a badge of training quality – within the open SOL community
Creating a Forum for trainers – perhaps with Action Learning Sets, teleconferences and seminars to follow a 6-month process
Promoting SOL trainers on lists and websites within and beyond the community
Trying new ideas with each other
Building an on-line document resource – Train-the-trainer materials on the SOL site

Issues noted to consider:
Trainers working in different languages – to what extent can reviewers follow each other’s processes
Travel considerations – looking at on-line alternatives
Is the badge for the trainer, the training programme, the training organisation, or for a piece of work? Or do we see what emerges as people engage with the process?
Keeping any accreditation/badging processes clear and flexible

What to do if you are interested?
Join the group -
Contribute to the discussion there as these ideas evolve – say what you’d like to create.

Best regards

Paul Z Jackson, with thanks to the open space participants, including Bjorn, Eva, Janine, Pavel, Gesa, Dominic, Sabine, Stephanie.