Workshops

Are you looking to improve your engineering team's leadership and communication abilities? With over a decade of experience as an engineering leader and conference speaker, I offer personalized coaching and dynamic workshops to empower your team with the skills they need to shine.

Since 2014, I have been committed to helping engineers, designers, and product managers build their personal brands, acquire essential skills, and excel in their roles. My workshops are designed to foster interactivity, featuring engaging exercises, moments for introspection, and lively discussions. With my background in online learning, I excel at creating impactful learning experiences that leave a lasting impression on participants.

Ready to invest in your team's future? Reach out to me today at melinda@seckington.com and let's begin your team's journey of learning, building, and sharing!

"Become A Brilliant Speaker" Workshops

Within tech, effective communication is key. Whether it's engaging with our community, team members, stakeholders, or other departments, delivering a clear message is essential for achieving impactful outcomes. Just as we meticulously craft our products, we should apply the same rigour to our presentations.

In my "Become A Brilliant Speaker" workshop I provide a comprehensive step-by-step approach, guiding product teams—engineers, designers, and product managers—through the process of creating impactful presentations.

Drawing from familiar concepts in product design and agile software engineering, this workshop ensures you learn to craft compelling presentations, target the right audience, frame your story effectively, and iterate for maximum impact.

With these workshops, you will:

Brainstorm talk ideas and identify what to talk about
Learn how to plan out a talk (goals, audience, outlines, practice)
Learn how to write abstracts, talk proposals and bios
Improve your storytelling and story structures
Master the art of slide design
Deal with nerves, stage presence and presenting skills (posture, voice, etc)

This workshop is available in two formats: a single 2-day, 7-hour intensive session, or a series of 2-hour workshops spread over several weeks.

Workshops can be made bespoke to fit your team. They can be adapted to teams that already have public speaking experience and need help levelling up, or new teams looking to get into public speaking. The workshops can also be augmented with interactive feedback sessions and/or 1:1 coaching sessions.

Curious to learn more about how these invaluable skills can benefit your team? Feel free to reach out today at melinda@seckington.com to explore further and schedule your session.

"Become A Badass Writer" Workshops

In today's fast-paced tech landscape, effective writing is more than just words—it's a strategic asset. Whether you're crafting engaging blog posts, comprehensive documentation, or informative tutorials, your ability to articulate technical concepts clearly and persuasively is critical.

The "Become A Badass Writer" workshop will equip you with the essential skills needed to excel in written communication.

Discover practical strategies to streamline your writing process, engage diverse audiences, and convey technical concepts with clarity. Whether you're an engineer, designer, or product manager, this workshop will empower you to elevate your written communication game and make a lasting impact in the tech world.

With these workshops, you will:

Brainstorm article ideas and identify what to write about
Learn how to plan out an article (goals, audience, draft outlines)
Look at common patterns of articles and other writing formats like pull requests, commit messages and emails
Improve your storytelling and story structures
Discover your own tone of voice and writing style
Master the art of article writing

This workshop is available in two formats: a single 1-day, 7-hour intensive session, or a series of 2-hour workshops spread over several weeks.

Workshops can be made bespoke to fit your team. They can be adapted to teams that already have writing experience and need help levelling up, or new teams looking to get into writing. The workshops can also be augmented with interactive feedback sessions and/or 1:1 coaching sessions.

"Become An Awesome Manager" Workshops

In today's rapidly evolving tech landscape, nurturing a positive and inclusive engineering culture isn't just desirable—it's essential for fostering innovation and retaining top talent. Whether you're a seasoned engineering leader or aspiring to take the lead, our workshop is designed to equip you with the insights and strategies necessary to cultivate a culture of excellence within your technical teams.

The 'Become An Awesome Manager' Workshops offer a comprehensive dive into engineering management fundamentals. Through dynamic discussions, real-world case studies, and hands-on exercises, you'll gain actionable strategies for effectively mentoring and developing your team, fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth, and creating an environment where every individual feels valued and empowered.

Regardless of whether you're leading a small startup team or managing a large-scale engineering department, these workshops provide the tools and guidance to unlock your team's full potential. Join us in creating a workplace where the values of growth, learning, and collaboration are not just encouraged, but thrive.

With these workshops, your team members will learn how to:

Conduct effective 1-on-1s and coaching/mentoring/sponsoring conversations
Provide constructive feedback and navigating difficult conversations
Understand individuals' core needs, emotions, and motivations
Explore and set goals with their team members, and support their personal development
Examine tools and methods for effective time management, prioritizing tasks, and balancing competing priorities
Make decisions and solve complex problems, including techniques for evaluating options, mitigating risks, and driving consensus within the team.
Apply techniques for navigating organizational change, fostering resilience and adaptability within the team, and effectively communicating and implementing changes to achieve desired outcomes.

Each of the above topics is a stand-alone 3-hour workshop. Workshops can be made bespoke to fit your team. They can be adapted to teams that already have management experience or new managers. The workshops can also be augmented with interactive feedback sessions and/or 1:1 coaching sessions.

Ready to empower your team with these invaluable skills? Reach out today at melinda@seckington.com to discuss collaboration opportunities and availability.

Email melinda@seckington.com