Job Enhancement for the Middle Level Managers of the Department of Agriculture

Participants from the different bureaus and attached agencies, training consultants and facilitators posed for a souvenir snapshot during the 3-day training on “Job Enhancement for the Middle Managers” of the Department of Agriculture.

Four (4) personnel from the National Agricultural and Fishery Council, Ms. Conchita S. Del Rosario (Special Projects Division), Ms. Marisa R. Lo (Finance and Administrative), Mr. Michael Rey C. Lazaro, (Agricultural Support and Coordination Division) and Ms. Shirley G. Pascua (Planning, Monitoring and Communications Group) attended a 3-day live-in training course on “Job Enhancement for the Middle Level Managers” of the Department of Agriculture from September 23-27, 2013 at the Hotel Stotsenberg, Clarkfield, Pampanga along with the twenty-eight ( 28) participants from the different DA bureaus and attached agencies: Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS); Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI); Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM); Cotton Development Administration (CODA); Department of Agriculture (DA); National Dairy Corporation (NDA); National Food Authority (NFA); National Irrigation Authority (NIA); National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS); Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA); Philippine Center for Post Harvest Development and Mechanization (PHILMech); Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA);and Agricultural Training Institute (ATI).

This activity was initiated by the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) through the Extension, Innovation and Training Division (EITD). It was also facilitated and coordinated by Ms. Janina A. Guibani, Mr. Juan Rafael B. Gomez of EITD-ATI and photos done by Mr. Camilo M. Alberto.

“Bring out the Best”, was the key to enhance the supervisory skills of the participants who attended this training. Four (4) modules were discussed and explained by the Training Consultant, Mr. Mark P. Joseph, Jr. of Performex, Inc., including its action plans and the participation of the group for the role playing presentations. These are: 1)Managing Self, 2)Managing the Job, 3)Planning, Leading, Organizing, Controlling (PLOC) and 4)Managing Others.

Also included in the course is the Happiness Factor Workshop conducted by Ms. Immaculada Concepcion Y. Belza and assisted by Mr. Edsel H. Madranga also of the Performex, Inc. The objective of these courses is to enhance the skills and mindset of the participants on how to become effective supervisors while the objectives of Happiness is to understand the concept and how it brings benefit to one’s professional and personal life, understand negativity as a block to happiness and understand positivity as a route to happiness and spread happiness to the workplace.

What Mr. Joseph introduced to the participants are the four (4) types of behaviors which have typically Most-to-least characteristic of an individual: Directing, Influencing, Steady and Cautious. He added that at the end of the session, the participants will learned to a) Articulate the roles and functions of supervisors in terms of relationship with subordinates, upper management and external clients; b) Accept being part of the management team (no longer rank and file); c) Review core values and behavioral descriptions and individually assess the individual level to which they are manifested in day-to-day tasks; d) Commit to self improvement by putting values into action; e) Assess their leadership styles and learn the style that is best to use for given situations; f) Practice one and two-way communication skills with application to day-to-day job situations; and g) Practice the Seven (7) Steps of CARE-frontation for reinforcing coaching skills.

Ms. Belza also presented the happiness factor covering Empowering Performance, Productivity and Personal Growth. She added that there are three (3) routes of happiness: a) Full life ( Live life at the service of others; lasting happiness; b) Good life (talents, abilities and strengths which are put in good use); and c) Pleasant life (abundance of positive emotions).

She also emphasized during her presentation that an individual should be happy, stop complaining, be grateful and spread happiness because positive emotions with desired organization goals will surely results to positive environment. She also added that negativity is a major block to happiness because it could only affect health, block creative energies, restricts vision, drains energy and it’s highly contagious. As a closing, she said, “Stay happy, Level-up and Stop complaining.”

The resource persons left the following memorable quotations for the participants:

1. “It’s okay to be down but not to stay down.”
2. According to Peter Drucker, “Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to higher sights, the raising of a person’s performance to a higher standard, and the building of a personality beyond its normal limitations.”
3. “You’ll never know your limits until you push it.”
4. “Physical limitations is not an obstacle to flourishing life.”
5. “Make the drastic choice to be happy.”
6. “You can change behavior and results by changing perceptions.”
7. “You can achieve your results through Awareness, Acceptance and Adaptability.”
8. “Keep your goals simple but Smarter.”
9. “A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He or she doesn’t set out to be a leader, but becomes one by the quality of actions and the integrity of intent. In the end, leaders are much like eagles…they do not flock; you find them one at a time.

Pictures taken during the training course.