Core Skills for Emerging Professionals

Part 1: Leadership Foundations: Core Skills for Emerging Professionals 

(Jan 29, Feb 5, 13 & 19 | Thursdays, Noon – 2 p.m. ET, except Friday February 13)

• Webinar 1: Communicate with Clarity and Confidence (Thurs, Jan. 29)

  • Explore your communication style and learn about assertive communication, which enables you to navigate challenging conversations, provide valued feedback, and express your ideas while building trust with others. Mastering this style of communication reduces misunderstandings, prevents resentment, and promotes a more positive and respectful workplace culture. Review key elements in communicating effectively as a leader and take part in scenarios to help you build self-confidence in participating in productive, solution-oriented dialogues.
  • Topics:
    • How effective communication supports improved leadership
    • Core elements of powerful communication
    • Assess your personal communication style
    • Key traits of assertive communication
    • Practice assertive communication in high-stakes situations

• Webinar 2: Cultivating Trust (Thurs, Feb. 5)

  • Trust profoundly influences our connection with others, shaping the quality of relationships and the overall effectiveness of a leader. Trust is what enables open communication, fosters collaboration, and builds emotional connections rooted in respect, empathy, and loyalty. Learn how leaders build and nurture trust to create meaningful connections with their teams and more unified and resilient organizations. Reflect on your experiences with trust and evaluate how you can improve your “trust brand” to foster a healthier workplace.
  • Topics:
    • Getting in the right mindset to build and sustain trust
    • Seven key components for fostering trust
    • Recovering from damaged trust
    • Assess your personal "trust brand"
    • The distinction between offering apologies and making amends

• Webinar 3: Becoming a Resilient Leader (Fri, Feb. 13)

  • New leaders often navigate the inevitable stress and time pressures that come with increased responsibilities. In today's fast-paced work environment, effective leaders are those who can adapt, recover quickly from setbacks, and maintain emotional balance in the face of adversity. Resilient leaders not only safeguard their own well-being, they also inspire confidence and stability within their teams. Learn ways to build emotional tolerance, improve time management, and better understand and manage stress.
  • Topics:
    • Understanding stress: causes and effects in the workplace
    • Expanding your window of tolerance
    • Effective techniques to prioritize and manage time
    • The benefits of single-tasking for yourself and for productivity
    • Four key strategies for managing stress with confidence

• Webinar 4: Fostering Results through Accountability (Thurs, Feb. 19)

  • Accountability is a cornerstone of effective leadership. When leaders hold themselves and others accountable, they set the stage for maintaining organizational alignment and driving results. Learn strategies for demonstrating accountability, from how to set clear expectations, show follow through on commitments and create an environment of transparency and mutual respect. Discuss how to foster a sense of ownership across your team and how your organizational cultures might hinder accountability.
  • Topics:
    • The differences between responsibility, ownership, and accountability
    • Setting and communicating goals and expectations
    • Practical strategies for sustaining a sense of ownership
    • Evaluate your organizational culture’s effectiveness in fostering accountability
    • Techniques for conducting effective accountability conversations

Questions?

• Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
• Schedule/Content/Accreditation: Academy@PublicPower.org

Registration Opening Soon!

Registration Fees

Registration is for individual access. If you have multiple people interested in attending, group discounts are available. 

Group Discounts

Save money when your organization registers five or more people for the webinar series. The larger your group, the more you save! Registrations must be submitted on the same order (at the same time) to qualify for the group discount; discounts cannot be retroactively applied to previous orders. 

If you need assistance, contact Registration@PublicPower.org.

Registration Help

Check out our Registration FAQs for answers to the most common questions and help with all your registration-related issues. 

Cancellations /No-Show/ Refunds/ Substitutions

All webinars will be recorded and attendees will automatically receive a copy of the recordings, in case you can’t attend live.

Registrants who cancel in writing at least 7 days in advance of the first webinar in the series are entitled to a refund of their registration fee, minus a $100 cancellation fee. Registrants who cancel after that will not receive a refund, but attendee substitutions will be allowed for this event only. Registrants and no-shows who do not cancel at least 7 days before the course start date are responsible for the full registration fee and are not entitled to a refund. 

Cancellations must be received on/before January 22. 

Cancellation requests should be made through your My.PublicPower portal, or addressed to: Registration@PublicPower.org.

Questions?

• Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
• Schedule/Content/Accreditation: Academy@PublicPower.org

Earn While You Learn!

Participate in virtual programs to earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and Professional Development Hours (PDHs). 

Requirements for Successful Completion: Virtual

• Registration is for individual access, so each person participating must register. If you have multiple people interested in attending, group discounts are available.
• Individuals are required to attend and actively participate in 90% of each live session and complete an online evaluation after the last session in a course.
  • Attendance: Individuals must attend at least 90% of each live session (based on electronic timestamps in Zoom).
  • Participation: Active participation in class will include engagement activities such as: polling/check-in questions, and Kahoot quizzes (tracked electronically). There will also be small group breakout sessions, in-class exercises, and Q&A sessions.
  • Activities vary by class: Information on participation will be provided the day before (and during) class. Participation is tracked electronically.
  • Online evaluation: Each person must complete an online evaluation after the course concludes
• Partial credit cannot be given for partial attendance.
• Attendance is monitored by an APPA staff member during the event, through an online report log, and upon review of the post-event evaluation data.
• Completion certificates will be available within two weeks of the last session in a live event (for those who meet the requirements) through your APPA member portal (access instructions will be provided).
• Virtual sessions are recorded (attendees automatically receive access to recordings within a week of the last session), though continuing education credits can only be given for attending live events. Recordings will be accessible for 90 days after the last session.

Guidelines for Group Participation in Virtual Events

• If a group is participating in a conference room together, we recommend each person still logs in individually from a laptop to ensure attendance and participation requirements are met (as noted above).
• If individual log in is not possible, the organization must designate one person as the main point of contact. Email Academy@PublicPower.org in advance of the virtual event noting this information
  • This person will record attendance in the room in the room (we can provide a sample attendance tracker) and ensure attendance and participation from the group throughout.
  • Submit the attendance record to APPA within 2 business days of the conclusion of a virtual event.
  • Ensure each person fills out the required online evaluation.

What educational credits are available?

You can earn the following kinds of continuing education credits for attending live sessions — provided the following requirements are met:

Continuing Education Units (CEUs): The American Public Power Association is accredited by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) and is authorized to issue the IACET CEU. For information regarding certification status, attendance requirements, and obtaining attendee transcripts, contact Academy@PublicPower.org. Verify our IACET Accreditation.

Professional Development Hours (PDHs): The American Public Power Association’s educational practices are consistent with the criteria for awarding Professional Development Hours (PDHs) as established by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES). Course eligibility and number of PDHs may vary by state.

Questions? 

• Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
• Schedule/Content/Accreditation: Academy@PublicPower.org

Format and Log-In Information

These webinars will be offered on the Zoom meeting platform. 

Communication

• 24 hours after registering: You’ll receive a confirmation email within 24 hours of registering, which contains some preliminary information.
• 24 hours before: You’ll receive your Zoom log in link the day before the first session in a course (sent from the APPA Academy’s Zoom account <no-reply@zoom.us>)
  • You’ll also receive a final logistics email 24 hours in advance of the first class.
• If you don’t receive this correspondence, email Academy@PublicPower.org

Course Access and Materials

• Zoom Links: Zoom log in credentials will be sent out 24 hours before the start of the first session.
• Course Materials: Attendees will receive access to course materials the day before each session through the "Documents" section of their My.PublicPower.org user portal.
• Recordings: All sessions will be recorded and can be accessed through your user portal as well (within a week of the last class in the program), in case you can’t attend the live versions. Recordings will be accessible for 90 days after the last session. Note: Continuing education credits can only be issued for attending live sessions.

Technology Requirements

• Zoom Meeting Application: Attendees are required to have strong Internet access, in order to run the Zoom meeting platform. Please see below for more information on downloading the Zoom Web Client.
• Audio/Webcam: You will need to enable computer audio to listen and speak (alternatively a call-in number will be provided) and you will also need a webcam, so you can fully engage in the small group breakout sessions and group discussions.  
• Padlet Site: The instructor will also utilize a Padlet site to provide additional resources and post after-session assignments.

New to Zoom?

If you haven't participated in a Zoom meeting before, please download the Zoom web client from the Zoom Download Center. This will enable you to access all of the Zoom tools and functionality vs. using the web version. Then, visit Zoom.us/test to ensure you are able to join a meeting. 

If you are not able to download the Zoom web client, you can still participate via your Internet browser. We recommend using Chrome for the best results.

Privacy and Security

The American Public Power Association takes your privacy and security very seriously. For this reason, we have put the following security measures in place for this course:

• Each course has a random Meeting ID
• Meeting is password-protected
• Enabled waiting room to screen meeting participants
• Screen sharing restricted to hosts only

Questions? 

• Registration/Billing: Registration@PublicPower.org
• Schedule/Content/Accreditation: Academy@PublicPower.org