Trainer of the Year

And the Trainer of the Year 2014 is..

The jury has chosen Titia van der Ploeg, T-N. The following arguments were decisive in electing Titia van der Ploeg as Trainer of the Year 2014:

• Titia’s working methods serve as an example for other colleagues: she adapts quickly to new developments and converts her acquired knowledge and skills to methods that benefit the participants in her training programs. According to participants, Titia is a true example of ‘practice what you preach’. She uses many different working methods which appeal to the various senses and ensures that all the learning styles of the participants are being met. It is abundantly clear from the recommendations that her enthusiasm and energy contribute to the learning process of the participants. Through her working methods she succeeds in engaging and challenging her participants and keep them sharp and attentive.

• Titia contributes to the development of other trainers and is amibitious and passionate in doing so. Her knowledge and experience has resulted in the creation of her own training method: IMPACT. A participant describes it as follows: a method for trainers and teachers that helps them meet the diverse learning styles of the trainees. We’ve also been informed through the contributions that Titia freely shares her knowledge on various media and forums, in articles, books and other publications.

•  Titia is apart from a trainer also an author and entrepreneur. She is visible, writes many articles and organizes events or attends these as speaker/supervisor. As such, she enriches the field of professional trainers. Her choice to continuously explore various aspects of the profession and to translate her experiences into articles, publications and books is greatly appreciated by the jury.

• Finally, the jury is impressed by Titia’s passion, enthusiasm and energy. In nearly every contribution that the jury received the supporters and nominators speak of characteristics such as “inspiring”, “involved”, “warm”, “energetic” and “sensitive”. For us as a jury, this is a clear signal that Titia is capable of adapting to the perceptions and needs of her participants or audiences.

The jury is extremely pleased with Titia van der Ploeg as Trainer of the Year 2014. The jury looks forward to her further contributions to our field and wishes her much success.

On behalf of the jury,

Bert van Dijk MHD, chairman.

The jury consisted of seven members of the NOBTRA board:

• Bert van Dijk, chairman of the jury, author and trainer of trainers
• Maarten Hoogslag, coach and trainer in communication
• Hanneke Janzen, trainer in communication
• Wessel Schulte, Learning & Development entrepreneur
• Mieke Tummers, trainer
• Adelka Vendl, psychologist

September 2014

Background information about NOBTRA election of Trainer of the Year

The Dutch Association of Professional Trainers Foundation (NOBTRA) elects the ‘Trainer of the Year’ every year since 2012.

The objective for electing ‘Trainer of the Year’ is part of the more general NOBTRA-objective to recognize excellence, to test and develop trainers and trainings, as well as to inspire and connect NOBTRA-members. By selecting a trainer each year who really stands out, NOBTRA works to shape what we aim for where the quality of our profession is concerned. The profession is subject to fast changing demands and by presenting a real-life example each year, that change is made visible.

Conditions

According to the regulations of the election (see also nobtra.nl/reglement-trainer-van-het-jaar) the candidate must meet the following conditions:

1. The candidate must at least satisfy the NOBTRA criteria of for the recognition as a NOBTRA®-Trainer.

2. The candidate must be nominated by one person and the nomination must be endorsed by at least four others.

3. The persons who nominate or endorse the nomination must be at least three different clients and two colleague-trainers who all represent a different organization or company.

4. Since the jury assesses the nominations mainly on arguments, the nomination and endorsements must have convincing motivations.

Except for these conditions, the jury will also review the way in which the candidate’s work contributes to the quality of the profession in our country.

Evaluation

For the Trainer of the Year 2014, the jury received nominations and recommendations for several candidates. All the submitted documents have been closely studied. The jury did not limit itself to the submitted materials, other publicly available information about the candidates was considered too such as their websites and profiles, and activities on social media.