FAQWhat method does Magee employ?

First off, we believe that a blended learning approach is best. The classroom setting has obvious advantages. The realities of the workworld are such, though, that there will be less and less classroom teaching. Folks are very busy. Taking them out of work for two or three days is difficult. And if the content is compact, dense, serious, it is difficult to digest it in a short period of time.

Webinars, too, have their advantages and disadvantages. Being independent of location, they are flexible. Far more folks can participate. They can be recorded, thus revisited. However, they are not truly interactive. Quizzes, polls, chats are helpful, but webinars are not nearly as intimate, direct, effective as the classroom.

And we are very excited about the web-based community we are currently developing. We anticipate that it will be the most effective, and the preferred, mode of delivery. More about that later.

But, regardless of the setting, our goal is the same. Think back to the very best high-level course you took during university studies. What made that course first-class? What were the components?

First, highly relevant material. The substance of the course was critical to your development and captured your imagination.

Second, the professor had in-depth knowledge of the material. He or she was not just some facilitator, managing a free-flowing discussion. The professor knew how to structure the material, guide the students into its complexity, knew which questions were worth addressing, which not.

Third, the professor was committed to teaching, wanted the best for the students. It was more than a job.

Fourth, the other students were committed also, to learning, to understanding, to exploring. It was more than just a course.

Fifth, the professor created an atmosphere conducive to learning. There were clear rules of interaction between professor and students and from student to student.

The hallmarks of such learning experiences are always the same. The professor and students remain in touch with each other. The students were formed by the experience, and can remember the mental breakthroughs many years later. Some students were so inspired that they went into the same field. And the biggest indicator is that we all long for similar learning experiences.

So, in terms of training methodologies, we do not see ourselves as trainers. Horses are trained. Dogs are trained. Human beings enter into dialogue with each other, and learn, based on the factors mentioned above.

We ask questions like: How do Germans persuade? What formed their approach to persuasion? What common examples in Germany illustrate their logic? Then the same questions regarding how Americans persuade.

We focus on the differences, not the commonalities. Not as if there weren‘t any commonalities. There are many of them. But commonalities mean that things work between Americans and Germans. Why focus or invest time on things which work? The gain, the forward movement, is on the things which don‘t work or could hinder forward movement.

The second question is then how Americans perceive, react to, interpret the German approach; how Germans react to the American approach. Is the German approach to persuasion convincing in the American context? Does the American logic persuade Germans? If not, why not? And if not, what are the ramifications?

We then look to synthesize, or at least to modify, approaches so that at a minimum misperception, misjudgement do not occur or at least are kept in check. That is the third question.

We don‘t invest any time in role-plays or interactive activities. Time is too limited. And frankly, our clients have extensive experience working cross-Atlantic. They are quite familiar with the scenarios, situations, anecdotes. They are ready to go right to the analysis and discussion.

So we have a curriculum. Currently with ten issue areas. Offered in modular form. Each two hours in duration.

They are structured like a high-level university course. Well-researched content, communicated via written word, spoken word, media examples from both cultures. The key, however, is the interaction, the dialogue, the questioning and exploring. We‘re analytical, direct, and application oriented.