This Train the Trainer workshop module was designed for people who wished to offer training in the Genuine Contact program to others. Some of the graduates offer Genuine Contact program workshops to the public see www.genuinecontact.net. Others offer the workshops only in-house specifically when an organization wishes to imbed a particular skill set into the organization as part of developing its capacity. Some of the graduates do not intend to offer trainings but seek to increase their personal and professional development in this Genuine Contact way of working.
The first authorized trainers of the Genuine Contact program, representing individuals from nine countries, graduated in September 2001. At the time of this graduation, Birgitt Williams and Ward Williams understood that as the Co-founders of this program they must thereafter include the GC Trainers in future decisions relating to the Genuine Contact program. Their perspective was that the GC trainers had made a substantial investment of time and money to become GC trainers and thus the Co-founders had a responsibility to support the GC trainers and not to do anything, even inadvertently, that would be a barrier. In 2006, Birgitt and Ward opened up the ownership of the Genuine Contact program to a Co-ownership model. All graduates of Train the Trainer are given the opportunity to be Co-owners of the Genuine Contact program if they so wish. Since that time, about 40 GC Trainers have opted to be Co-owners annually. They are the group of people who entertain proposals and have decision making rights regarding the Genuine Contact program. Insert link to article about co-ownership. Because of the number of Co-owners, a decision was also made to have a smaller group of the Co-owners operate as a Leadership Management Team. Annual elections are held amongst the Co-owners to form this team. Further information about the Leadership Management Team, the Co-owners, and the Genuine Contact community can be found via the Genuine Contact Virtual Home.
