MKO are committed to the continuing professional development of all staff. Career Development Meetings are held regularly, and all staff are assisted in setting clear pathways for their own professional development. MKO strives to provide opportunities that allow all staff to progress along their chosen career pathway.
As part of the MKO Career Development Process, the skill set of all staff within the company is regularly reviewed. Through a combination of career development meetings with individual staff and a review of the professional requirements of each team, any gaps in the collective skill set are identified and an annual training plan is put in place to address any such gaps.
The MKO ecology team has grown significantly in recent years and the requirement for training many of the staff in a wide variety of ecological and technical consultancy skills has been identified. The breadth and depth of knowledge of individuals within the team was also recognised. The training plan has been developed to ensure that as many of the team as possible benefit from specific training in topics that are fundamental to the continued functioning and growth of the ecology team and ensure that the knowledge and skills that are already within the team are spread as widely as possible within the team.
With this in mind, over the last year MKO Ecology have undertaken a series of in-house training courses that have been open to all members of the team. Some of the courses have been delivered by members of the team, whilst others have been provided by widely renowned industry experts. The training programme has served and continues to serve a number of vital functions for MKO Ecology. Firstly, it provides a high standard of training in a wide variety of ecological and consultancy skills. Secondly, it has standardised the approach taken to the survey and reporting undertaken by the ever increasing ecology team, thirdly it has provided much needed interaction during a period where the team was working remotely or rarely met face to face. Finally, it has been highly enjoyable and the field training events are an important addition to the social fabric of the team.
MKO provided monthly courses throughout 2021 with dedicated grassland, mammal, bat, winter bird and aquatic surveying courses along with guidance on various reporting and consultancy skills. We have a similar programme underway in 2022, with upcoming courses on freshwater pearl mussel surveying, bryophytes, breeding bird and marsh fritillary surveys along with trees surveys and various management related training for senior staff.
The training programme is something that MKO Ecology is exceptionally proud of and will continue to foster and enhance over the coming years
