The UCPM training programme has finished its current cycle and will be back in 2023 with a new-look programme. The last training course under cycle 18 was the Staff Management Course in Estonia, from 3–9 December 2022.
A cold and snowy Tallinn in Estonia gave a warm welcome to the Staff Management Course (SMC) from 3–9 December, the final training course of the 18th cycle of the UCPM training programme.
Eighteen participants from fifteen different countries learned how to set up and organise different staff functions and working processes within a team, all with a purpose to create right conditions for effective teamwork and successful UCPM mission.
The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB), together with the Danish Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) and the Estonian Academy of Security Sciences (EASS), developed and have delivered the SMC since 2016.
The SMC course trains participants to adapt and apply teamwork and leadership skills in realistic mission scenarios, stimulating participants to make decisions based on their understanding and critical reflection of the context and situation that they would face during a deployment.
“I found this to be a rather special course, with in-depth work on processes, not only on the outcomes. There was also a refreshing emphasis on questioning the ‘why’ of things. The focus on soft skills with close personal follow-up and feedback by coaches was most welcome.”
Peter Holmström from MSB College in Revinge, the SMC Course Director, explains the ‘Puzzle’ that’s applied by learners throughout the course: "mandate, resources, environment and time. This helps training participants to learn and apply ‘no one size fits attitude’, needed for successful international operations from UCPM teams."
Teamwork and leadership topics will be reinforced in the revamped UCPM training programme when it restarts in 2023. While the SMC will not continue as a stand-alone course, staff management and soft skills will be an integral part of several different courses in the ‘deployable’ experts training pathway.
“Huge congratulations and thanks to all the training centres, course directors and course staff, lecturers, trainers and coaches, National Training Coordinators, and most of all, the thousands of participants who have been part of the UCPM training programme. We’re looking forward to continuing our learning together next year with our even bigger and better programme!”
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