Work shadowing

This is a more advanced version of ‘sitting by Nellie’ and offers the opportunity for an individual to see how someone, usually at a higher level, operates on a day-to-day basis. It requires the person being shadowed to be reasonably skilled in coaching. They will also need to set aside time to discuss what has been happening and allow the ‘shadow’ to ask questions and offer observations. Problem areas to watch out for are trainees becoming bored due to having to ‘hang around’ whilst mundane tasks or frequent interruptions are dealt with. Also, the person being shadowed needs endless patience and an understanding of the learning process for this to be effective.