The current pandemic is challenging all of us in many different ways. One big challenge is the fact that all of us are currently strongly advised to work from home. Meetings are cancelled, plans have changed and business as usual is interrupted. Also we as QRP International have to alter the planning of our courses.  However, the pandemic was also the last push we needed to finally execute the plan we have had for a long time; Virtual Classrooms. As of now we can offer all of our courses virtually. We have the same teachers, the same challenging learning methods and the same energy. The only difference, you and the other participants are all in different locations. 

Our Virtual Classroom solution

We do our utmost to make our clients happy. It is with this core value in the back of our heads that we developed the Virtual Classrooms. We thought about giving you the best possible learning experience. In this light we decided not to just copy the on site classroom courses, but we shuffled it up. Our Virtual Classroom courses are made out of a mix of live training and homework. This is because we do not think you will be happy to sit behind your webcam for eight hours straight.  The morning or afternoon sessions are taught live and that is where the trainer explains the methodology. This is your opportunity to ask questions to the trainer and engage with the other participants. The other part of the day, you will actively apply all that you learned while doing the homework. To do this homework we use tools that will make it easier for you to study and that have AI driven exam simulations. After finishing the course you will be more than ready to complete the exam! 

High quality solution

The Q in QRP stands for Quality, so quality is what we deliver. We use a state of the art e-learning software and provide you with a course that is in line with our quality standards. As you expect, the course is provided in English/French and Dutch.  The Virtual Classroom courses are taught by our trainers, experienced and still active in their respective field. The courses include examples of real life situations and are adapted to the group of participants in order to offer them the best possible experience. 

Why now?

The changes in your business as usual might leave you with some time left on your hands. Once everything will go back to normal you will probably be challenged with an overload of new projects, programmes and software development. Now is the time to build up the expertise to face these coming changes so why not follow a course, get a certificate and change your business downtime into business uptime?  QRP develops professionals to facilitate change. So we have been able to provide you with a solution during this challenging time for all of us. We offer our Virtual Classrooms next to our e-learning solutions and also hope to start providing you again with classroom courses on site soon. If you want to know more, download our Virtual Classroom brochure here. Or contact us directly at belgium@qrpinternational.com or +32 (0) 2 80 81 014.   

QRP International offers her training also through the KMO-Portefeuille for the clients that have the possibility to benefit from this measure.  Important to note is that the training must be followed by an approved training organization, like QRP International. More info on how it works you can find on: https://www.vlaio.be/nl/subsidies-financiering/kmo-portefeuille. The “KMO Portefeuille” is a measure that gives you - as an entrepreneur - financial support for the purchase of services that improve the quality of your company. Specifically, these services are training and advisory services, such as one of the QRP courses, onsite as well as virtual The “KMO Portefeuille” was adjusted on 1 December 2019. Since then, a small company can receive 30% aid, a medium-sized company 20%. Since 1 January 2020, the maximum aid ceiling per year is EUR 7,500

QRP International offers also Virtual Training with the KMO-Portefeuille

Order the courses of your choice, up to 25.000 € (Small Company) and 50.000 € (Medium-Size Company). We will send you an official invoice. Announce your training at: http://www.agentschapondernemen.be/themas/kmo-portefeuille. Pay the VAT amount (21%) directly to SMME. Pay your share of the training into your KMO-portefeuille (wallet). The Flemish government will pay its share of the training into your KMO-portefeuille (this is done immediately and automatically). Send payment to SMME from your KMO-portefeuille. For more information on how the KMO-Portfolio grant works and the latest updated information: https://www.vlaio.be/nl/subsidies-financiering/kmo-portefeuille/subsidies-aanvragen-en-ontvangen

Other subsidies

There are more subsidies you can use to finance your training next to the KMO-Portefeuille. For example Cheque-Formation or Co-Valent. For more information, click here.

Further Information

Visit our Open Course or Virtual Classroom page to see our schedule of courses, dates and locations, or contact us!

QRP International has a core purpose: "Developing professionals to facilitate changes". We believe in change as a tool for growth and improvement, not only professionally, but also in our society. This is the reason why every year we choose to support a cause. This year we chose to support Kibarè Onlus.

Going to school is a privilege in Burkina Faso. Many parents think that children should rather help the family to grow crops; some also think that girls should wed and move out when they are barely in their teens. Issa Yelemou has dedicated his life to give these children a chance. In 2006, when he retired from being a teacher, he invested his life's saving to build his own primary school in the outskirts of Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. He called the school Millennium and he became its headmaster. His vision attracted talented and motivated teachers, which have made the school a centre of excellence in the area. Over the years though, heavy rain seasons have taken their toll on the school buildings. Water has infiltrated the cheap cement and large cracks have appeared on the walls. Families have started to pull their children from school, fearing for their safety. Since 2016, we are helping Issa Yelemou to rebuild the school. Some classes have already moved into the safe and dry rooms of a new wing, but many others still hope for the construction project to finish on time for the next school year. QRP International decided to support the organization with a donation that will enable Issa Yelemou to finish the construction project on time. Because all children need to study in a safe and stable environment to grow and develop their potential. Visit their website to know their mission, stories and beautiful achievements: Kibarè Onlus or follow their social accounts: Instagram, Facebook

QRP International is proud to announce the launch of new PeopleCert DevOps qualifications.

PeopleCert DevOps

DevOps (a clipped compound of “development” and “operations“) is a software development approach to work that combines software development (Dev) with information technology operations (Ops). The goal of DevOps is to shorten the systems development life cycle while delivering software releases frequently, in close alignment with business objectives in a faster, better, and cost-efficient way.

DevOps qualifications are offered by PeopleCert: these new hands-on qualifications are designed around those organisations using well-established IT Service Management practices to provide them with guidance on the ideal processes, tools and culture integration with DevOps. Feel free to get in touch to have more info on  the PeopleCert Devops.

QRP International Belgium launched its Best Practices Blog on June 14, 2019 and it has already collected more than 1,000 views. A big thank you for your loyalty throughout this past year. Would you like to know the 10 topics that interested you most in 2019 on our Best Practices Blog? Here are the top posts of this year. The opportunity for you, we hope, is to (re)discover some of them:

1. Scrum Master vs Project Manager
2. Challenges and Opportunities in PMO: interview with Tom Van Medegael
3. What is a Project Manager?
4. ITIL 4 Foundation Exam
5. The Project Manager role in PRINCE2
6. Challenges and opportunities in IT Program Management: interview with Younes Idrissi Kaitouni
7. Challenges and Opportunities in Agile Change Management: interview with Melanie Franklin
8. Challenges and Opportunities in Project Management: interview with Dong R. Jeong
9. What is a Service Manager? The role and responsibilities
10. What is a Scrum Master: the role and responsibilities

The new year is already approaching and we will continue to offer you more and more relevant articles to best meet your expectations. If you have any questions that you would like us to answer, topics that are of particular interest to you, or if you would like to collaborate with us in writing blog posts, please contact us at belgium@qrpinternational.com. We would like to take this opportunity to inform you that each new post is announced on our  QRP International BelgiumLinkedin page. You can also subscribe to our monthly if you prefer. We wish you all a very Happy New Year 2020.  

2020 has almost finished and has exceeded all of our expectations. Nobody could have predicted how our daily lives would change due to COVID-19. All professionals were suddenly put in a digital, remote working environment and organisations had to adapt their business models. Our working lives have changed immensely and nobody knows what ‘the new normal’ will look like or when we can expect this. For now, all we can do is look back on an intense 2020. We like to offer you the possibility to look back, together with QRP, by the means of 5 characterizing Q&A sessions with Belgian professionals. Read along with us!

Agility to the core, how Agile can drive an organisation

Liza Andersson works as Global Sales Operations Project Manager at FLIR. FLIR works Agile in the deeper sense of the word. FLIR does not just say they work Agile, agility is one of their core mind sets. It took FLIR just four days to shift from office work to remote work, for the entire international business. Curious how agility can help overcome obstacles? Read in the full blogpost here.

Project management should fit the organisation’s maturity

Shana Coenen works as Team Lead Pool Project Leaders, at the Federal Public Service Finance. She realizes that the biggest challenges in her network all regard the different skill levels of the PMO roles and project leaders. She realized that a ‘one size fits all’ training approach does not work and is now looking to offer a wider range of training possibilities and workshops and hopes to go as far as individual coaching and customized learning paths. Wonder what she says about the project's maturity? Read the full blogpost here.

Agile systems are great tools to build productivity on trust

Eralp Tezcan works as Scrum Master at Realdolmen-Inetum and cooperates daily with other Scrum Masters to work wonders in their teams. Eralp witnessed many organisations that started applying more agile frameworks due to external factors of the pas year. Now that almost all professionals work outside of environments potentially designed for control (offices), both the individual and organisations are learning to trust each other again. Agile systems offer great tools to build productivity on this regained trust. Read the full blogpost here.

Project management in the hospital sector

Maddy Silverans is a staff member of Process and Project Management of the Quality and Strategy department of AZ Sint-Maarten, a hospital. She opens up about Project Management in the Hospital sector, where, unless in many other sectors, project management is not the top priority. 2020 resulted in delay in many projects, because a delayed project definition automatically means a delayed start date of the project. Read the whole blogpost here.

How to create awareness of the positive impact of P3O structure

Davina Leysen works as Programme and Project officer at Belnet. At the time of the installment of the PMO, there were many skeptical reactions. However the trust of colleagues and the change in perceptions of the project management approach shifted the tables in Belnet. Davina shares how to get everybody involved to create a common approach. Read the full blogpost here.