ReSPA is pleased to announce the next phase of the Beyond Classroom Learning (BCL) initiative, which will take place on 23–25 September 2026 at the National School for Public Administration in Zagreb, Croatia. The programme consists of two closely connected workshops: a two-day workshop for trainers and training managers on 23–24 September, and a two-day strategic working session for Directors and Deputy Directors of the training institutions on 24–25 September.

The September programme builds on the BCL workshops organised in Zagreb in March and April 2026. The initiative moves beyond broad competency-based training by treating real workplace situations as the unit of leadership learning and by developing practical approaches that can be applied directly in public institutions. The earlier workshop on collaboration leadership focused on cross-unit coordination under constraints and on co-designing usable micro-practices for workplace application.

Trainers and Training Managers’ Workshop — 23–24 September 2026

The first day will strengthen participants’ capacity to conduct Training Needs Analysis that identifies the real situations leaders face, rather than stopping at general training topics. Participants will practise preparing a “customer conversation” with senior leaders, analysing survey responses, using carefully designed AI prompts to generate candidate situations, and testing their approach through simulation. On 24 September, they will join the Directors’ programme as structured observers and assistants, followed by a closed debrief focused on future application in their institutions.

Directors’ Strategic Working Session — 24–25 September 2026

On 24 September, Directors and Deputy Directors of the training institutions will participate directly in two situation-based workshops addressing difficult decisions: pressure to make an exception that bends the rule, and changing priorities when information is incomplete. On 25 September, Directors and their Deputies or senior leadership colleagues will take part in a closed peer working session on the future role of national training institutions. They will examine strategic drivers and expected benefits, identify enabling changes and dependencies, and define one concrete 90-day move for their institution.