Beyond 12 Plus will be holding four new seminars this year geared toward university employees, supervisors and leaders.

Mark Nelson, assistant facilities manager at Ames Lab and organizer for the seminars, said the seminars will provide participants with valuable information to enhance their leadership skills, opportunities to network with other leaders and a fun experience.

“[Work] is a very important part of our lives and we need to be responsible with that time,” Nelson said.

He estimated that people who work full-time from ages 18-65 spend 34 percent of their waking hours at work.

Under good leadership, Nelson said, a workplace can be a place where people accomplish their work mission and grow personally.

Beyond 12 Plus is a group of people who have graduated from the 12 Plus Supervisory Leadership Program Training, which began about four years ago, and wish to continue growing in their leadership abilities.

As a result, a Beyond 12 Plus Development Team was initiated last December to develop a vision, mission and plan to help 12 Plus graduates continue their leadership development.

Nelson said the seminar development team discussed making the seminars open only to graduates or current members of the 12 Plus program, but decided not to because “it has application really to anyone that’s a supervisor or manager.”

The first seminar, “Realizing Your Creative Genius,” will take place Oct. 9. It will be followed by “Creating Harmony in the Workplace” on Nov. 13; “The Art of Hiring: Getting the Right Person the First Time” on Feb. 12; and “Innovations in Performance Management” on April 9.

Seminars are organized so participants can benefit from attending one or all of the programs.

“I would encourage people to come because of the quality of speakers that we’re going to have,” Nelson said.

Landscape architecture professor Bill Boon will speak at the first seminar on the learning process by which people can tap into their creative genius to become a more effective leader and problem solver.

For the second seminar, John Cowan, an independent business consultant from St. Paul, Minn., is scheduled to speak on harmony in the workplace.

Each seminar will begin by opening with an ISU vision speaker. October’s vision speaker will be Eugene Smith, athletic director, and November’s will be ISU President Martin Jischke.

“In the trenches” breakout sessions at the end of each seminar, Nelson explained, will be conducted by two 12 Plus graduates who will talk about things they’ve done in their workplaces that have been successful.

Just as important as the speakers is the networking which will take place at the seminars, Nelson said. Participants will be able to meet people from across campus and learn from each other.

“We want people to kind of relax at the same time and have some fun,” Nelson said.

Local businesses have donated items for giveaways during the seminars.

Also, the lunch area will be festively decorated, Nelson said.

The seminars are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to be unintrusive, giving participants time to work for a couple hours before and after the seminar and “get away in the mid-portion of the day and go to the seminars,” Nelson said.

The seminars, sponsored by Training and Development, will take place in the Memorial Union. Lunch is included in the $15 registration fee per seminar.

The registration deadline is Sept. 25. To register for one or more sessions, or to find out more about Beyond 12 Plus, call 294-8914.