Delivering Bad News course
In this course, you learn to structure a bad-news conversation in five phases. You practise tone, compassion and firmness, so that you stay clear and remain in control.
NRTO quality markFree cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so feel free to book now.
In brief. Delivering Bad News is a 1-day classroom course. You can take it in Rotterdam and Zwolle or online, in a group of no more than 8 participants. The price is EUR 625,- excl. VAT per participant, including course materials, lunch on location and a certificate of attendance. For a team or department we also deliver this course in-company.
- Delivering bad news with empathy and clarity
- Five phases for a clear conversation
- Practise straight away with your own workplace situations
- Personal feedback from an experienced trainer
- Insight into pitfalls and how to avoid them
Your trainer: Rob, Michaela, Christy or Joris 995 evaluations in total, averaging 8,9. View the trainers
Delivering bad news calls for nerve and empathy. In this course, you work with experienced trainers on a clear conversation structure in five phases, so that you remain clear and involved. This way you stay in control and give the other person the space they need.
Description
Delivering bad news is part of many roles: announcing a dismissal, disappointing a client or informing a patient of an unwelcome diagnosis. You feel responsible for the message and involved with the recipient. That dilemma is why many people postpone or soften the bad news, while a clear conversation is actually more pleasant for both sides.
In this course you work on the structure of a bad news conversation in five phases: the introduction, delivering the message, room for the impact, thinking about solutions together and making a follow-up appointment. You practise with the right tone, learn how to show compassion while remaining firm, and thus stay in control of the conversation.
You alternate between practice, reflection and theory, with room for your own workplace situations. By actually experiencing what different behaviour achieves, you make the translation to your own job. An intake takes place before the course, so that the programme matches your learning objectives.
Topics
- The five phases of a bad news conversation
- Structure of the conversation
- Content level: formulating clearly and firmly
- Relationship level: showing compassion without softening the message
- Arguing your case and substantiating your message
- Dealing with emotional reactions
- Thinking along about solutions
- Next steps and making agreements
- Common pitfalls and how to avoid them
Result
After this course, you will deliver bad news in a clear and respectful way. You structure the conversation around five phases: you open the conversation, deliver the message clearly, allow room for the emotional reaction, think through the options for what comes next and arrange a follow-up appointment where necessary.
You know how to remain steadfast without coming across as distant, and how to show compassion without softening or postponing the message. You recognise the familiar pitfalls, such as the hope-springs-eternal phase or the reflex to ease the pain, and you know how to avoid them. You also learn to switch between the content level and the relationship level, so that you keep control of the conversation and the recipient feels taken seriously.
Target audience
This course is ideally suited to anyone who occasionally has to deliver bad news. Think of managers, project leaders, sales staff, service staff, care workers, doctors and consultants.
Teaching method
During the course we alternate between experiencing, experimenting with behaviour and techniques, reflecting and exploring theory. In this way the programme suits different types of participants. There is plenty of action: you immediately experience the effect of new behaviour, so you recognise what works.
We emphasise that you are responsible for your own development process and take ownership of it. You are continually invited to reflect and to make links with your own practice. Our aim is to increase your insight and let you make the translation to your daily work yourself. This increases the chance of genuine behavioural change.
Prior knowledge
You do not need any specific prior knowledge to take part in this course. It is useful, however, if you sometimes have to deliver bad news in your work, so that you can link the exercises directly to your own workplace situations.
Comments
Nothing particular to note for this course. The content may vary slightly per group, because during the intake we tailor it to your learning objectives and workplace situations.
Practical information
- Number of days
- 1 day
- Course times
- from 10 am to 5 pm
- Teaching hours
- 6 hours
- Education level
- Suitable for all levels
- Preparation time
- None
- Included
- Course materials and lunch on site
- Certificate
- At the end of the course you will receive a certificate of attendance
- Cancel
- Free up to four weeks before the start (cancellation terms)
Language
The course is given in Dutch as standard. The trainer speaks English. English-language course materials can be used. If at least 3 participants register, the course can also be given entirely in English.
In-company
Would you like to organise this training for a whole group or several groups? This can be cost-effective. For example, we can tailor the content entirely to your organisation, and training a whole group is also cheaper.
Are you looking at large numbers of participants or a complete academy? That involves a great deal. Consider planning and communication, for example, or identifying and agreeing the objectives and content of the training. Or differences in level, feedback mechanisms and safeguarding. Fortunately, Learnit has extensive experience in this field (more than 25 years) and we are happy to help you through this process.
All start dates
1 training day. Confirmed dates first, then in order of date.
- Wed 25 November 2026Certain to go ahead Zwolle · 10:00–17:00 · trainer ChristyFree cancellation until 28 October Enrol
- Wed 25 November 2026 Online · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 28 October Enrol
- Mon 16 August 2027 Rotterdam · 10:00–17:00Free cancellation until 19 July Enrol
No suitable start date? Send us a date request, and we'll look at the options together.
This course for your team?
Plan your own group on a date that suits you, at your office, at our premises or online. We tailor the content to your day-to-day work, and training a whole group is cheaper than individual bookings.
- Your date and location
- Tailored content
- Multiple groups or an academy are also possible
- More than 25 years' experience
The trainers for this course
Ratings from participants after completing their course, across all courses by this trainer.
What others say about this course
Delivering Bad News course: average 8.6 from 2 reviews
“The goal I came for was discussed sufficiently. I was able to take away a lot from the tips that were given. The trainer explained everything precisely. She addressed points for improvement, etc. She did a very good job!”
“A very interactive course with plenty of room for your own input and situations that occur on a daily basis.”
“This course gives you new insights into conversation and interview techniques. In just a few days you improve your conversation techniques and other communication skills. These skills can be applied both at work and in your private life. In short: a very useful course and a thoroughly enjoyable experience!”
“The conversation exercises in this course really took me outside my comfort zone, and I learned a great deal from it as a result. After all, by exploring your limits you are able to grow. The trainer conveyed the material enthusiastically, kept the participants engaged and gave useful tips during the various exercises. The use of an actor for the conversation training was also very effective!”
“Complete, short, concise, fast, interactive and thorough. A good choice to follow this practice-oriented course. My team will certainly apply the topics covered in practice.”
“The Conducting Early Warning and Absence Interviews course was very valuable. Through practice-based exercises and direct feedback, she taught us how to prepare difficult conversations properly and conduct them in a respectful and results-oriented way.”
“Good atmosphere, good value for money, learned a lot. The theory is clear, and the role plays and exercises tie in with it well. You gain many new insights in a playful way. I am much more aware of communication and apply the techniques!”
“I found the content of the course very good. The trainer addressed all the cases and went into each one individually. The feedback given was received very positively.”
“This course was very instructive. The lines of communication with Learnit are very short, excellent.”
“The course was very manageable. A great many topics were covered in two days, with the needs of the group taken into account. Because the group was small, everyone had plenty of opportunity to take part. A hugely enthusiastic, inspiring and very versatile trainer. A good mix of theory and exercises. She explains things well and makes good use of telling examples. Every available resource was put to use (the room was covered in sheets). She is skilled with video and uses it convincingly to hold up a mirror to the participants.”
"Very instructive and opens your eyes to how you look at yourself and what you can still 'improve'."
“A very practically applicable course with exercises and the STAR method, which is also very useful.”
“A very instructive course tailored to practice and to your own situation.”
“Very instructive, I learned a lot that I can practise with straight away in my day-to-day work and make my own. There was plenty of varied course material. The reference material, the book and the folder of information are also useful to look back on. My learning objectives were covered well during the course, which meant I got a lot out of it. The course was varied, so I was able to stay focused and take an active part. Everyone felt safe enough to dare to learn.”
“Good impression of the trainer and the organisation. During the course you are given useful tips to apply in practice.”
“Very professional and practice-oriented. The tailored approach ties in with your daily work.”
“The course was focused on practice, which made it very good. Everything else was well organised too and I can certainly recommend this course!”
“A very useful course with practical applications.”
"A well-organised course with a method you can apply in practice. The clear explanations and general communication made it a pleasure to take this course."
“Learned a lot and gained new insights; the alternation between receiving information and then being able to practise within the group and process the information was very pleasant.”
“It is an instructive course. The information you receive suits you as a person. During the lessons this is further refined to what you need. After the course you become more aware of what you are doing and of what is said during a conversation.”
“Excellent course that not only increases your personal skills, but also the team spirit between you and your colleagues.”
“A bespoke course aimed at providing practically applicable tools for various communication issues.”
“It was very pleasant to attend a course at Learnit. There was a lot of personal attention for everyone and we were pushed out of our comfort zone in a "comfortable" way in order to get better at holding professional conversations.”
"There was a relaxed atmosphere, and that makes it all very approachable"
“Everyone thinks they know how to ask questions. But nobody knows exactly what the theory behind it is. Why is it important to ask things, how do you go about it and what are the right questions to ask so that you reach the answer as quickly as possible.”
"Excellent, with a good focus on the aim of the course. Because the course was interactive, it was not difficult to stay focused."
"The course is enjoyable and instructive, and the use of video analysis during the role plays is certainly an added value. The material was partly new and partly familiar to me, but even so it was good to refresh the parts I already knew."
“An inspiring course with a great deal of your own input, so that you can go on to apply it in practice.”
“An interesting and highly applicable course in the field of communication. A good refresher and made very applicable by the trainer, Job.”
“A compact yet complete course!”
“In this small setting, the trainer was the best trainer I have ever had! She sensed perfectly where we wanted to go and had an enormous amount of ready knowledge in the field of conversation skills, which she was very good at conveying to the participants in the right measure!”
“A useful training course in which the enthusiastic and knowledgeable trainer combines theory and practice well.”
“An interesting and instructive course, in which I picked up a lot of tips. I will certainly try to apply these tips.”
"I found the course valuable and was able to work on personal learning objectives within this subject. It was good to be engaged with this from start to finish. The trainer was very alert to this as well and made a fine connection between theory and practice. Practising with the training actress was very valuable, as it allowed me to turn the information from the course into a conversation and to receive tips and feedback from the group straight away."
"A very interesting, instructive and also enjoyable course that everyone can benefit from. The trainer also met all my expectations and managed to convey the material clearly, understandably, interactively and in an enjoyable, instructive way. An absolute must for anyone who wants to learn to communicate better."
“You learn to handle different types of conversation in a very enjoyable, relaxed way. There is a good deal of practice with the many kinds of conversations that exist. Because the exercises are filmed, you get a clear picture of what goes well and what goes less well when it is played back later.”
"Do you run into difficulties when it comes to communication? And do you want to develop yourself further in this area, so that you feel stronger in certain situations? Then the Conversation Techniques course is the right one. You learn to deal with situations you find difficult and gain new insights into how best to communicate. It gave me a lot of new and valuable insights."
“An instructive course. Plenty of tips you can use in practice. It really makes you aware of your own behaviour. It teaches you to give conversations more depth and to genuinely find answers to your questions.”
“I had an excellent private course and gained many new insights. Finally structure in my interviews, while still feeling that it does not become a routine trick but a sound, professional job interview.”
“A structured and complete course. Thanks to the skilled trainer, the day flew by.”
"Enjoyable course, open atmosphere, fits your own learning needs well."
“The content was very good and well tailored to our company. The trainer was highly knowledgeable and was able to give many recognisable examples. The intake interview beforehand was good too.”
“A good and useful course with a very likeable trainer!”
“The course was practice-oriented and matched the wishes and input of the participants perfectly. The course leader sensed what was needed and gave the course a varied structure with (a short piece of) theory, practical applications and role play. I would certainly recommend this course!”
“A very worthwhile course given by a trainer with a passion for the subject, expertise and a sense of humour. The lessons were well structured, with clear explanations of the theory, and on the second day the theory was applied to practice, from which you also learn a great deal. The actor – who joins on the second day to apply the theory to practice – is also very friendly and very good. He has a thorough knowledge of the theory, which means you can practise it properly in real-life situations.”
"The course boosts your self-confidence. You learn to conduct a conversation to the best effect, and you can also bring difficult conversations to a proper conclusion."
"Very instructive and opens your eyes to how you look at yourself and what you can still 'improve'."
“Nice and concrete and easy to apply in practice.”
“I found the content of the course very good. The trainer addressed all the cases and went into each one individually. The feedback given was received very positively.”
Training formats
Classroom
1 day€ 625,-- Pleasant venue with a good trainer
- Small groups
- Inspiring and motivating
In-company
Bespoke trainingOn request- 100% for your group
- Bespoke training
- At your place or ours
Workshop
Up to 4 hours for groupsOn request- Suitable for events
- Interactive and inspiring
- Large groups too
Private training
At our place or yoursOn request- 100% just for you
- Achieve a lot in little time
- Whenever you want
Frequently asked questions
Can I cancel free of charge?
Yes. Up to four weeks before the first day of the course you can cancel free of charge, without giving a reason. You then receive a credit note or, if you have already paid, a refund. If you cancel later, you pay part of the course fee: 25% between four and two weeks before the start, 75% in the two weeks before it and 100% in the final week. Moving to another start date is free of charge up to two weeks before the start, after that 50%. Sending a colleague in your place is always possible. Read the cancellation terms.
Who is the Delivering Bad News course suitable for?
Which five phases do you go through in a bad news conversation?
Is prior knowledge required for the Delivering Bad News course?
What do you learn in the Delivering Bad News course?
What does the teaching method of the Delivering Bad News course look like?
What is the difference between this course and an online communication skills course?
How do I know whether this course suits my situation, or whether a coaching programme would be a better choice?
What do I get from this classroom course that I cannot get from a book or a YouTube video?
How long will it be before I can actually apply what I learn in this course in a real bad-news conversation?
When do you choose this course and when a broader conversation techniques course?
Can I also take this course if I only occasionally deliver bad news, or is it mainly for people who do so regularly?
What does the Delivering Bad News course cost and how long does it take?
You can find the current price at the top right of this course page, along with the schedule, location and delivery format. For in-company or bespoke courses we are happy to provide a quotation on request.
Confirmed to run: Wed 25 November 2026 in Zwolle, can also be attended online
This date already has enough participants. Free cancellation up to four weeks before the start, so you can secure a place now.