Maximizing Your Training Impact

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1 Maximizing Your Training Impact Antony Jennings Training staff is an essential investment for any organization in today's changing and competitive environment. But just sending staff to attend training programs is not good enough. You want to be able to maximize the impact of the investment the organization is making. Organizations invest millions of rand in training, to develop employees' skills and to increase overall productivity within the organization. Yet sadly, many organizations say they see very little return on their investment. The expected behavioral change and skills transfer just doesn t seem to materialize and frustrated and disillusioned managers become reluctant to waste more money on an ineffectual organizational expense. The theory is that an intensive training intervention will dramatically improve skills and bring about positive behaviors in employees. These behaviors and skills are then to be deployed by the individual in their job. After a short while, having allowed some time for the skills to be contextualized into the work place, results should now climb to deliver the payback on the investment. Sadly, practice rarely bears out the theory. Within no time people slip back into their existing and comfortable habits. It is quickly business as usual. There is some incremental improvement but nothing like what was expected. Training practitioners around the world have spent much time trying to find ways to maximize the training impact into an organization. Much research has been done and significant lessons have been learnt that can now be positively used to get the most out of a training budget. It is important to understand that employees do want to be trained. This is not so much the problem. In an ACCENTURE sponsored research study Global Leadership the Next Generation, which resulted in lengthy interviews with Over 200 high potential leaders from 120 international companies, the question was asked: What key behaviours would organizational Leadership need to demonstrate to keep people like them involved? Their response can be summarized in 6 key factors: Show respect and dignity Create a thriving environment Provide training Be a coach

2 Provide feedback Reward and recognize other s achievements Assessing Training Programs There are three components that can be useful to enhance the effectiveness of training programs. 1. A methodical assessment of training needs is necessary to ensure that a training program addresses issues and problems within the organization. The Training Needs Analysis is used to determine where in the organization training is needed, which employees require training, and what knowledge, skills and behavioral change is required. 2. Appropriate training tools/methods are developed or identified to deliver content based on the training needs analysis. The training methods depend on the program s objectives. Methods can be on the job training or off the job instruction. The prerequisite though, is that the training is vibrant, relevant, visual and creative, with participants experiencing the course, not just being lectured. 3. Wide-ranging evaluation of the programs must be implemented, applying different evaluation criteria and methods, to determine whether the desired outcomes have been achieved. These three factors guide your training process and will help to make the training itself effective, but there are factors outside of the direct training process that can significantly influence training effectiveness. External Factors That Impact On The Training Process 1. The Individual s characteristics An individual s ability to learn and acquire new knowledge and skills. This can have a direct influence on training preparation and performance. If trainees possess these abilities, learning could be comparatively quick and efficient. Individuals ability can be assessed throughout the selection process and to make selection decisions, managers must know about the skills, knowledge and attitudes required to perform the essential tasks and duties. An individual s attitude toward work. This may also affect his or her willingness to apply the newly acquired knowledge and skills on the job after training has been accomplished. If individuals possess a high degree of commitment to their jobs, it is very

3 likely they will regard training as valuable and easy to transfer their new capital back on the job. An individual s willingness to be trained. Their desire to learn will directly impact on their motivation levels. Those who are intrinsically motivated to go to training are more likely to learn and use their newly acquired knowledge and skills in the workplace. An individual s choices. Some times, in spite of being confronted by new truth or lessons that highlight problem behaviors or areas that require behavioral change an individual can still choose to hold on to their old behavior. E.g. I know I have a bad attitude, but that s me, take it or leave it. I know I need to work on my relationships at work, but it s too much effort. An individual s beliefs about themselves. We respond to life based on our belief systems. Our beliefs shape our actions. If I believe I am too old to change, I will not change. If I believe I am not capable of leading others, I will make no attempt to do so. An individual s belief system has to be changed in order for new behaviors to be put in place. 2. Management Factors Top Management must Buy In Senior management must set the tone for any learning initiative. Top management creates the excitement and passion needed, as well as the strategic link between what is being learned and achieved by the individual and the mission, vision, and values of the organization. Managers must be involved in the process. When managers identify a problem and decide on a training intervention to fix it, then they must be accountable and responsible for it. Evaluations let training staff know what the employee can do, but that transfer of new behavior is, up to the manager. The manager and the person being trained must be on the same track. E.g. Sometimes an employee will learn 'how to be a team manager' and come back to a hierarchical environment. The culture needs to support what the trainee learns, and make it part of performance standards.

4 A coaching support system must be in place. Developmental coaching is the thread that has to be woven through every piece of the cultural fabric. Senior managers must not only be exposed to the training, but must themselves be given training on developmental coaching skills. 3. Workplace factors: An organizational culture that does not see training as valuable and necessary can influence training effectiveness. (E.G. Too busy to train) An organization s social norms and values that support learning can have a positive impact on an individual s willingness to attend and learn during training, as well as to transfer learning back to the job. Appraisals and reward systems add value to training. Performance appraisals form part of the training needs analysis to determine the exact cause of a performance gap or a development opportunity. Furthermore, if someone can demonstrate great performance, he or she should be rewarded. If success measurements are in place, training can be an incentive to help an employee to reach success and be rewarded accordingly. A culture of continuous learning. Training interventions, being not just an event, but as part of a bigger ongoing development process, can have a major impact on the effectiveness of training. Training as part of apprenticeships, learnerships, and management development programs, including mentoring and support have a much higher potential for success. The lack of opportunity to use the training in the workplace. People are going to do what they're rewarded for doing. Trainers can get information into the employees' heads, but sticking occurs in the environment. If employees can't transfer what they've learned, the training is wasted. Examples: When bank tellers return from customer service training and their supervisors still measure their performance by the number of transactions they each handle, they wont risk low performance ratings; i.e. it is unlikely that they will utilize their new skills at work by taking time to discuss the bank's other products and services with customers. Does the employee who just received training on a new computer system have to go back to the same old equipment? Does the employee re-enter a crisis situation and have to revert to

5 the way things were always done?" Does the individual who has just been on a Customer services course have to chase just financial targets? When training isn't given to the right people at the right time. Organizations may try to hold training too far in advance, or may target the wrong people. The result is that employees can have problems trying to recall and access information they haven't been able to transfer, either because they've forgotten it, or because it wasn't relevant. All training interventions should be linked to business objectives. When that link doesn't occur, new behaviors in a job won't be welcome. Training must be de-emphasized as an event, and must emphasize its results: performance. Customize training to be specific to the organization. Most companies can benefit from going outside their own doors for help in developing training. Go to experts in the kind of training you need, and have your in-house expert work with the training expert. Employees must feel they have a need to know something. When they do and when managers make it clear they need to know it, training becomes more effective. The further away the topic is from work, the harder it is to measure that training's effectiveness. Preparing for a Successful Training Intervention: Research shows that the best training in the world won't translate into changed behaviors back on the job unless the drivers of the training initiatives and participants understand their roles and responsibilities before, during, and after any training initiative. Here are some recommended actions to be taken in each of these three stages to maximize the potential for success: Not just understanding the practice but practicing the understanding. 1. Before the Training Program: Management must make sure that the training is aligned with the vision, goals, and strategies of the organization. This alignment must be explained to department heads and frontline managers to clarify why attending this training and learning this skill set is more important than anything else competing for their direct reports' time.

6 Ensure participants know why they are going to be trained and what the benefits are. Research indicates that if people don't understand why they are learning something, only 10-23% of individuals will do something different as a result of training. This shifts their perspective from purely personal, "I am going to attend training", to personal and organizational, "The organization is making an investment so I can attend training. The purpose of this investment is to help me upgrade my skills so that our organization becomes even more competitive and productive." Ask participants to talk about how they might benefit from the program. Where do they see opportunities for improvement in their own skills and/or behavior? Discuss and obtain agreement from your staff on their punctuality, attendance and participation in the training program. Redistribute participants' workload during their absence so they do not return to a mountain of pending matters. This helps participants keep their minds focused on the course. If sending more than one participant, pair people up to support each other while on the course to ensure that both participants get maximum value and understanding from the training. During the Training Program: If the course is more than one day long, have participants brief their managers as the course progresses. This can take the form of a short face-to-face meeting, a telephone call at the end of the day, or a summary fax written and sent overnight. Participants should identify what material was covered during the day, what new learning occurred, and what value they see in applying this learning back at work. Discuss any concerns or uncertainties that arise. Help participants identify examples of learning points in application on the job. Help them formulate clarifying questions to bring back to the course facilitator on the following day. If there are interim assignments to complete, engage others who are not attending the course in discussions and deliberations. This brings the learning experience back into the office, building an internal support network for during and after the training. After the Training Program:

7 Meet with course participants to review: What were the most valuable learning s from this program? What will you do differently now at work? In which situations? When will you begin or try this new approach? What suggestions do you have to improve or customize the course? Who else should attend this particular training program? Check the homework that was needed to be completed and hold participants accountable for using what they have learned. Providing participants with tools and resources that support using the new skills back on the job. Discuss organizational improvements based upon the participants' new learning. Be willing to implement new suggestions on a trial basis with participants involved in tracking and implementation. Follow-up and reinforcement are the ongoing processes that provide the backbone to bridging the gap between learning and doing. It is critical that organizations spend at least 10 times the energy in reinforcing training as they do in delivering it. Research suggests a period of 6 to 8 weeks is all that is required. Provide coaching as the primary follow-up strategy. Research has shown that coaching improves application back on the job from 20 to 80%. In addition to providing an accountability component, coaching helps people diagnose, prioritize, and plan a course of action. In Conclusion: Being willing to change the way you have thought about training up to now is the starting point to developing an effective training program. Recognize that management buy in and support is key, within an organizational culture that creates space to put learning s into practice. This process will take time but can eventually become a part of the culture of the organization. If pursued passionately and enthusiastically these key principles can significantly increase the impact of training in your organization and maximize the money invested in the development of your staff.

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