IS YOUR TRAINING FAIL PROOF?

80 percent of employees surveyed by Gallup in a recent study said it would be "important" or "very important" if their employer offered more and better training. Additionally, the employees noted that there was usually room for improvement in the training they did receive; with more than 50 percent saying the quality of training fell below their expectations.

How often have you attended a training event and been so enthusiastic when you left the event only to go back to your old habits and ways of doing things? How often have you or your staff gone to a training program and left wondering what you were, in fact, supposed to have learned?

In both of these scenarios, the net result of the training becomes a negative, rather than a positive, on the organizations' bottom line. Unfortunately, this is a common experience.

Why does most training fail?  The training failed if it doesn't produce measurable, observable, and positive behavior change that reflect an intended outcome. The training failed if it doesn't produce an increase in productivity as a result of increased competency and self-esteem. The training failed if people do not change behavior as a result of the training.

Here are some ways to make your training productive:

• Answer the question, "What's in it for me?"  Make sure the training has relevance to your employees' personal and business goals. If not, they will wonder why they are involved in the training, and they will become uninterested and unmotivated.

• The atmosphere for training must be conducive to learning.   Participants in the training cannot fear being judged if they ask questions, make a mistake, or expose vulnerability. The perception of a highly critical environment inhibits learning.

• Reinforce the behaviors and principles learned during training.   People do not change behaviors quickly; it takes reinforcement of an idea or message for people to internalize it and accept it as theirs. People may intuitively "know" the information that has been taught, but they never get from the "I know" stage to the "reflexive response" dimension without reinforcement.

• Clearly state the objectives of the training.   If the objectives of the training are poorly stated or not stated, the participants will not understand what it is that they are to take away from the training and apply to their respective jobs. Clearly and simply state the objectives of the training before the training begins.

• Make sure you have the support of management.   And, one of the most important factors we determined in the failure of training is a lack of support from management. If management is close-minded, jaded and egocentric, then management's behavior is inconsistent with the concepts and behavior being taught.

For instance, a CEO who talks about the company being customer-focused but perpetuates practices that are not in the best interest of the customers is ultimately a bad example and providing mixed signals to the rank and file. Expected behavior must be modeled.

If you incorporate these guidelines into the choices you make about training, there will undoubtedly be a more positive impact to your organization's bottom line.                                                    

From the March 12, 2004 print edition of the Baltimore Business Journal

Cool Spring Center is a corporate training company dedicated to training people to achieve more than they believed possible. We provide programs at any location, including our own outdoor training campus six miles east of Statesville, NC nestled among 100 acres of wooded property.