Key Weapon for Maximising Training Investments

Introduction

Businesses have a simple, burning question to ask of any training intervention, “How do we know that our investment was profitable?” Key to answering this question is in knowing WHEN to ask it and HOW.

Back to basics

The key to maximising investment in training is to define what results are expected in measurable terms, which is not as easy as it seems.

Whilst “To reduce the error level in XYZ production process by ABC%” might be straightforward, how do we set measurable objectives for soft skills training such as strategic thinking, negotiation, emotional intelligence or self-awareness for example? We know they can be taught, but how can we measure the extent to which a particular intervention has transferred these skills?

The objective of any workplace training intervention is to change the behaviour of the training programme participants. Why? To improve business results by either rectifying substandard performance or by imparting new skills. In either instance a business case would need to have been submitted which includes measurable results, usually expressed in financial terms.

The first step is for the training objectives (what will learners be able to do?) and these measurable, financial objectives to be made known to the provider and those enrolled on the training and their line managers.

What works?

Clearly, those questionnaires at the end of a course will not help to measure how far financial objectives have been met. They determine whether the delivery of the training had a positive impact on the participants and assists providers in improving their delivery.

What more needs to be done if we are to be assured that any training intervention is delivering the goods?

The tools

Valuable insights by one Don Kirkpatrick¹ (1924 –2014) have given industry the tools needed.

In addition to determining the immediate impact of the training, further evaluation must be carried out to measure:

What was learnt?

Assessment of participants is vital. If this is not a part of the training programme, then it is edutainment, not training. More will have been achieved by taking the same participants on a team building exercise or to an inspiring movie.

To what extent has behaviour been changed?

At some stage after the training has taken place, we need to determine whether the learning which took place is being applied:

• Are training participants applying the new skills in their work, or
• Have the individuals concerned changed their previous practices in line with changes in client needs, legislation, company strategy, or other developments

This is implies that, prior to training taking place, we need to have the tools to measure these results. In practice this can be carried out through interviews, of assessment of observed behaviour against checklists or the evaluation of finished products.

Training providers need to be a part of building these tools and will need to include it in their quotations.

What it the financial impact?

The business case defined financial objectives. After an agreed period (should not be later than six months) the financial results of the areas in the company that were targeted for training need to be measured against these objectives. It may not be easy to gain an accurate result because other factors may intervene which either enhance or detract from the financial impact of the training.

What is the overall ROI?

By collating the financial impacts of all training interventions it becomes possible to calculate a real training ROI as opposed to one built on the Training Manager’s flights of fancy.

To summarise:

There is an argument which says that all this measuring is too time consuming and costly. On the other hand training is becoming an increasingly costly budget item whose value has until now been difficult to quantify.

Does your company think it important to calculate return on training investment?

Is the work involved in objectively assessing worth the effort involved?

What tools other than those which have been suggested do you use to measure training impact?

When organising training interventions, what importance do you place on measuring participants’ ability to apply what they have learnt?

Reference:

1. The New World Kirkpatrick Model: http://www.kirkpatrickpartners.com/OurPhilosophy/TheKirkpatrickModel/tabid/302/Default.apx

Implementing Training for Maximum Impact

Introduction

The most exciting developments in the growing of organisational competencies have been in training implementation- making sure that, once training is delivered, it has maximum impact. In this article we explore innovations which will substantially enhance returns on training investments.

The Secret

According to research done by Stanford University, the amount of knowledge generated in the last 30 years is equivalent to the amount of knowledge generated in the rest of human history.

“Textbooks are becoming out-dated by the time they are printed. Curricula are no longer reliable records of what we know. Predictable career paths and stable worldviews are things of the past.

“In this constantly shifting knowledge landscape, learning how to think is becoming far more important than learning what  to think. This is a shift away from subject content towards a focus on thinking skills.”

Source: André Croucamp- Totem Media.

We now operate in a world where:

•  information is readily and easily accessible;

•  change is so rapid that traditional methods of training and education are totally inadequate; 

• discipline based knowledge is equally inadequate for organisations to remain competitive;

•  learning is increasingly aligned with what we do;

• organisations require flexible learning practices; and

•   there is a need for immediacy of learning

The secret to successful training implementation in this new environment starts with the assumption that every group of individuals involved in a training intervention will have greater access to information than any individual facilitator. In addition, real learning is a much more collaborative process among today’s learning population than it ever was. Coupled to this we also know that the best way of acquiring new skills comes from teaching those skills to others.

This leads to realisation that future training should be implemented in a way that embraces the simple and profound concept that any organisation has a collection of knowledge and experience which should be shared. It respects the fact that the training department may, at most, have 5-10% of the knowledge needed and used in the company. Organisational learning is taking place on a real-time basis - ever changing and becoming more valuable.

In such an environment, the relationship between traditional “homework” and “classwork” is flipped – homework is used by the individual to acquire knowledge and understanding (previously imparted in lectures) and contact sessions are used to apply what has been learnt in collaborative exercises.

This has a profound effect on the way in which successful training programmes are implemented.

The Keystone

Adaptation is key to survival- people want to learn and have a lifelong inclination to do so: learning is natural, "like breathing" and it is an internal process carried out by all of us, every second of every day.

At the heart of any organisational training is the need to change individual behaviour:

• for targeted individuals to acquire new skills;
• for the individuals concerned to change current practices to take on board changes in client needs, legislation, company strategy, or other developments.

Using their natural instincts to learn, individuals must be equipped to face challenges and solve problems to which they had previously not been exposed.

Implementation of this new type of training involves a process in which individuals take the initiative, in collaboration with their colleagues, in analysing problems, formulating desired outcomes, identifying the resources required to achieve these outcomes, choosing and implementing solution based strategies and evaluating the objectives achieved.

The stimulus to such a learning processes is the setting of problems where, by working towards solutions, individuals either acquire new sets of knowledge, skills and attitudes or use those which they already have in innovative ways. Thus the finding of the learner’s own solutions brings about the required changes of behaviour.

Whilst radical changes are needed to transform training implementation through these suggestions, the bottom line benefits are clear: what is needed is the organisation’s appetite for innovation. 

Do your organisation’s training programmes lead to higher levels of productivity.

Would the flipped classroom methodology be of benefit to your organisation’s truing effectiveness.

In your opinion, what is needed to make your organisation’s training implementation more effective?

Let’s share ideas..