Getting, maximising results from training programmes
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- Category: SME toolkit
- Written by Bridget Olotu
- Hits: 530
I would like to pause writing on training needs for SMEs to write about the need for SME managers and owners to first of all carry out a Training and Development Assessment Need before embarking on such an exercise. This is because you don’t just engage in staff training for the fun of it. You want to be sure that you are getting value for your money and that your workers are getting retrained and that their knowledge, skills, abilities and attitudes are being enhanced.
I met with the Managing Director of a media outfit few years ago and while we were discussing this issue, he was hesitant to engage my firm to supply his organisation with specific training programmes he had in mind. When I prodded him to know why, he told me with a sense of frustration that their organisation had not been harvesting much result from training programmes. In other words, the ROI on training was not very attractive. After speaking with him for a while, I told him that it was important he assessed the training and development needs of his people by looking at their weaknesses and area of professional needs on the job. For me, that is the starting point of knowing what training programme is good for whom. It is only when the why question has been answered, that you can now consider the what, when and how issues pertaining to the execution of that training.
I also told him that training programmes are more successful and results-oriented when they are customised and they should be. A specific Training on Marketing, for instance, may not be done the same way for product and service organisations. Although the principles will/may remain the same, in practice, the approach must be different. Even in service organisations, training on marketing will be different for say a management consulting organisation and an insurance company. Understanding these nuances and adjusting the training programme accordingly can determine whether the organisation achieves results and high ROI on such a training effort and whether even the participants would go away with good and relevant information that could transform their careers and job tasks.After our lengthy face-to-face discussions, and email exchanges and calls, we arrived at some training programmes that actually fit the needs of the staff and that eventually has helped them as a business to reposition their offerings in their industry. Today, the organisation wears new physical and mental looks befitting a business of its type and it’s gradually carving a niche for itself in its industry. I have seen this happen again and again to many clients I have been privileged to serve. So my advice is: Don’t embark on any form of training as a management ritual or as part of the annual business exigencies. Training must be based on addressing the apparent needs of the people working in an organisation and in line with your corporate strategy and business objectives.
Therefore, while we must applaud organisations that have a budget for training and do embark on regular staff training, it’s important to assess whether your training programmes are delivering the expected results and meeting the expected training objectives. It is also more important to know whether your ROI on training justifies the whole exercise.
Of course, whether modern organisations like it or not, you have to train and retrain your staff. There is so much dynamism in the modern workplace today that employees and their organisations need constant skills, information and knowledge upgrade to stay competitive and to survive. Let me brake here by sharing with you an inspirational statement from Alvin Toffler, one of the world’s greatest writers on change and change management. For me, his statement, said some years back, underlines the need for SMEs and other business enterprises to embark on regular, results-oriented training programmes. He said, “The illiterates of the twenty-first century are not those who cannot read and write but are those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”
Articles
Getting, maximising results from training programmes
Category: SME toolkit Written by Bridget Olotu Hits: 530
I would like to pause writing on training needs for SMEs to write about the need for SME managers and owners to first of all carry out a Training and Development Assessment Need before embarking on such an exercise. This is because you don’t just engage in staff training for the fun of it. You want to be sure that you are getting value for your money and that your workers are getting retrained and that their knowledge, skills, abilities and attitudes are being enhanced.
I met with the Managing Director of a media outfit few years ago and while we were discussing this issue, he was hesitant to engage my firm to supply his organisation with specific training programmes he had in mind. When I prodded him to know why, he told me with a sense of frustration that their organisation had not been harvesting much result from training programmes. In other words, the ROI on training was not very attractive. After speaking with him for a while, I told him that it was important he assessed the training and development needs of his people by looking at their weaknesses and area of professional needs on the job. For me, that is the starting point of knowing what training programme is good for whom. It is only when the why question has been answered, that you can now consider the what, when and how issues pertaining to the execution of that training.
I also told him that training programmes are more successful and results-oriented when they are customised and they should be. A specific Training on Marketing, for instance, may not be done the same way for product and service organisations. Although the principles will/may remain the same, in practice, the approach must be different. Even in service organisations, training on marketing will be different for say a management consulting organisation and an insurance company. Understanding these nuances and adjusting the training programme accordingly can determine whether the organisation achieves results and high ROI on such a training effort and whether even the participants would go away with good and relevant information that could transform their careers and job tasks.After our lengthy face-to-face discussions, and email exchanges and calls, we arrived at some training programmes that actually fit the needs of the staff and that eventually has helped them as a business to reposition their offerings in their industry. Today, the organisation wears new physical and mental looks befitting a business of its type and it’s gradually carving a niche for itself in its industry. I have seen this happen again and again to many clients I have been privileged to serve. So my advice is: Don’t embark on any form of training as a management ritual or as part of the annual business exigencies. Training must be based on addressing the apparent needs of the people working in an organisation and in line with your corporate strategy and business objectives.
Therefore, while we must applaud organisations that have a budget for training and do embark on regular staff training, it’s important to assess whether your training programmes are delivering the expected results and meeting the expected training objectives. It is also more important to know whether your ROI on training justifies the whole exercise.
Of course, whether modern organisations like it or not, you have to train and retrain your staff. There is so much dynamism in the modern workplace today that employees and their organisations need constant skills, information and knowledge upgrade to stay competitive and to survive. Let me brake here by sharing with you an inspirational statement from Alvin Toffler, one of the world’s greatest writers on change and change management. For me, his statement, said some years back, underlines the need for SMEs and other business enterprises to embark on regular, results-oriented training programmes. He said, “The illiterates of the twenty-first century are not those who cannot read and write but are those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”