optimus sourcing

The following ten tips will help anyone who is either looking at training for employees or for their selves.  The comments are based on companies however you can relate them back to yourself if you are a sole trader.

1 – Identify Priorities & Goals

Training should relate to the company’s mission, objective and goals.  Once you know that you can then work out your priorities, objectives and goals and what training will help you fulfil both yours and the company’s.

2 – Culture

A company’s culture will always influence the success of any training programme.  There can be factors that can enable and limit the success within the company and these need to be identified in advance. 

3 – Remove The Blocks

 Training should always have a positive effect on performance and knowing what might help or hinder is key.  If you can identify the negative “blocks” and remove them prior to any training then the chances of success will increase and more learning should be transferred into the workplace. 

4 – Evaluate All Solutions

 At this point the question should be “ is training the only solution? “ .  Sending people onto a course or giving them elearning training might not solve the problem.  So look deeper and work with management to identify potential other solutions.  For example someone who is not meeting deadlines might not need time management training but is actually overworked due to lack of management priorities or communication, or a sales person might have too much admin which prevents time spent selling.

5 – Training Solutions

If after looking at other solutions that training is the next step then you need to identify what training will be the most effective at enabling the individuals and company goals and objectives to be met.  What skills, knowledge and/or behaviour gap does the individual(s) have which will be filled by the learning?

6 – Identify Learning Objectives

These are key to ensuring the correct training is carried out.  So you will need to know what people will be able to differently when the training is over,  what competencies or skills they will be able to show and use and How will you be able to measure the improvement following the training?

7 – Competency Gaps

Whilst it is easy to look at an individual’s gaps initially you need to make sure you have gone through the previous steps before you get to this stage.   You will need to know what needs your employee has in relation to the company goals and objectives prior to choosing the best training.  You can do this using a range of tools such as 360 degree surveys, performance appraisals, questionnaires, work observations and more.   This step needs time spent and is a skill that Learning and Development need to have to avoid the wrong training for employees.

8 – Correct Content

 Following on from identifying the competency gaps is ensuring that the training is right for that person.  This applies to all scenarios and training such as one to one training, classroom training, elearning, group sessions and more.   Get the managers provide their thoughts and ideas on what should be included in the training and then find the right solutions.  If you cannot find an off the shelf solution and have the budget available then get a bespoke solution.  The long term rewards will outweigh the original investment if done correctly e.g. £1000 invested in 5 sales staff resulting in an extra £2000 of sales a year has a net benefit.

9 – Learning Transfer

At the end of a training course all delegates will be fired up and ready to implement everything they have learnt and change their ways of working.  However in a lot of cases this never happens when they are back at their desks.

You need to ensure that any employee is given all the support possible to transfer the skills back to work.  This might be the creation of a Performance Plan, Pre and Post Course Briefings,  Rewards for new behaviour. 

 10 – Evaluation

If you don’t evaluate the training against the original goals then you have no way of measuring the success.  Evaluation can be as simple as post course forms (happy sheets) or reviewing behaviour on a regular basis every three months over a yearly period.  However you do this make sure you do it.

Anyone who has ever been involved in selecting training providers will know that it can be a stressful and confusing task.  How do you know that you have the best option from the thousands of training providers out there?  Are they going to deliver great training and offer the best value for you and your company?

We have put together 5 top tips for you to consider when making any selections based on how we select training providers and trainers.    We aim to only work with the best and the below ensures that we weed out the weak.

 T – Track record

Who have they worked with and how recently?  Will they understand the culture of your business?  Can they “talk the talk” when dealing with delegates?  If you want a sales trainer then make sure he or she has a successful sales background.   Work with training providers will understand your business and the culture.  Would an Investment bank want a trainer who has only ever worked in the public sector and vice versa?  Probably not.

Always ask for the trainers’ cv and/or profile so you can check out their history.  Also ask for at least two clients references and then contact them.  Don’t just ask if the training was good; ask them what the provider was like to work with, how was their customer service, did they have good ideas, were they flexible? 

R – Relationship

When you first approach the training provider or trainer how did they respond?  Are the sales people pushy?  Are they responsive?  Do they provide a personal touch and are willing to go the extra mile for you?   You need to measure this and make sure you work with training providers you can trust and if required build long term relationships with. 

A – Accounts

Check out the financial history of the training provider if you can.  There are several credit checking agencies and most companies will use these when working with a new provider.  It’s not always possible to do this with small non Ltd companies or individual freelance trainers so one way around this is to try and pay after the event.  Some training providers insist on payment upfront however terms can always be adjusted.  The last thing you want is to pay a company that folds and never receive the training. 

I – innovative

By this we mean how does the training provider think and approach any training solution?  Do they just offer a basic solution or are they always looking to offer new ideas and solutions that will help you achieve your objectives?  Providers don’t need to be offering fancy technology unless its necessary but they need to have a proactive forward thinking approach and always look to improve what they offer.

N – (k)now how

Ok, the acronym doesn’t exactly work on this section but we tried! 

How much knowledge does the trainer or training provider have in the subject they are training your staff in?  Too many providers and trainers offer a wide range of training subjects so make sure the trainers know their subject matter.   Try and work with training providers who specialise in the training you are looking for.  So if you need sales training then approach specialist sales training companies, if you need PRINCE2 go to PRINCE2 specialists.  There are plenty of providers out there who are desperate for business so will attempt to deliver topics they are not experts at.

We hope that the above tips were useful for you.  If you have any extra tips you would recommend or any stories about when you chose training providers then please let us know.