By Hank Moore, Corporate Strategist™
Professional development is necessary for corporate success. In order to be competitive, today’s workforce needs three times the amount of training that was previously recommended if the organization intends to tackle the future successfully, remain competitive, and stay in business. Team building utilizing Executive Think Tanks must be part of the corporate vision and the success of this enables trainers with the rank and file employees to be optimally successful. Organizations of all sizes must have Think Tanks that delineate future operations including education and training.
Seven Biggest Misconceptions about Training
- One-size-fits-all.
Fact: If it’s not customized, it’s not going to be effective.
- Trainers are business experts.
Fact: Generally, trainers are vendors who sell products that target small niches within the organization. Few are schooled in full-scope business culture and have not been previously engaged to advise organizations at the top.
- Human resources oversee training.
Fact: By their nature, HR departments are designed to uphold processes and systems. Training is about change which contradicts the basic construction of HR. Not all HR people are versed in the subtle nuances of people skills and are not the best to supervise training. It really should not be under the thumb of HR.
- Trainers write the training plans.
Fact: All major departmental plans should be written objectively and in concert with the strategic plan by qualified advisors. Training companies often give free assessments in order to sell their programs. Free surveys do not constitute a cohesive plan. Let trainers do what they do best – train. Let experienced planners design the training plan and include input from trainers.
- Only industry experts can train people in your company.
Fact: Companies need objective business savvy and sophisticated overviews more than anything. Core industry experts only know core industry issues from their own experiences. Quality training must focus on the dynamics outside the core business yet should relate to the organization.
- One course will fix the problem.
Fact: Training is not a punishment for having done something wrong. It’s a privilege; a major benefit of employment; it unlocks doors to greater success, growth, and profitability for those trained and for the sponsoring organization.
- It’s supposed to be popular.
Fact: The biggest mistake that meeting planners make is determining the effectiveness of training and training professionals via audience survey. Most conference evaluation forms are lightweight and ask for surface rankings rather than for nuggets of knowledge learned. Speakers and training budgets are therefore judged upon whimsical comments of individual audience participants which get harsher when the training is for topics they need rather than topics they would prefer to hear. Voices of reality are always criticized by people who really are not qualified to assess them.
The Ideal Training Provider
- Clearly differentiates what they do and will not presume to do it all
- Is a tenured fulltime consultant
- Has actually run a business
- Has consulted companies of comparable size and complexity as yours
- Has current references and case histories
- Gives value-added insight in contrast to simply performing tasks
- Pursues client relationship building as opposed to just rendering a contract service
Seven Biggest Benefits of Training
- Measurements
Test scores, grades, class rankings, GPA, SAT, professional certifications, licensing examinations, and juried awards are measurements that should be included in evaluating individuals. Knowledge helps to predict what is expected.
- Thinking & Reasoning Skills
What we learn, what we do with lessons, how facts are interpreted, how we approach problems, and the faculties of common sense are vital to corporate and social success.
- Socialization & People Skills
Through trial-and-error and the observation of other people’s strengths and weaknesses, we learn how to live and work with others. Mastering people skills makes for win-win propositions.
- Professional Development
Education does not stop after the highest degree completed; it merely continues. Training, professional enrichment, membership in associations, and constructive business interaction are vital for career longevity and economic independence.
- Mentorship
Learning from others takes a higher plateau when under the wings of experts. Mentorship is a process of bettering all participants. Meaningful lessons, paying dues, and developing relationships empower those who make the effort to go the distance.
- Earning Power
Education (formal schooling, professional development, and enhanced-relationship study) has a direct relationship to financial rewards. It begins with school but bears fruit in the willingness to learn, change, and grow professionally.
- Future Life
A truly successful person commits to mentoring others, giving back, mastering change, and never failing to learn. Education is more than confirming one’s held beliefs. It plants knowledge roots which sprout into ideas and lifelong insights.
Professional development must be offered to every employee including mentoring for top executives and up-and-coming ones. Education should teach decision makers about all phases of the organization, what it takes to succeed, and what it takes to grow personally as a team.
Hank Moore has advised over 5,000 client organizations including public sector agencies, small businesses, non-profit organizations, and 100 of the Fortune 500. Contact Hank by phone at 713-668-0664, by email at [email protected], or visit his website at www.hankmoore.com. Hank’s new book, “Houston Legends,” is a definitive history of a dynamic, global capital and can be ordered at www.houstonlegends.net.
