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Before the Training

Those of you who work with Adaptis know that we adapt our materials to suit the realities of your environment. We know the importance of creating the right content for the participants and so we don't use 'off the shelf' solutions. We then know we have produced the best course content for our participants.

But do they? What preparation do you do with your organisation and your Managers before we see them?

Preparation for the Organisation

Those who value learning within the organisation align all training to the company vision and business goals. By attending specific training events, and taking on board changes required, participants can clearly see how they are helping the organisation achieve those goals.

Preparation for Individuals

In preparing for any training, managers must be encouraged to reflect on the objectives of that training, their own personal needs, the needs of the organisation and to attend the training with some well-formed objectives.

The clearer the partipant's expectations are for what they want to get out of any learning, the greater the chance that they will achieve those expectations and come away from the training willing to put their new skills/knowledge/behaviours into practice.

The Training Day

People learn in different ways. We know from our experience with learning styles that our training has to accommodate all learning needs. So a typical Adaptis course will involve interaction, role play, experimentation, reflection and, of course, plenty of time for discussion and questions.

Our trainers are all qualified SDI (strength deployment inventory) facilitators so we know how to adapt our own behaviours to meet the needs of all individuals within the room. Everything we do on the day ensures that all participants can get the best opportunity to learn.

After the day - A time to reflect and apply

Ensuring successful training means that managers need the time after attending any training to reflect on changes they need to make and how they are going to make those changes.

Good post-training strategies make sure that training can be applied after the training day itself. the focus of Learning and Development should now be to help participants apply their new learning to the job.

Coaching

One of the best strategies to ensure managers spend the time reflecting on what they need to change is to use coaching. Having individual coaching sessions as part of a Management Development Programme gives a greater guarantee that changes will be applied as this is often the time when the impact of the learning fades. Not because of a lack of desire to get it right, but because there is a lack of time and resource available in many organisations to focus on ensuring the impact of training is fully achieved.

Our answer is to ensure that coaching skills are developed in all managers as well as in Learning and Development specialists. By involving managers in coaching, you take away the reliance upon Learning and Development and therefore reduce the potential for learning to fade. Establishing a coaching competency and culture across the management team builds support from those who experience the same issues. However, it's not enough to train managers in how to coach. In a recent CIPD survey, 47% of respondents said they train managers in coaching skills, however, two thirds of respondents cited competing pressures as a barrier to building a coaching culture in their organisations.

If you'd like further information, or help in making sure your learning sticks email sara at sara.burks@adaptis.co.uk

Spring 07 - Making learning stick