This week our topic was to:
Imagine you have just 2 minutes or so to give someone an "elevator speech" regarding the "truth" about training. This person does not believe that training is important, complicated, or even necessary. What might you say to this individual to convince him or her otherwise? What key insights could you impart that this person likely would not have known and would find surprising and/or interesting? Utilizing the insights you gained this week, draft a hypothetical "elevator speech" that, when spoken, lasts for approximately 90 seconds.
Some would say training is a necessary evil, while others I'm sure would drop the term "necessary" altogether. Hopefully my brief argument is enough to make someone at least pause and think of the complexity of designing training and some of its benefits.
Below is a copy of the transcript (give or take a few lines) and you can listen to the audio clip via SoundCloud by clicking the link below
The role of training in companies has really changed over recent years. Traditionally
most people think of training as a boring and grueling event they are required to attend in order to learn things they don’t even need, in order to do their job. You know exactly what I’m talking about- when training is over and you think to yourself “what a waste of time” and you think of all the things you could have gotten accomplished in that time if you were at your desk.
What many people don’t realize is just how complicated it is to create training, specifically learner-centered and performance based training. People don’t know that effective training can assist businesses in meeting specific needs and challenges, and good training can even improve employee performance, confidence, and commitment to ones job and company.
Did you know there’s a difference between training, instructing, and educating? A trainer has to consider the information that is to be conveyed, the best way to convey it, create a platform in which everyone will learn, understand, and gain knowledge- all while taking our learning styles and other factors into consideration? Talk about stressful and complicated and unappreciated!
Training is an important part of business acumen as the survival of a business is dependent on the quality of employee talent. Businesses have to educate their personnel to ensure business goals are met and they experience continued growth and success.
Though most people dislike training, employees want to actually do their job to the best of their abilities. In fact 33% stated they would like proper training for new duties and responsibilities and 45% of employees stated they wanted the opportunity to learn and develop their skills.
Training benefits everyone when it’s done correctly. It’s a complex process and a lot more goes into it then people may think
References
Bradley, A. (2010). Shifting away from an employer’s market. Training and Development, 64(7), 16–17
Noe, R. A. (2010). Employee training and development (5th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.
Stolovitch, H. “The Truth About Training”. [Video]. Walden University
Hi Audrea,
ReplyDeleteGood Speech. You're right, training has come a long way and if done correctly can be a great asset to a company. Most employees though do groan at the thought of sitting through another lenghty training session. So to keep the employees engaged, the training needs to be relevant and meaningful. Cross training may also help keep dissatisfied employees engaged as it will allow them to further develop their talent / skills and apply them to new positions (Noe, 2010). I think more employees would look forward to training if they knew it had the potential to led to growth within the company.
Thanks Denna!
DeleteThis is where I think technology can assist in creating "better" training. Creating training in platforms and using technology that we use everyday can make training fun and exciting. Asynchronous learning environments such as LMS' and podcasts/webcasts would be a great way to engage learners.
Hi Audrea,
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job of providing a well-rounded view of training. You covered the topic for the trainee's point of view, the trainer,while stressing the benefits to all stakeholders. According to Noe (2010) in order for a company to gain a competitive advantage it should view training broadly as a way to create intellectual capital. Maybe if everyone in the company (including) the workers embraced the concept of training increasing and enhancing their intellectual capital training would be viewed more positively.
Celia,
DeleteGreat point! As I stated in my response to Denna technology is a great way to improve everyone's attitude and view toward training. Showing alternative training delivery methods could assist in interest in training and development.
Hi Audrea,
ReplyDeleteI think your elevator speech communicates the important role that an instructional designer or training specialist can play in developing training. I do not think that many people outside of the field appreciate the complexity of developing effective training strategies that are linked to business goals and outcomes. It is not simply a matter of telling people what you know. It is something that can support the continued growth and success of an organization. I also think your elevator speech was effective at highlighting the central importance of the learner. You effectively make the link between the importance of employee training to successful business outcomes, and to maintaining an engaged workforce. People may believe that monetary incentives drive productivity and employee engagement. They may be shocked to hear how training can play a central role in keeping staff motivated. I think that if I were on the elevator with you, I would definitely want to hear more about this benefit of training and how you might help my program.
You could not be more on target when you made the statement within your blog this week about it not being an easy feat to create training. To piggy-back on this, I will venture to say that the development of training is not something everyone or just anyone can do. Training is, often, unsuccessful when it is developed and delivered by those who are not equipped in the first place. Unfortunately, with this said, employee's poor performance is not laid on the doorstep of accidental training professionals.
ReplyDeleteGreat point Tara,
DeleteMany people think that training is easy, but we definitely know otherwise!
Audrea,
ReplyDeleteI would agree with Alexis, you made a good observation that many people outside of the field do not appreciate the complexity of developing effective training strategies that are linked to business goals and outcomes. Training and development are important to the support the continued growth and success of a company, especially those businesses that are dependent on employee talent. I liked that you stressed the importance of educating their personnel to ensure business goals are met and assure continued success. At the end of the speech you could relate the importance of training to the CEO, by asking how training might benefit their organization.
Mike