Training is a profit center, not an expense
Dan Bobinski
It can be tough to calculate the value of training, so some people view it simply as an expense. But if you crunch the numbers properly, its true value quickly becomes apparent.
Workforce training requires workforce investment
Dan Bobinski
Investing in your workforce means more than just paying them well. It means equipping people with skills and enabling them with authority. Because without opportunities to learn and grow, people quickly become bored and disengaged.
The key to a quality training program
Dan Bobinski
Getting training right can be like herding cats. But the secret isn't the talent of the trainer or even the comprehensiveness of the training. It's the desire within everyone concerned that the training be a success.
For anyone who's ever scoffed at training
Dan Bobinski
If you're going to invest in training managers (and every company should), senior executives need to go through at least a condensed version to make them aware of what's being taught. If they're not, any training will fall way short of its potential.
When you train, are people learning?
Dan Bobinski
Many managers are expected to train their staff. But if no one has ever shown them how to do it effectively, then how could they possibly know? They way adults learn is not a preprogrammed brain file, nor is it installed in us when we're born or when we become a manager.
Companies that train are more profitable and productive
Nic Paton
There is a clear link between the productivity and profitability of manufacturers who not only place a high priority on training but also relate their training plan to their strategic business goals.
Learning is everywhere
Wayne Turmel
What you know now is good for now, but might be completely outdated by tomorrow. This means there's a constant need to learn new things, both formally and informally.
Learning is a process, not a result
Duane Dike
None of us learn to read, ride a bike or pack a suitcase in a day. So understanding that learning is a process, not an event is fundamental to creating learning cultures rather than environments based on rote or blind faith.
Workforce development or workforce disaffection?
Paul Daley
Many large businesses build their workforce development plans on the creation of a corporate elite who are fast-tracked to become the leaders of the future. But could this model of talent management be seriously flawed?
Is learning part of your strategic plan?
Dan Bobinski
Over the years I've observed that business leaders pay scant attention to aligning their training efforts with their strategic vision. After all, the ROI from organizational learning does not have a line in the budget, so it is easily overlooked. Big mistake.
Why MOOCs and executives don't mix
Paul Hunter
For time-stretched executives juggling professional objectives and scarce personal time, MOOCs have not been a hoped-for panacea. So forget the hype, virtual learning will only work for executives if it follows these seven basic principles.
Education and the city of the future
Lindsey Donato
If municipalities are to have any chance of preparing their young people for an uncertain future, the education they provide needs to change. And that means embracing technology and expanding learning beyond the doors of the classroom.
Education, baristas and employee turnover
Duane Dike
The decision by Starbucks to help employees to complete a college degree is genius on many levels. The offer alone represents hope for a way out of the no-hope fast-food job cycle. But even if employees don't take up the offer, I'd wager morale, workmanship and turnover rates will all improve, too.
Paying lip service to leadership
Wayne Turmel
Leadership training is big business. But that doesn't alter the fact that most of it is hooey and it won't change a thing. So why do companies bother? Does the lip service they pay to leadership stem from corporate schizophrenia, hypocrisy, or just outright lies?
Why new managers encounter trouble
Dan Bobinski
Newly-appointed managers rarely thrive without help. So before you promote someone to a management role, ask yourself whether you're willing to do whatever it takes to ensure they succeed. Because if you're not, you could be asking for trouble.
Keep on with the tablets!
Janet Howd
The iPad is nothing new. After all, writing on tablets is almost as old as the hills – except that today's tablets are altogether more dynamic, possessing the power to bring information to life and electrify learning.
Turn your subject matter experts into webinar wizards
Wayne Turmel
Many companies today are doing more internal training with in-house Subject Matter Experts. But while webinars are a terrific tool for leveraging the brainpower in an organization, sometimes these sessions don't turn out to be quite as successful as we would like.
Ten universal principles of the workplace
Dan Bobinski
Management fads come and go, but there are certain principles of good management that should be set in stone. So without further ado, here are 10 fundamental truths that together create a healthy, engaged and high-performing workplace.
Have you wasted any money on training lately?
Dan Bobinski
Most companies look at training as an expense. That attitude couldn't be more wrong. Training is a profit center in most circumstances, especially when you consider the costs of not carrying it out.
Avoid the traps of a first-line sales manager
Graham Scrivener
Being a great sales manager is a balancing act, with many different roles and responsibilities. But focusing on high-value activities, the highest of which is people management, is critical to success.
Virtual training is real training
Wayne Turmel
One of the most frustrating parts of delivering training online is that the people who pay for it still don't seem to understand that it is just as effective as training that takes place in a traditional classroom.
No more fast food webinars
Wayne Turmel
One of the biggest challenges people have with training or a meeting done via a webinar is that it's a bit like fast food. It fills a hole, but doesn't stick with you very long (assuming it doesn't also leave you feeling somewhat queasy!)
Want to get promoted? You need new skills
Dan Bobinski
In many organizations, leaders seem to assume that managers should automatically know how to get along with and how to train others. Sadly, this isn't true. Management skills rarely come via osmosis.
Another one bites the dust
Dan Bobinski
Too many organizations take valuable employees and set them up to bite the dust. How? Because they don't have a clear-cut plan for equipping newly-promoted employees with the skills they need to succeed in their positions.
Become your team's curator
Wayne Turmel
A key role of the modern manager is helping people learn as a team. And one way to encapsulate what this means is to think of the manager as a curator – a role with many similarities to that of a museum curator.
Help your team with lean learning
Wayne Turmel
How do you train new team members? One effective method is to to take the tasks necessary for job or project success, make it available in small chunks and teach people how to access that knowledge on demand.
Telling isn't training
Wayne Turmel
When you tell someone something, they might intellectually understand what you want, but there's no guarantee they can perform the skill involved. That takes real training.
Learning from experience
Dan Bobinski
Here’s a situation: A group of employees attend a great training session and they’re motivated to make changes in the workplace. But within two weeks, the motivation is gone, and things revert to the way they were.
Teach people what they actually want to know
Wayne Turmel
Have you ever been frustrated with trying to train your team members or employees on new technology? Here's a radical solution to that old problem: how about we teach people what they actually want to know?
Rethinking workplace training
Dan Bobinski
Organizations need to take a balanced approach to learning and development. So have you really thought how much more effective your employees could be if you put more effort into aligning more of their learning with your company's vision and mission?
It's time to give your training a boost
Dan Bobinski
As with any educational endeavor, workplace training is most effective when it engages learners in ways that appeal to them. So if using old, canned presentations have resulted in stale training, perhaps it's time to try a different brand of instruction.
Recent Podcasts
More on Training & Development
Generation Y: teach the teacher?
Emma Murray
How relevant are traditional methods of teaching to today's technology-obsessed youngsters? And what – if anything – are schools and universities doing to help 'design the future'?
Are employees your greatest asset or biggest risk?
Mark A Smith
Most companies claim that employees are their most valued asset. But few seem to believe it and even fewer act on it. One sure sign is the attitude towards training. While some firms see training as an expense, others realize it is an investment.
Satan's training catalogue, summer 2011
Wayne Turmel
It's that time of year again and Wayne Turmel has a hot-off-the press preview of the latest catalogue of business and personal development learning programs from the Prince of Darkness himself...
Fixing the broken education system
James M. Kerr
The US education system is broken, says James Kerr, and it doesn't look like it will fix itself. In fact, if fundamental reform isn't undertaken soon, it is very likely that American businesses will find themselves grossly short-handed in the coming years.
Why cross-cultural training could be a waste of money
David Livermore
I may be shooting myself in the foot here, but while I place great value on education, I'm not convinced one-off training events do a whole lot to change the way we work across borders - at home or abroad.
Do training departments still train?
Wayne Turmel
Trends in business, especially in HR, tend to come, go and then come back again. Sometimes, though, the change is more permanent. Here's an example: the role of training coordinator has become less about training and more about coordination.
Satan's training brochure 2010
Wayne Turmel
It seems like forever since I received one of the Lord of Darkness' training catalogues. This actually makes sense since it has been a long time since any big organization (and they don't come much bigger than Global Evil Inc. LLC) did any training at all.
The missing trainees
Jorgen Thorsell
Are far as most mature workers are concerned, formal training programmes are a big turn-off. So how can organisations overcome training fatigue and offer staff in their mid-forties and beyond training and development that meets their real needs?
What can a college degree do for you?
Dan Bobinski
To those who might question the value of a college degree, please let me encourage you to 'go for it.' If you still don't think it's worth it, perhaps a few figures might persuade you otherwise.
The missing link in strategic plans
Dan Bobinski
It is widely acknowledged that effective training programs make it much easier for organisations to achieve their strategic goals. But strategically-aligned training is still missing from most companies.
Satan's training brochure, Fall 2007
Wayne Turmel
Yes, it's that time of year again. The Unholy One has sent out his training schedule for the rest of this year and looks like another busy fall season.
What's all this about learning?
Charles Helliwell
Let's be honest here. Organisations have little, if any, intrinsic interest in providing learning for their employees. So why are they suddenly trying to present themselves as advocates of learning and development?
What inhibits workplace learning?
Dan Bobinski
To remain competitive, organizations need to learn faster than the competition. But knowing that and doing that are two different things – and far too many leaders seem to think that they don't need to learn anything more to succeed.
I don't want to be a manager!
Wayne Turmel
Getting promoted, especially into that first management job, can be a nightmare, one that is made all the worse by a lack of support and training. Which could be why so many people just don't want to be managers.
Satan's training brochure
Wayne Turmel
The secret is out. Satan has his own training company and a more mercenary (and more successful) man than I would buy stock - because it's having a heck of a year.
Training's dirty little secret
Wayne Turmel
In far too many organizations, Training has been mistaken for Learning, with pretty dire results. You can also do all kinds of training and have no learning take place whatsoever. So why do training at all?
Management training needs to adapt
Bob Black
With fewer significant IT advances in the pipeline today, organisations are now turning their attention to making sure they get the best out of their existing technology. That means moving towards more organic and creative approach to training, management and support.
How to lose a customer in two steps or less
Dan Bobinski
When our shopping experience is negative, statistics show it takes only two such incidents and we're likely to shop elsewhere. That's not a lot of wiggle room. Think of it as 'two strikes and you're out.'
Making the transition to managment
Dan Bobinski
Getting promoted is a common goal, but perhaps the most difficult promotion is transitioning from line worker to front-line supervisor. Why? Because the skills that made one successful in the rank and file are not the skills one needs for success as a supervisor.
Training daze
René Da Costa
How many training courses or events have you been to? How often have you left feeling it was worthwhile and that you could put your new found skills to immediate and practical use?
Working longer means more help for adult learners
Patrick Grattan
If Britain really wants a globally competitive skilled workforce, it needs to put far more effort into encouraging life-long learning. Because what we learn in our teens and twenties isn't enough for a 40 or 50-year working life.
Magic wands and traveling road shows
Dan Bobinski
Learning about a skill is one thing. But mastering it - particularly when it comes to people skills - is not something that can be learnt on a one-day course, however compelling the sales pitch may be.
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