Training that sticks
Training is money spent in the hope that something stays. What decides that is not the trainer but the timing: whoever uses what they learned a week later remembers it, and whoever needs it in six months does not.
The formats
Four ways, each with its moment
They differ less in content than in when they fit.
- Classroom, on site or onlineA fixed group and a trainer. Expensive per day and most effective for something new that raises questions, such as a migration coming up.
- Self-paced studyCheap and flexible, and only effective for people who actually get the time for it. Without blocked hours in the calendar this is budget written off without result.
- Certification tracksFor administrators, and sometimes a requirement from a supplier or a partner programme. This is the format with an exam behind it and therefore a demonstrable outcome.
- Short instruction at the deskHalf an hour at the introduction of something new, with the people themselves. Underrated, and often the format with the best ratio of cost to effect.
What decides it
Three things that make the difference
None of the three is about the training itself.
- The timingTrain just before the introduction, not months ahead. Knowledge that is not used is gone within six weeks, and then the training is in the accounts and not in the head.
- The time to do itHours that are not blocked get eaten by daily work. If there is no space in the calendar, the training is an intention.
- Somebody to ask afterwardsA point of contact in the organisation who can answer next month’s question. Without that, the return on any training is halved.
What belongs with this
Training belongs with introduction and not separate from it.
Train at the right moment
Tell us what is changing and for whom. You get a proposal tied to the introduction, in the format that suits that group.
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