Training is NOT a Punishment!

I was helping a client look for a one-off training solution this week for a single employee.  Given that I was talking to a Human Resources Manager, I assumed the purpose of the training had been identified as an appropriate performance solution without asking the question of why only one person was getting training.  It turned out that the saying “you should never assume” applied rather well this time.

Yes, I walked right into a situation that training did not apply and thankfully the particular training solution I was trying to find in the delivery method they asked for was not available.  So it gave me the opportunity to ask why training was needed.  This is when I found out that the identified employee had been disciplined for an inappropriate act and training was their punishment.

When I heard the word punishment I nearly lost my teeth!  This person had the skills to perform correctly, they understood the rules, laws and issues related to perform correctly, the just choose not to do it correctly one day.  So the solution involved a disciplinary write-up AND training.

You can bet the employee will see no benefit in taking another training course, and put little effort into learning anything new.  You can bet that this is a waste of company time in lost productivity and the cost of the training is water down the drain.  So why are they doing it.

In my book The Training Physical I discuss “culture” and “the way it is works here” as part and parcel to a lot of what can make training unhealthy.  The culture of the company I was trying to help this week involves learning about things in mass.  I’m talking about a university, where knowledge is absorbed by the truck load whether it will be used or not.  So the culture requires more learning if someone is not performing correctly.

I did some old fashion performance consulting with my client since it was impossible to offer a training solution that fit their requirements, and I believe we have a better approach to improving performance and eliminating the previous behaviors.

Although this ended well, I must remind all my readers that I screwed up big time by not asking the “why are we are training” questions.  I should not have assumed this Human Resources Manager was doing their job correctly, and it was a great reminder to me to not let this happen again.

Examination Kit Available

Since I wrote The Training Physical in 2010, I have been asked numerous times about creating a kit with all of the worksheets included to conduct a training physical.  Well finally this week I pulled out all the stops and finished this project!

When I have conducted a training physical myself, I have not used such formal worksheets except for the findings report.  I have always had these items locked in my head, and I just kept track of the categories I wanted to evaluate.  Yet I yielded to the idea that people who had just read my book might be hard pressed to remember all of the areas to look at and what questions to ask.

Although this kit is not available for purchase yet, I am looking for pilot organizations to test it out with to make sure I’ve addressed these well.  I found that as I was finishing up the writing of my book it was immensely helpful to be in the process of an audit and it had a major impact on my final product.

So stay tuned for more updates, and if you know of an organization that could use a Training Physical, I will be offering a 25% discount as a pilot partner.  Email me at Jim@jkhopkinsconsulting.com for more information.

Be About Doing Something!

I watched the movie “Iron Lady” this week about Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and was struck by a comment she made to a lady that was gushing over meeting her and how she felt Lady Thatcher had been an inspiration to her.  Lady Thatcher said, “it used to be about doing something, but today it is about being someone.”

Although I will admit that at first I didn’t catch the meaning, the following day it started to resonate with me about how we need to focus on getting something done rather than being focused on how people view us.  Our work essentially frames us and creates our legacy, yet when we are more focused on impressions, opinions, our star quality; I think we diminish our impact.

In the world of training I sadly can say I’ve been witness to more training professionals that are more impressed with their position then they are with the work they are doing.  In my book The Training Physical, I label people with a “Trainer’s Heart” as folks that are solidly in the camp of learning for themselves and making sure others are learning too.  In my travels I have noted that the main issue with an unhealthy training department is a lack of trainer’s heart in the staff.  They are running around bragging about how many people have been trained, instead of focusing on what the employees can now do.

Facilitators, Instructional Designers, OD Consultants and Training Managers should all be focused on doing something, making a difference and having an impact.  Focus more on results and less on your “wonderfulness” to the cause of training.

For those of you that attended the ASTD International Conference and EXPO last week in Denver, take out a pad of paper and pencil and note the speakers and vendors that you met that are focused on doing something in our industry.  On the opposite side of the page note the ones that are more into being someone.  Which side impressed you the most?  Which side do you want to follow?  And, which side would your name be on?

Managing Vendors

Over the years I been on both the buying and selling side for training programs.  Because most training vendors hire sales people over consultants to sell their products and programs, the responsibility to correctly match need to solution remains the job of the Training Manager.

Yet, how often do training managers push back when then are being product popped a solution for which there is no issue to solve?  What happens when the sales person comes a calling with the latest and greatest solution for something you will never need?

Most of the time the training manager will listen to the presentation, watch the webinar, or talk by phone and chalk it up to “keeping informed” on what is available.  Why?  Do you really have that much free time on your hands?  Why do you need to be the source of all knowledge before the need arises?

The first thing I recommend all training managers have in place is a training plan.  Always know what you are working on in the next 12 months, so you remain focused and when a sales person calls you instantly know if this is something you need to listen to or not.

The second thing is to take control of the sales experience.  This means, (now this may be really bold) return the call or email and tell the person why you are not interested.  Tell them why it doesn’t fit into your training plan this year.  Cut the sales cycle off at the knees by managing the process.  Don’t be led along by the sales person, and you tell them if, when and how you want follow-up!

Third, would be attending events that prepare you for work on your agenda, not to just take up space in your day.  Each of you that attends these free webinars or conference calls are assumed to be a potential client.  And not just the potential someday, but the following week.

Forth, when you engage with a vendor, decide how quickly you want to move and keep setting the next appointment or action yourself.  The more you take control, the less the sales person is taking control.  When you determine a good fit, then make it happen.  Likewise, if you determine for whatever reason the solution is not a fit, tell the sales person the truthful reasons why.

We need training vendor programs and products to be efficient and productive and save money.  But that all backfires if you are being sold something rather than you buying something.

Teacher versus Trainer

One only need to experience a recent “trainer” with the State of California conducting a workshop that began “1, 2, 3 all eyes on me!” to know that many do not see the difference between a teacher and a trainer.  Turns out that with all the teachers in California being let go because of budget cuts, their “talents” are now being used to facilitate training programs.

Not only is this opening line a juvenile way to begin any adult learning event (and I have to wonder how many high school students would enjoy it either), it conveys the message that “I’m the teacher, all knowledge starts here, and if you are to learn today it must come from me to you!”  Give me a break!

Those of us that have majored in adult learning principles, realize that knowledge moves around the training environment and is a shared learning experience for the trainer and the participants.  These principles are also being used by many experienced teachers with outstanding success, but too many teachers believe that all knowledge originates from the front of the room.

Adults have their own experiences to draw on, and they have an abundance of real life stories that bring home the point of the lesson.  However, society as a whole sees value in teachers not on their ability to facilitate learning, but as sources of unending brilliance.

When we define education as knowing about a topic and training as the ability to perform tasks, it begs to ask the question why we spend so much time in K-12 and our college years learning about stuff, but not always knowing how to apply it to real life.  Corporate Trainers are tasked with just a few hours to achieve the learning objectives, and when employees can’t perform better, training takes the brunt of that failure.

Teachers do not have the same burdens to perform as trainers do.  Teachers must be able to demonstrate learning long enough to pass exams.  So what would happen if we reversed roles and teachers had to learn to be trainers?  Maybe instead of hiring unemployed teachers to train California employment curriculum we should hire unemployed trainers.  Would the results be different from “1, 2, 3, all eyes on me?”

A Learning Journal

I’m always under impressed with today’s “Learning Professional” who struts around claiming to be a “Continual Learner” and yet asked what they have learned recently they go blank.  How can you be a continual learner if you can’t remember learning anything lately?

I have a dear friend that has been in the learning profession much longer then I have been, and the key to this statement is that she retired from full-time work 5 years ago.  She is the consummate continual learner, and you only need to talk with her for 15 minutes or read any email she sends you to find out what she has experienced or learned.  And, she never needs any prompting either.

She reads, attends workshops, and engages in numerous online environments.  The key to these activities she will tell you “is to always walk away with a take-a-way.”  She forces herself to do this by keeping a Learning Journal.  Along with being a person who has always kept a diary/journal for thoughts and reactions to life, she has taken to keeping a separate log of what she has learned, and wait, how she could apply it to her life.

I wish I had this kind of discipline, but I am honest enough with myself that I don’t.  I journal thoughts in my Franklin Planner all the time, and buried in there within the sentences I might have a nugget or two of what I’ve learned, but I have not made it to the Yoda-Level of my friend’s passion for tracking my learning.

If keeping this kind of learning journal is too much to ask of yourself, and yet you manage a learning function, I would suggest you begin by tracking the learning that is happening in your organization.  At least weekly, track what the employees have learned.  If you didn’t run any workshops, don’t assume learning has not happened, but at the same time don’t take credit for running a learning organization just quite yet.

Until we can track our individual learning, and what our staff and employees are learning, our imaginations will be bigger than the reality.  If you really are a continual learner, prove it.  If you really manage a learning organization, be prepared to prove that too!

Perfect Purchase!

If you have read many of the posts in this blog, you know I often speak of the issues that are causing distress in many training departments.  A friend asked me once if I ever find good examples to write about, and although they are rare, I am pleased to be able to share a perfect one today!

In my book The Training Physical, I talk about how important it is for training managers to know what they need to purchase before they go shopping.  Much like going to the grocery store, if you have a menu in place you will actually buy the food required to cook the meal.  Shopping and figuring out what you need at the same time is a bad combination.

So last week I get a call from a training manager looking at a particular training program.  Before I could open my mouth, she wanted to tell me where in her process she was at that moment.  My ears perked up because I was intrigued to hear what she had done so far.

I’m about to paraphrase what she said, as she laid out the business objective that was driving this conversation, and the culture that supported these skills.  She had done a thorough needs analysis and had determined which competencies needed to be developed in training, and in the coaching and mentoring process.  With her training list in hand, she began to research solution providers to determine if she could buy off the shelf, or would need to create something custom.

She had already reviewed the website information, and asked if I could compare the program with her as she went through her list of competencies.  Once I got the stunned look off my face (thankfully we were on the phone) I asked her to begin, and I read back what each module would cover.  This program was a match like I’d never witnessed before from an off the shelf solution.

Four days later after reviewing all of the materials I provided for the program, and running the costs up the verbal flag pole, she was ready to create signing documents and get invoices sent to her.  She had no problems selling her solution because she had connected the dots before she began positioning this training program.

She had understood the performance issue.  She then broke down the performance piece into what training could solve, and what would need to be addressed by some other performance tool.  She shopped after she knew what she was looking for, and when she found a match she was quickly able to secure funding because the picture was complete.

So, yes I love to share stories like this one.  This is one awesome training manager and a credit to our ranks.  This company whether they know it or not, has one cracker-jack return on investment in this single employee.

Buyers Need To Focus

In my book The Training Physical, I stress the importance of building a good relationship with any vendor that supplies a product or service to your training function.  When you have a solid relationship you can ask and receive things not normally afforded to all clients.  Training Managers should also be aware of the potential risks of ignoring the signals that their vendors are sending.  As buyers in the transaction, it is vital that the Training Manager is focused and not afraid to ask questions.

One of those signals is when you are being rushed into a decision.  This is partly because many clients do take forever to make a decision and the sales representative is getting impatient.  Yet if you have been moving along at a good pace and not stalling, it could be that there is an undisclosed urgency to close a sale.  Maybe the company is trying to close out the month with better numbers.  Maybe the sales representative is being compensated to sell quicker.  Maybe the company is desperate for money.  In any case, you as the buyer hold all the cards, and you need to play the game and get the vendor to reveal their cards first.

Watch the types of discounts being offered when you first begin your pricing conversation.  Are you in control, or is the vendor?  As I have stated before, never go shopping until you know what you need to buy.  When you are solid with your needs, then the vendor can create a winning proposal for you.  If these discounts are coming too soon in the conversation, there is a motivation at work that has nothing to do with your needs as a buyer and you need to question why.

Always read your contracts yourself.  I know, you have a purchasing department that does that and yet do they have a complete understanding of your needs?  Did they witness all of your conversations with the vendor?  Contracts are often created by and reviewed by different groups of people then the ones that have been talking.  Can you say “Disconnect?”  Read and make sure that what you are expecting is also in writing.

I’m lucky in many ways because I have been the buyer and the seller over the years.  But if you have only been on the buying side of the equation, link up with a sales person to learn their side of the business.  Otherwise, you may end up on the short end of the sales stick!

Are You Pulling Your Weight?

Looking back on last week, and assuming you were not on vacation or ill, you probably clocked a good 40 hours or more of work in your role in training.  If you were an independent consultant instead of a full-time employee, how many of those hours would you be able to say were focused on work objectives that you could charge for your time?

As an hourly contractor, you are unable to charge a client for the hours you spend on email or chatting with people online or the on the phone.  You can’t charge for time spent on personal projects or even breaks and lunches.  Ultimately when a contractor spends 8 hours working, they must be working that entire time to invoice for 8 hours of work, and often cannot because of other things that interrupt their time.

Now it may seem tough to look back over the past week to determine how many of those hours could be billable.  So if you are unable to determine the exact amount, start with a guess.  Be honest with yourself (and your employer) and how many do you think you devoted to work?  How much did you accomplish?  Could you feel good presenting an invoice to your employer for the hours they are paying you?

Oh, was that last question unfair?  If you put in 40 hours you are working full-time.  If you could only invoice for 30 then you are not pulling your weight and earning your full salary.  Some of you are at work 60 hours a week so you can theoretically invoice for the 40 hours you are earning in a salary.  But, at least you are pulling your weight, so be proud.

For those of you that cannot quite fathom how many hours you could justify invoicing for your time worked, spend the next few days with a notebook and jot down what you are doing every hour, and at the end of the day, tally up a total.

What I’m trying to do here for my training peers is to demonstrate that many are busy, but if you are not productive it doesn’t matter at the end of the day.  If you cannot invoice for your time because you are salary, you can at least work the hours you are being paid to and really earn the money in your paycheck.  The goal should be the same if you are salary or hourly.  Be accountable for your productivity and respectful of the people paying you.

Memorial for Training Department

Attention all Senior Management reading this blog!  If you have no idea what is going on within your internal training department beyond a recent class you have attended, it might be in a terminal condition.  If you are unable to get straight answers to how this department is returning on the dollars being spent to fund this operation, then it may be time to plan a Memorial Service for your Training Department.

Even after spending the past 7 years preaching the gospel of how training needs to be returning more than is being spent on this function, and after all the work writing a process called The Training Physical for companies to increase the health and vitality of their training departments, I remain dumbfounded that company after company lives with a poorly run training function.

So I’m now advocating that if you really have no idea if your training department is functioning in a healthy manner, AND you have no desire to learn if it is, then it is time to close that department and save the company money.  Plan a memorial service that eulogizes the function, people and the purpose it once provided to the organization.  Have employees share what it was once like and how it once impacted their careers.

In some change management processes, a memorial service is held with employees to help them deal with an ending of a function or department.  It gives employees a reason to celebrate the past and build a bridge toward a new way of doing business.

I’m advocating a memorial service to remind management they are spending money on a function that they have every right to know is returning on the investment, and if it cannot prove this, it is time to shut off the money and close the department.

Yet I guess, if you have money to burn, you can always leave training hooked up to life support indefinitely.  Maybe someday they will wake up on their own and be well again.

Oh, that reminds me, I have a 1 in 180 million chance of winning the lotery this week and I need to buy a ticket today!