Choosing the Right Corporate Training

A free training article written by Jeff Turner.

According to a Gallup Poll, 80 percent of employees said the availability of company-sponsored training programs was a factor in deciding whether to accept a new job or stick with a current one. And yet the Bureau of Labor Statistics says that the average number of hours of formal training per employee per year is only 10.7.

More companies are starting to realize that it's smart to invest in training, but faced with so many choices, how can an organization make sure it's getting the most out of its educational investment?

What do you need?

Training can take several forms, from simply encouraging subscriptions to key trade magazines to reimbursing tuition for degree programs. Before you decide where to put your training dollars, it's vital to do a full needs assessment. This might involve polling general employees one-by-one during evaluations or en masse via e-mail polls. It could even mean asking customers where they'd like to see your company improve in areas such as customer care, product innovation, communications technology or billing.

Another piece of needs assessment weighs training outcomes against big-picture strategies and operational requirements. It's relatively simple to evaluate individual progress, but if the company as a whole doesn't gain a competitive edge by saving money, processing information faster, serving customers better, decreasing harassment complaints - or whatever the goal is - then another training method should be considered.

Which Type of Training?

After the needs assessment, you then need to analyze which type of training is best for your company. Below are the most common training formats and the pros and cons of each.

Online Training

There are literally thousands of online options available; some involve weekly e-mail correspondence with a teacher, while some are automated, set-your-own-pace programs.

Pros:

• Access to world-class instructors and institutions, without travel costs.
• Flexible scheduling for participation at home or during lunch hours.
• Generally less expensive than traditional classroom courses.

Cons:

• Requires self-imposed discipline and focus.
• Little social interaction with other students and teachers.
• Assumes some level of technical competence.

Onsite Training by Consultant

If many people in the company need to be trained at once or if training is for onsite computers or equipment, then bringing a trainer to the office may make the most sense economically. This method also works well for personalized subjects, such as supervisory skills, fair hiring practices or anti-harassment.

Pros:

• Travel time and costs for employees are negligible.
• Curriculum can be customized for company's specific needs.
• Equipment or computers they're learning on are the same they'll be working on, so there's no time wasted on irrelevant information.
• Third-party trainer brings teaching expertise and a non-biased approach to the classroom.

Cons:

• People may find it hard to stay away from their offices to attend classes for the time required, which defeats the purpose of training.
• Consultants may not be familiar with your company's equipment or computers, or you may not have adequate facilities for lectures or interactive education.
• Expense for high-quality instructors is relatively high.

 

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