What if you could actually measure results?
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I don’t know if you have noticed, but not only are the shops full of Halloween decorations but sprinkled here and there Christmas items are starting to appear. I have even seen the Christmas quintessential Mince Pies for sale! As we seem to hurtle towards the end of another year, it’s a good time to slow down and reflect on what worked for us this year in our L&D Department or as an independent Trainer? It’s never too soon to start visioning about how you can truly excel next year. Pause for a moment and ask yourself: what would be the one improvement that you could make to your business or department that would yield 80% of the results?
The single biggest mistake Independent Trainers and Consultants make is they don’t take time out to strategise (Padraig Berry ONE Focus Business Consultants)
There is good news in L&D: Training seems to be evolving at a phenomenal rate, due in part to the technology available. Incredible virtual reality training for Call Centres were among some of the participants at the IITD awards this year. Yet as successful as that truly is, it appears from the research that it’s still a struggle to get SMEs in Ireland in particular to recognise the importance of Learning and Development?
40% of participating firms say they have no form of training plan in place. A further quarter indicate they train some functions, most frequently Production related and only a third of Irish SMEs have training in place for all employees. (Hrmrecruit.com/Bank of Ireland Report 2018)
According to a 2018 survey by CIPD on HR Practices in Ireland, a majority (58%)of companies stated that they were providing career development opportunities for employees. 50% reported spending between 3-9% of their annual payroll on L&D which is a large investment. However there was one very big but in the findings:
One quarter felt there was a lack of senior management commitment to learning and development
Similarly in the Hrmrecruit Survey SMEs stated that they recruited candidates who were already trained. 41% of these companies say that they do not regard investing in training as valuable. It is important to note here that the expense of training is not reported as a significant issue!
What can we take from these findings? It appears that although money is being spent on Training, that it isn’t really valued. It isn’t truly embedded in the culture of Irish Organisations. We asked our network of Trainers for more clarity and what they said was that it can be hard to measure the results of Training and they felt if you don’t have the right tools, it’s hard to get Senior Management buy in. Making your Training fool-proof using Science can help over come this obstacle.
Interestingly the 2018 CIPD Survey show that 40% of organisations experienced an increase in voluntary turnover in the last year. The top reasons for leaving were listed as:
- Better career opportunities and rewards elsewhere
- Feeling undervalued
- Work life balance conflict
- Ineffective leadership/management
Surely Talent Retention has got to be part of every company’s strategy? The previously mentioned 2018 CIPD Survey also found that the top focus for taking action on retention was actually Learning and Development alongside better induction/on-boarding, followed by work/life balance issues. It’s difficult for us Trainers and L&D Heads to understand why the pieces aren’t fitting together for Senior Management.
Here’s where we can help. At TTI we achieve success through people. Obviously it’s up to each and everyone of us to position L&D as a crucial part of the Employee Development and Retention cycle or as we call it at TTI the DEAP Model.
But what if you could
arm yourself with a
Scientific approach and
the right persuasive
language and people
skills to do this?
Could you this be you in 2018?
5 Ways Science can make your Training Fool Proof and gain better buy in?
Number 1.
TTI Science of Self allows you to know yourself better as a Trainer. Socrates said ‘know yourself.’ Kierkegaard said ‘choose thyself’. Mirandola, ‘create thyself’ and Hartman, ‘give thyself’. For trainers these are vital. Once you have these, you know how you communicate, what type of environment and culture you work best in and what type of training you are best at.
We wrote the manual on our World Famous DISC and it measures how you behave, ie how people experience you.
- Are you persuasive and driving or are you quieter and detailed oriented?
- Are you task or people orientated?
- Are you fast paced or more careful?
And what about your workplace motivators or Driving Forces – what satisfies you at work or your values?
Number 2.
Once you have the TTI Science of Self Tools, you can use them to know others, understand the best way to persuade and influence others, i.e to sell your ideas and training to others. People tend to trust people who are similar to them. The most effective way to gain the commitment and cooperation of others is to “get into their world” and “blend” with their behavioural style.
You will also know what value they expect from your training – if they are bottom line focused or if they are more interested in the training dynamics. You will have the language to adapt your communication to suit their requirements. It makes everything simpler.
When you want to train in other skills, you know their learning style. You know if they work at a fast pace with few breaks, getting as much value for their time as possible. Or whether they enjoy a slower pace with more time for interaction with others. If you custom tailor your training, you will get the best feedback possible allowing you to attain buy in!
Number 3.
Science allows you to be a more effective Trainer – helping others understand themselves.When you train people in self knowledge, you are empowering them to understand themselves, their communication styles and their wants. They can understand themselves better at work, at home and they know why they get frustrated in situations. They can work on behavioural change with the first stage being awareness, beginning in the Training room and filtering out to the organisation. Do not underestimate the power of a common language.
Number 4.
Help others understand and work with others. You can train people in the TTI Sciences which are ideal for Communications, High Performing Teams, Conflict Negotiation, Leadership Development and Sales Training among others.
Number 5.
Finally all our Sciences are backed up and validated by over 30 years of science and research. Data norming and rigorous data analysis conducted by internal research teams and Independent Statisticians ensure our assessments are the most reliable and accurate in the marketplace. Furthermore we have produced over 30 million assessments administered worldwide in 48 languages, distributed in 115 countries!
Be a Trainer who listens and understands the client needs. Be a Trainer who gives people practical corporate training solutions that they can apply daily in the workplace making a real difference.
Padraig would love to hear from you to answer any questions you may have and to let you know about our upcoming Certification Training on 087 258 5384. Find out more on our website.
Finally ‘the greatest of all mistakes in communication is believing it has happened.’ Any tool that you can use to help people understand and communicate is critical.