Performance Learning
Pressures you face
We all know that if the pressure is really on in terms of cost reduction one of the early casualties can often be training. At a surface level this seems outrageous because surely we are stopping the very thing that could help us make things better in the longer term. However often the pressures that public sector organisations face are not longer term they are right now this year this week or this month. And ? additionally if training was such a really great idea we just wouldn't cut it would we?
Is it just talk?
So what is it about training that is not talked about? Well, how about this: Traditional training is about spending money (often a great deal of money) to send people on a course where they will talk about and write about what they might do if ever they meet the circumstances that have been discussed within the training session. If you go to a traditional training course you will find participants though interested are often struggling to pay attention and stay engaged.
The gap with no bridge
If you look at feedback and evaluation from the vast majority of traditional training that is available in the UK most people will say it was OK or even good. But, when you ask them what they were actually able to do with what they learned the answers for the most part become much more vague. This we know as the learning gap or the training gap - that is the gap between what is talked about in the training and the real world. Often trainees simply cannot bridge that gap unless the course is very skills based.
Traditional Learning Model
May or may not result in
The 1st Traditional Learning Problem
In the traditional learning model it is possible for a person to go on a training programme which you have paid money for. Depending on their motivation to pay attention, the skill of the trainer, the effectiveness of the material, the individual attending such a course may or may not learn that which is intended
May or may not result in
The 2nd Traditional Learning Problem
Even if your trainee does go, attends well, has an excellent trainer and excellent materials and learns a lot they may or may not achieve the qualification or accreditation, which is the usual goal of training.
All of which has no definite connection to
The 3rd Traditional Learning Problem
Even if your trainee attends the course, learns a lot and gets a top level award, when they return to work, because of the pressure in their environment to do pretty much what they have always done it is difficult to introduce new practices and processes that make a real difference to results.
The reality is that the majority of investment in traditional training does not result in bottom line results in that persons home post that pay for or more than pay for the cost of their training. Shocking though this is, and trainers will argue yes but it was a good course, they had a nice time, just look at the happy sheets and look they have signed off against these competences and they have passed the exam they have got a PhD.
None of this of course means they have made any difference back at the ranch. What's more now they are qualified they are applying for another job or a promotion and?. what is really frustrating.. often to work with someone else! We have all seen people who have got their degree at £10 or £20k cost to their organisation and as soon as they qualify? they have flown the coup!
So, what is a better way?
What The Performance Improvement Programmes do is turn the traditional learning model on its head. We enable you to use a person's work and the key results they need to deliver as the medium for their learning. Instead of talking about the context in the trainers head that doesn't connect to the participants workplace. We have the trainer and the participants think about the contexts that the participants bring instead.
Performance Learning
1 Results
1.Focus on Results
We enable you to use a person’s work and the key results they need to deliver as the medium for their learning. Instead of talking about the context in the trainers head that doesn’t connect to the participants workplace. We have the trainer and the participants think about the contexts that the participants bring instead.
2. Skills to Deliver
This means that when we introduce knowledge and skills we can get participants to immediately apply and use them in their live work situations… to deliver results. The upshot of this is that they are, from the beginning, working on delivering results that will pay for their training many times over.
Definitely results in
2 Learning
3. Learn by doing it
Because your participants are working live on what they really do they pay attention and learn because it is real. Your trainers apply themselves to participants contexts and so find more interesting ways to interact. Programme materials are built on real documents and evidence brought by participants from the workplace to which performance creating tools, techniques and strategies can be applied
4. Deliver and Make a Difference
What your programme participants are working on is live, it makes a real difference to their day job and their street credibility and so they are motivated. As they take action and make changes they are motivated to learn and work with colleagues to ensure intended results are delivered. This makes a difference to their own and their team’s performance, improves their reputation and that of the people they report to and ultimately strengthens their CV by providing a string of achievements to which they can lay credit. All of these things now have a definite connection because of the way we are using the learning model.
Can results in
3 Qualification
All that is separate and in fact a choice is whether or not the individual seeks to do the additional sign-off work to provide them with an accreditation or qualificatin.
'A licence to fly'
These programmes work best in your organisation when line managers, sponsor participants. For more senior leaders often Directors and Chief Executives can be sponsors. The sponsor's job is to agree with the participant the most important change or improvement they can make in their work area as part of their attendance on a programme.
During the programme the sponsor can usefully provide review sessions during which executive mentoring and coaching can be delivered. At the end of a programme the sponsors can join an expert panel to whom participants present the results of their work. This enables the organisation to 'licence' and then 'accredit' and acknowledge the kind of results it would like to see.
