February 2008

Trends
Does one size fit all?

Timothy F. Bednarz, Ph.D.

If you “Google” the term “training companies” you will be able to select from over 15 million web pages. This demonstrates the vast variety of choices that companies can select from when choosing an appropriate vendor. However, more than likely you already “appreciate” the size of this field and receive literally hundreds of solicitations per week from training vendors. Most are offering some variation of basically the same information in sales, leadership, management, and customer service. As such, employees receive the same training over and over again, packaged in a different format or using different terms and definitions.

Even some of the hottest management trends in recent years are simply repackaged versions of management practices used 50 to 100 years ago. In fact, there are very few “new” or completely original concepts currently entering the market. As such, in order for a training initiative to stand out, it must be designed around the execution of solid principles and skills required of employees to more efficiently perform their jobs. Unfortunately, some training companies attempt to differentiate themselves by focusing their efforts on making the training experience enjoyable or entertaining, without any regard for the results produced.

As you are well aware, there has been a shift with a demand that training is aligned with business strategies, goals and objectives to produce documentable results. I feel this trend is going to continue as companies move away from standardized training programs to performance-based initiatives engineered to meet the specifications of the company as well as the needs of the employee to competently perform their job.

As competition drives the demand for enhanced performance and productivity, the need for specifically engineered training will increase. If your company is already doing this…congratulations as, from my experience, you are in the minority. Many are still trying to move beyond only taking class attendance to measure results and are struggling mightily to report meaningful metrics to senior management.

I feel this will result in a shakeout in the training industry since many companies are unprepared and unable to meet the shifting demands of their corporate customers. Measurement and results are taking priority and will dominate learning and development for years to come. The outdated “training for training’s sake” approach has long overstayed its welcome. While it may continue for a while, it’s too wasteful and doesn’t support a company’s mission and goals.

At this time, companies seeking engineered learning solutions and customized courseware must pay for the privilege. The alternative is to develop programs internally, but most instructional designers don’t possess the adequate skills required for such an undertaking. However, it’s not their fault because many educational programs don’t teach the skills and competencies necessary to accomplish this task.

This leaves the door wide open for learning solution engineers and instructional designers to fill the void and provide tailored training programs far superior to off-the-shelf products. The few companies that can successfully meet these needs will provide the training industry with the “destructive” innovation that will ultimately change it. However, it’s not a matter of if, but when this will happen, as the demand for affordable engineered solutions is already here and is growing.

The days of the one-size-fits-all program that has simply been packaged slightly differently are coming to an end. Don’t worry, you won’t really miss them, but a sizable chunk of current corporate training vendors certainly will.