Bain Explains How to Turn Training Into Talent and Profit
The approach to teaching new skills in many organizations is to stage a one-time training event that takes employees out of the flow and offers neither sustained practice nor reinforcement. Research has found that 90% of capability building programs using this traditional approach are ineffective and do not lead to tangible results. However, the most effective training programs combine three components—formal training, ongoing coaching, and peer learning—to create measurable, sustained improvement.
Employees develop better skills when they are applied regularly. It helps if they can learn from one another and receive timely reinforcement from experts.
Employees are gravitating toward employers that offer learning opportunities, and even a modest investment in training can increase profits.
Leading companies have used an approach that better aligns with how people learn by combining three components.
Reinventing the formal training approach – make it fun, interactive, and filled with practice.
Coaching in real time – making ideal moments to develop new capabilities.
Collaborating with peers to reinforce and share experiences.
I am reminded of a quote from Frank Herbert, a famed science-fiction writer whose work covered complex topics relating to knowledge, science, and learning: “One learns from books and examples only that certain things can be done. Actual learning requires that you do those things.”
What if there was a way to further improve skills development by reducing the time between learning what things can be done to optimize your processes and doing those things, resulting in customer satisfaction and profits?
Source: Bain & Company
