Being a corporate training company, we keep getting different kinds of requirements every now and then. That’s great as it ensures we keep ourselves updated and at our creative best. However, there’s one difficulty that we and I’m sure some other corporate training companies tend to face sometimes. And that’s trying to draw out the needs from a client when they lack clarity on it themselves! You know the typical case where it’s a requirement coming from the top and the person communicating the same to us is really not a part of the thinking process.
A Typical Example
Just a few days back I was discussing such scenarios with my colleagues. We were trying to figure out how we could tackle such cases. We were looking at ways to provide our clients the best solutions and help them in areas where it was really required.
And so we started brainstorming on it. We picked up a past requirement and discussed the different kinds of questions that can be asked to clients to unravel their hidden requirements. We also discussed the real challenges faced by the participants, the effects of these challenges, the objectives the client mentioned that they wanted to achieve from the training program, etc.
You see, if we are unable to answer to all these questions we may land up creating a training session that may not serve the purpose. And it may not create the desired change. For example, last week we had an enquiry for a worklife balance session. However, on probing a little more, we realised that just doing a session on worklife balance would not suffice. It would only be a shot in the arm and a make-shift arrangement. To actually solve the issue that the client was facing, we had to work upon the company policies causing the work life balance issues. Now if the real cause had not come out through appropriate probing, the training program would have simply become a tick on the training calendar. It would not fulfil any real agenda and will be a sheer waste of resources!
What we Realised
This is the first key element of any corporate training program. Finding out the real needs by probing into it. And mind you, not all corporate training companies do that. However I’m sure you now realise the importance of it.
The second key element is to use various learning methodologies. Different people learn in different ways. Therefore its important to use different and new types of learning methodologies to ensure maximum retention. A blended learning approach is therefore widely being used by many corporate training companies nowadays.
Lastly, what is very important in training is the post training review sessions. Once the training session is done, a lot of participants go back to work and slowly and steadily forget what they learnt during the training programs. Regular review sessions are therefore important to keep participants in touch with what has been taught. It also gives participants a chance to try what they have learned on the job and come back to the expert to overcome the challenges faced on the way. The corporate training company therefore becomes the best one to do the same.
These are my ‘top 3 elements of a corporate training program’. Not all corporate training companies offer all the 3 elements. But for you to make sure that change takes place, each of these is extremely important. So, choose wisely!