I work with a variety of Birmingham, Atlanta, and Chicago organizations in different fields from healthcare to industrial sales. My clients who get the best results see training as a process, not an event plus there is participation in training at the senior level. Most managers arrange training in a transactional format - there is a day and time for the event. Transactional events have little to no follow-up and give very little return to the organization. Think of a workshop or seminar or even web-based learning on a specific topic. The attendees show up, listen and then leave. There is no long term measurement for retention and application. With these type of events, whether online or in the classroom, it is difficult to measure change, for change takes time.

If training is done from a transformational mindset then it will have several key components:

1) Senior management is involved in the design and selection of training material.

2) Senior management participates, tracks the progress of the training, and speaks the language of the new material or process.

3) Training is done over a period of time. Small amounts of information are given then reinforced through evaluation and coaching. I conduct training over an 8-12 week period and work my clients 12-24 months to ensure application and proper coaching.

4) During coaching, when managers find employees not effectively applying the information or new process, the managers give a re-medial learning assignment. After the assignment is complete, the manager follows up to ensure the employee can apply the information.

To achieve true behavior change you must have buy-in from at all levels. Sr. level management participation is a major step in getting buy-in. "What is good for the goose is good for the gander." Secondly, training must be repetitious reinforcing what was previously taught as new material is introduced. Thirdly, if training is done is small segments, people tend to have a better retention. Four one-hour training sessions on a topic tends to be more effective than one four-hour session.

My clients who have committed to a transformational process have seen a strong Return on Investment in their training dollars. For example one healthcare client saw an 8% increase in net profits with referrals up 150%. Another healthcare client increased referrals 33% over 8 months. They could not have handled the growth without a lot of internal transformation. An industrial supply company achieved 15% growth in sales over 12 month period.