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• We're always being told that companies don't spend enough on training. But what you spend isn't the only criterion of a successful programme.
Some firms spend a fortune, only to waste it by poor management. Getting the best out of training is not complicated, but you do need to work at it.
First of all, you should know why you're doing it. Every individual in the business should have a development programme which sets out dearly what type of training they need in the medium term. If you have a formal appraisal system, the training programme should be linked into it.
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Make sure changes in requirements are met by training, whether these are legal, such as new licence requirements, or related to changes in the business, such as drivers needing to use tracking systems or barcodes.
You also need good tactics to make sure your training budget gets a good return. For instance, when you send employees on a course, do you brief them? You certainly should.
Employees should know exactly why they are going on a course. Are they attending it to learn specific techniques which they will then apply on the job? Or are they attending to extend their understanding of your business or their job function? Work with the employees to develop appropriate objectives for the course. For instance, you might set objectives of "better knowledge of Customs procedures", or "evaluating leasing deals".
Careful briefing will also help employees relate the material they encounter on the course to everyday life. Training investment is often wasted because people come back from a course having learned the theory, but are unable to apply it to their daily jobs.
It might be a good idea to send managers on a course before other employees attend. The managers will then understand the techniques and frames of reference used in the course, and will be able to help the team put them into practice. This is particularly useful when the course is teaching new management skills.
An adequate briefing should mean that employees attending the course know what they want to learn, and that throughout the course they are thinking about how they can use what they're learning. But the job isn't finished when they come back to work. You need to ensure they make good use of the knowledge they have acquired.
The first step is a debriefing. Run through the objectives you set earlier and see how well they were met. Did the course deliver what it promised? If you're pay ing for an external training course you'll want to know how well it works. Second, find out how your employees progressed and discuss how they can use what they've learned, and set them objectives for the future.
Time is tight, so are budgets and you need to maximise what you can get out of each employee's experience—one way to do so is to turn them into teachers. Arrange for the person who went on the course to brief the team as a whole on what he learned and how it is relevant to the job. That won't work for vocational courses (you can't use one truck driver to teach another how to drive!) but it's extremely useful in areas like customer service.
Make learning available in a flexible way. Traditional training courses are tried and tested, but they are relatively expensive in terms of time and money. A training library of books and CDROMs is a good way to encourage staff to learn on the job.
Although a lot of training in the transport world is about learning to do the basic job, it is also about keeping up with the times and introducing new ideas to improve the business's effidency. Make sure you keep your library up to date. You might find the Internet a useful training resource too.
Look for other opportunities for staff to learn which aren't dearly labelled "training course". For instance, seconding employees to a customer's firm might improve their understanding of your customers' needs.
"Work shadowing" within the company might help drivers, warehouse managers and accounts staff understand their jobs better—and make them feel part of a single business.
But again, don't let the training become totally informal; run a briefing, set objectives; make sure that the learning points are dearly identified and run a formal debriefing session.
Mentoring is another "free" way of helping your staff perform better, and that's particularly true for "soft" skills such as people management, problem solving and team work.
In larger organisations mentors are usually more senior managers, but a small firm might also be able to arrange mentors outside the firm—perhaps lecturers at a local college, customers or suppliers or a local professional practice. A reciprocal arrangement might work, too.
Free training
Look out for training opportunities offered by your suppliers and customers: many large firms offer conferences and lectures for their customers, sometimes free or for a low price. Look to motor manufacturers, leasing firms, banks, solicitors and accountants as sources of knowledge.
Exhibitions and conferences can also be used as training opportunities. Again, sit down with the person who's going and work out a set of objectives. Which workshops should he attend, and which products should he get specifications for?
Finally, don't forget to practise what you preach. Don't pack your people off to courses and stay in the office yourself—make sure you're developing your own skills as well.
• by Andrea Kirby