Training Measurement Best Practices Blog

Measurable Approaches to Impacting the Bottom Line

2011-03-29T11:21:00.000-07:00

In a recent business & training measurement quarterly poll, a large % of people stated that "ensuring the best call center experience possible" was keeping them up at night.

A small % increase in contact center performance can boost profits by as much as upwards of 50%. Research has shown that satisfied & loyal customers lead to greater sales growth.

Read more about some of the best training measurement, hiring practices and make the link between industry leading revenue growth and service...

Ever wonder if your training investments are impacting the business?

2011-03-28T05:19:00.000-07:00

It is likely the case, if not, now is a good time to start thinking about the best training measurement practices that will help drive bottom line results, such as:

• Are employees using the new knowledge, skills and processes to drive performance?
• Are supervisors interconnected with training vision, are they supportive and capable of reinforcing the desired behavior changes across their teams?

Search for the Right Training Measurement Resource. Right Now.

2010-12-29T06:00:00.000-08:00

Introducing a powerful new Search Tool to help you track down the Right Training Measurement Best Practice Resource right now. Search this blog and the vast collection of corporate training communities and related best practice blogs with a single click.

Step 1 - Locate the Search Tool to the right of this post

Step 2 - Type your keyword search phrase. eg. Performance Culture

Step 3 - Click Search

Step 4 - Review the results, sorted by:

This Blog | Sites Linked to this Blog | Recommended Blogs

See illustration below. Enjoy.

Training Measurement Research Study Results

2010-09-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

Over the course of the past 12 months, we conducted an online research study where visitors to our website were anonymously surveyed across an area of topics related driving performance through investments in human capital. In particular, one such survey asked respondents the following question:

What is Stopping You from Measuring the Business Impact of Training?

From a list of predefined responses, here are the results for your viewing pleasure.

It is too expensive--21%
It is too difficult--34%
We do not need to--9%
We do not know how to--35%
Other--1%

How would you answer the above question regarding training measurement or training best practices in general?

Training Measurement Best Practice Resources

2010-05-01T01:00:00.000-07:00

From time to time, we like to provide visitors and subscribers to this blog with a refresher on where they can find helpful resources devoted to best practices in the area of Training Measurement and related areas.

We hope you find these resources insightful and relevant:

Enjoy!

Five Easy Pieces to Performance Measurement - Published Insight

2010-03-31T06:22:00.001-07:00

Below is an abstract of a white paper highlighting 5 performance and training measurement lessons learned the hard way.

Lesson 1: Focus on the Business
You've heard often that effective performance development must be linked to the goals and objectives of your high performance culture and environment. It's true. That principle is called "alignment," and it also applies to measurement. Strong alignment is the genesis of all successful training measurement.

Lesson 2: Build a Bridge Between Line and Training
Meaningful measurement requires collaboration and an emphasis on communication skills development. Focus on your organization's business issues provides a shared purpose and a sense of mission. It is the most fundamental reason for building a relationship between line and training functions. So, why doesn't it happen more often?

Lesson 3: Track Progress, Not Proof
Nothing keeps organizations from attempting measurement more than a proof mentality. If your objective is to track the impact of performance improvement in your organization, I've found that absolute proof is impossible — and totally unnecessary.

Download the entire performance and training measurement white paper PDF

ROI - Evaluating Results

2009-11-02T12:58:00.000-08:00

Increasingly, organizations and individuals are being asked to justify people solutions with hard data. Because organizations have limited resources, face continuous pressure to cut costs, and must do more with less, this trend is likely to continue. If you haven't been asked to measure training and prove the return on investment (ROI), get ready – especially if you are becoming a true partner to business units that are responsible for driving the top and bottom lines.

Based upon Dr. Donald Kirkpatrick’s levels of training evaluation, organizations generally look at 5 levels of evaluation. Each level of training measurement is dependent on the previous level.

Read the Whitepaper

If Training is NOT a Popularity Contest, Why Do We Keep Treating It Like One?

2009-05-01T11:48:00.000-07:00

"People really like it. We have waiting lists! Our workshops are very popular. We're really happy."

Unfortunately, "popularity" is one of the most common answers we get to justify training investments and approaches from Training and HR Departments.

But popularity as a training measurement tool is about as effective as tracking hours trained, dollars spent, people trained, courses offered, subjects covered, modalities used, and the look and feel of the workbooks.

Is Your Training a Perfect 10? Should You Care?

2009-04-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

What would happen if the Olympics used training's most prevalent approach to scoring?

In addition to creating some interesting arguments, Nadia's perfect 10 would probably turn into something similar to:

"I think she did pretty well. Very entertaining."
"I'd recommend watching her again."
"While I liked it, I wish her routine was my more applicable to my specific job."

While it sounds crazy in this context, thousands of organizations continue to allow training to be the least measured and most ineffective process in business.

Based on over 600 measurement projects for Fortune 1000 companies around the world, we know that training measurement can now be done both efficiently and effectively.

Done right, training measurement will:

Quantify business impact
Drive focus and accountability
Provide specific feedback for coaching
Support employee retention initiatives

Read up on training measurement done right...