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I have observed various levels of engagement with Managers and their team members prior to attending a training session.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out which approach I’m going to recommend! At Morgan McKinley we adopt the 70:20:10 learning model which is:

• 70% learning is on the job, learning and developing through experience
• 20% through informal learning such as coaching, mentoring and shadowing 
• 10% formal learning, classroom, Masterclasses, TED talks etc

Based on these figures (and weighting) you should have a good indication as to where you should be investing your time as a Manager. Back to my point around maximising learning, time in a ‘classroom’ can be time consuming, your team member/s can be away from their role for a half/full day or longer. Its really important they are fully committed and up for developing themselves.

Here are my top tips to help make this happen:

Accountability - be really clear before training that the individual attending understands why they are attending and what their expectations are. Are they aligned to your expectations?

Communication - it’s really important to discuss the training in advance but even more important to discuss after the event. Generally people like to download at the end of the session and share some great feedback/ideas. Good questions to ask are:

What did they enjoy about the training? 
What were their strengths? 
What did they find challenging? 
What (if any) feedback did they receive? 
As a result of attending this training what will you do differently? 

Practice makes perfect - training offered at Morgan McKinley is very interactive. Delegates have the opportunity to practise new techniques in role play format, practical workshops and work through case studies. Just because someone performed well in training, doesn’t mean they will be the finished article when they return to their day job. They always need further guidance, coaching, and ongoing support.

Feedback - this can sometimes feel uncomfortable when offered. Once people get over the initial worry of it being ‘negative feedback’ this can be a hugely valuable part of developing individuals. Always offer further feedback that is balanced, observed with specific examples of how they can improve. Feedback should always be delivered in a way that is positive, nurturing and clearly with the intention to help an individual develop themselves.

Managing all of these aspects can be a challenge. Pick two to begin with, with the aim of building on the others. Ask yourself “what will you do differently moving forward?”