Training is important. Companies invest money to help equip people in the organization for the challenges of today and tomorrow. We can’t really say that this money goes to a suitable training investment. That’s because many make the mistake of spending money on learning events that don’t qualify as training. They are sold as training, but they’re not training. It happens most possibly because the so-called training provider and the training seeker don’t know what good training looks like.
The Blurred Lines between Training, Seminars, and Lectures
Imagine signing up for a training session, expecting to hone a particular skill. Instead, you find yourself in a room (or on a virtual platform), listening to someone talk about the importance of that skill, sharing anecdotes and perhaps a few entertaining stories. By the end of the session, you’ve been informed and entertained, but you haven’t acquired or practiced the skill in question. This scenario isn’t uncommon.
Many who claim to conduct “training” are, in reality, offering something different – a seminar, a talk, or a lecture. While these formats can be informative and beneficial in their own right, they aren’t synonymous with training.
Teaching vs. Training: Outcomes Matter
At the core of the confusion between teaching and training lies the difference in intended outcomes.
Teaching typically aims to impart knowledge or understanding about a subject. Its primary outcome is a deeper understanding, awareness, or comprehension.
Training, on the other hand, focuses on skill acquisition and application. The goal is for participants to be able to do something specific by the end of the session. Look up terminal or performance objectives that are derived from a properly done training needs analysis.
So, while teaching adds to your reservoir of knowledge, training equips you with the tools and techniques to apply that knowledge in real-world scenarios.
The Pitfalls of Mislabeled Training
There’s a rising trend of trainers or training companies over-promising and under-delivering. They make grandiose claims about what participants will be able to achieve post-session. However, in many instances, these sessions don’t offer the practical, hands-on experience necessary to master a new skill. Instead, they serve a delightful cocktail of entertainment, information, and perhaps some superficial exercises that scratch the surface but don’t dive deep. I cringe every time a training advertisement promises that you can become a Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious coach in under 8 hours or be able to do a 4-level training evaluation in under 4 hours.
Such mislabeled training sessions might be enjoyable maybe even insightful, but they don’t provide the tangible results that genuine training promises. For participants, this not only results in wasted time and money but also a missed opportunity to genuinely upskill. How many times did you go home from training and have no confidence that you can apply what you learned? Or worse, you can’t even point out how to apply what you learned even if you enjoyed the event, picked up a lot of insights, and felt momentarily inspired somehow.
Recognizing Genuine Training: A Design and Delivery Perspective
For both budding trainers and discerning learners, it’s crucial to understand what authentic training looks like. Here are a few hallmarks:
Clear Objectives: Genuine training will have clear and specific objectives. It will detail precisely what skills or competencies participants will acquire. A well-designed training follows Benjamin Bloom’s taxonomy of learning and guides your learning process from awareness, understanding, application, analysis, evaluation, and creation. A great training for me is one where you get to do or create something that is promised you will be able to do or create by the end of the training process.
Interactive Elements: Look for sessions that involve participants, be it through hands-on exercises, simulations, role-playing, or other practical components.
Feedback Loops: Effective training offers feedback, helping learners understand where they excel and where they need improvement.
Post-training Support: Many authentic training programs provide resources, support, or follow-up sessions to ensure skill mastery.
The Call to Wisdom
For prospective trainers: Your reputation is built on the results your training delivers. Investing time and effort in crafting sessions that genuinely train, rather than just inform or entertain, will set you apart in an overcrowded market. Your subject matter expertise is not enough! Equip yourself with the right competencies for training design, presentation, and facilitation of learning. It is important to acquaint yourself with the fundamental concepts, theories, and principles of learning to aid you in designing training programs that deliver on promise, not one that overpromises and then delivers something else.
For learners: Your time and resources are precious. Be discerning in choosing training programs. Seek out those that promise – and deliver – real skill acquisition. You might feel entertained by resource speakers who are great with their words and have the sense of humor of stand-up comedians but fail to help you learn a practical skill that you can apply on the job.
For Learning and Development Managers: We can only deserve the company’s investment in us when we know the difference between good training and bad, and make good arguments for the right choices we make. We need this because some managers’ eyes are trained on price and good advertising.
While the landscape of learning and development is vast and varied, discerning the genuine from the superficial is crucial. Training, in its truest sense, transforms. Let’s ensure it remains that way.
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