What if you were successful only 15% of the time? Would you continue working in that line of work? Here is an example from the book The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning: How to Turn Training and Development into Business Results*
I had the pleasure of seeing Wick and Jefferson speak at the 2011 ASTD conference. This is where I first heard about the dismal success rate regarding training. Since I am an instructional technologist responsible for conducting training on various topics, what Wick and Jefferson spoke about certainly resonated with me. As a result, I purchased their book. The book goes in much more detail about what trainers can do about improving learning transfer, and it will be within my arm’s reach as I prepare upcoming courses.
The book is 360 pages with an introduction, a coda, and six chapters; each chapter focuses on a different discipline.
- D1 – Define Business Outcomes
- D2 – Design the Complete Experience
- D3 – Deliver for Application
- D4 – Drive Learning Transfer
- D5 – Deploy Performance Support
- D6 – Document Results
Typically, we do a good job when teaching courses. However, we need to do a better job before and after the course. We need to improve learning transfer.
Discipline 1: Defining business outcomes
The first chapter highlights the difference of how we normally decide upon a training topic compared to using business objectives and outcomes to define training needs. Typical courses have learning objectives which indicate what an individual will do at the completion of the course. Business objectives indicate the improve performance desired on the job. If managers are not satisfied with the results or find training to be worthless, then there will be resistance to applying new skills. Having manager input and support is critical to success. This is a theme that was repeated often throughout the book.
Discipline 2: Designing the complete experience
Chapter 2 focuses on designing the complete experience. Wick et al. stress that all parts of a training event are important, including the pre-training, training, and post-training segments. In the pre-training phase, we need to manage expectations. Participants want to know “What’s in it for me?” This is another recurring theme throughout the book. Participants come to a training event with expectations. Previous participants may shape these expectations. Their manager’s attitudes about the training may also shape these expectations. Participant expectations help determine if they will participate or not. We need to explain clearly what the benefit is to the participants and the managers. Wick et al. also stress that we need to move the finish line by at least three months. Participants should demonstrate mastery before being recognized as completing the course.
Discipline 3: Delivering for application
The selection of examples, simulations, exercises, and instruction activities all helps to bridge the gap between learning and doing. Poor presentations and passive listening do not help to close the gap between learning and doing. The brain wants hands-on activities. Typically, we provide passive lecture activities. The most notable quote in the book is “Teaching skiing in the classroom with PowerPoint was never an option” (Wick et al., 2010, p.119). Additionally, participants should walk out of the course with concrete goals to achieve based on the training they received. They should share these goals with their managers. Again, managers and instructors are key to learning transfer.
The next two sections really resonated with me: Discipline 4 -driving learning transfer and Discipline 5 – deploy performance support.
Discipline 4: Driving learning transfer
Driving learning transfer stresses the need to stay in contact with course participants after the course to help them apply what they have learned. Corporations spend $100 billion on training with a 10-15% transfer of learning. This means that 85-90% is learning scrap… basically a waste of time and effort for trainers and participants. I don’t know about you, but I dislike having my time wasted. According to Wick et al. training typically fails post-training (75%). The greatest opportunity to improve learning transfer is after the training event. The authors recommend scheduling post-training activities to assess learning transfer as well as provide regular feedback. Participants must also know a hard finish line for the course.
Discipline 5: Deploy performance support
Deploy performance support focuses on supporting the learner once they are back in the work environment. Wick et al. noted that you receive more support when you buy a refrigerator than when you usually complete a training course. If customers find the product satisfying, they usually keep using it. However, people become frustrated and quit when they cannot make something work, for example, when they can not remember what to do after training. People often struggle with doing something on their own for the first time. Wick et al. recommend making performance support easily accessible and available 24/7 with information necessary to succeed. Provide trainees with job aids to help them work through a task rather than require them to do it by memory. A job aid is a physical memory. Performance support can be materials, systems, or people. For example, participants want access to their instructors. They want continued contact. Instructors should have time and capability to interact with students even after courses. When instructors actively communicate with participants after the course, there is a greater chance of learning transfer.
Discipline 6 – Document results
Document results really focuses on answering the question: Has the program made a difference? An important part of this section is measuring the right things. Business results indicate a change in behavior. Typical learning organization metrics do not. “The fact that the participants completed the course, or rated it highly, or even learned a lot, is irrelevant if the initiative did not improve performance in the target areas” (Wick et al., 2010, p. 264). If you measure to see if the course is enjoyable, you will end up with an enjoyable course. We must measure to see if it made a difference in what we decided in Discipline 1: Defining business outcomes. As Wick et al. point out, if you are spending $1 on training but not getting results, you are overspending. By documenting results, you can find areas for improvement.
If you are involved in training or education, I would strongly recommend The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning. It is important we make our instruction count.
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Additional Reading
- Book Review: Let Them Choose: Cafeteria Learning Style for Adults
- Book Review: Revolutionize Learning & Development
- Book Review: Job Aids and Performance Support: Moving From Knowledge in the Classroom to Knowledge Everywhere
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