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Re-thinking training and development in a post-covid world: a case study.

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(This article was co-authored with  Mohamed Matar , General Manager of  EMIC Training .)

Since well before our current crisis, smart companies have been asking tough questions about traditional approaches to training and developing their people.  The early 21 st  Century fantasy of “all-online digital learning” has largely not played out, especially since some of the most important management competencies are best taught and learned in-person.  “The soft stuff,” it turns out, is actually the  hard  stuff, and managers seeking to develop interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence, and the ability to engage and influence others aren’t going to improve much via an on-line module.

That said, 2020’s entirely unexpected change of course is forcing all of us to rethink how we can develop and train our people and create and strengthen organizational capabilities and culture when we simply cannot get together in person.  Managers must coach more (as they should do anyway), and HR and training departments have to get more creative in their programming.  Simply putting people-development on pause until we “get back to normal” is not an option, because we’re not going “back to normal” anytime soon, if ever.  

While it’s still not clear what “the way we work” will look like in a post-Covid world—the answer to that question will likely take years, not months, to figure out—in talking with our colleagues and clients some good ideas for acting in the present are starting to emerge.  The better organizations are actively wrestling with the questions of how to invest in their people to develop skills (including new skills to lead change and stay resilient through this pandemic), fortify their cultures, and help employees execute and create value for all their stakeholders.

The  National Bank of Bahrain (NBB ), a strategic client of EMIC and a company whose management team I’ve been working with for the last two years, offers an instructive case study. Many thanks to NBB’s leadership for being willing to share some of what they’ve been doing and learning.

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In March, realizing the seriousness and likely long-term effects of the Covid crisis, NBB made it a priority to start looking for people development alternatives such as e-learning and virtual training.  This effort was seen as mission-critical for the bank and thus was driven by the executive team working together, not just by the HR function.  The business rationale was clear:  maintain employee engagement; ensure that all workers could continue to build their skills, including new skills to deal with this crisis; and keep up the momentum of company-wide recruiting and succession planning efforts.  

Here are some of the lessons NBB has learned about developing their people during this pandemic:

Be Courageous  

NBB didn’t re-invent the wheel—rather, they mustered the courage to commit to the path they had established and continue to fund it, even though slashing the training budget would have been an easy way to cut costs. What NBB did instead was conduct a thorough training needs analysis, framed by the realities of the crisis.  The needs and wants of team members at every level in the organization led to the creation of a monthly virtual training calendar, with interactive (as much as possible over videoconferencing) programs led by NBB’s own staff as was well as renowned speakers and experts from around the globe. The subject matter for the sessions has ranged from technical finance and banking training to guidance on leading change and how managers can become better coaches—and much of this effort has been realized without significant added cost.  Dana Buheji, Chief Human Resources Officer, notes: “Despite the current situation, our commitment to continue human capital development, mentor the best talent, and groom leaders from within remains a strategic priority. It’s critically important to us to continue to enable and empower our staff to carry on their professional development without disruption.”

Plan, Consult, and Make Decisions in an Inclusive Way

Accountability is one of NBB's values, and one way that value is realized is in the expectation that each employee is accountable for his or her own development.  Managers are taught and incentivized to involve their employees in the design and planning of all important business and change initiatives to foster innovation and commitment and highlight areas for improvement.   If the company and unit’s vision and direction are clear to them, employees can add more value than external consultants, and they will be more likely to get behind even difficult change efforts:  people best support change if they feel it’s being done  with  them and not  to  them. Consulting, collaborating with, and involving team members has been emphasized as especially important during this time when everyone is required to work from home.

Challenge with Support

In Bahrain, the holy month of Ramadan is typically a low season for training and development efforts, and Ramadan’s overlap this year with the Covid-19 pandemic created even more headwind than usual for most companies in the Region.  Counter-intuitively, NBB saw Ramadan and working from home as an  opportunity;  senior management encouraged employees to make Ramadan a month of learning and growth. Every employee was expected to attend a minimum of five (5) training sessions, including online modules and sessions led by internal staff and managers who don’t normally lead classes.  Running almost 800 employees through five programs each was an ambitious goal, but the company stepped up: in June 2020 the total training hours amounted to 18,028—or 163% higher than the same period last year. Employees played their part, including being willing to engage in valuable teaching and learning in off-hours and over weekends.  The benefits have been immediately tangible in terms of morale and performance.

“We Are All in This Together” 

NBB’s culture has always revolved around respect, recognition, and teamwork at all levels.  Thus, the training programs were designed and re-designed to give all employees an equal opportunity for growth and learning—and in many cases including senior executives and front-line managers and employees in the same virtual classrooms.  While the pandemic has created challenges for NBB’s “We are all in this together” mantra by forcing people to work apart, it has also highlighted the robustness and resiliency of the company’s values and commitments.  The bank has doubled down on investing in its capabilities and culture, and the results are already showing in performance and customer satisfaction. NBB believes they will move forward and succeed by working together.  As the old proverb goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”

The unimaginable challenges of 2020 have made business-as-usual difficult if not impossible in almost every sector.  As is usually the case, the organizations that are creative and tenacious on focusing on what they  can  do, rather than what they can’t do, to maintain momentum, growth, and the engagement of their people and their customers will be the ones who survive and eventually thrive.   Jean-Christophe Durand, CEO of NBB, makes the case clearly and passionately:  “Investing in the personal growth and professional development of our people has always been a strategic priority at NBB. We know that empowering our people to unleash their full potential strengthens our base for internal excellence and external customer service, and our commitment has not flagged in spite of the pandemic.”

What are you and your organization doing to invest in your people right now?  Is it a priority?

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Training Industry

Case study: how mcdonald’s integrates learning into the employee experience.

Striving to be the “best first job,” McDonald’s knows many of its employees are at the beginning of their career path. Some, still in high school, may not have the resources to attend college and are beginning to wonder, “What happens next?” Some may be working to finish high school or college to gain the skills and education requirements needed to take the next step in their careers. Still others may be looking to sharpen their English skills to communicate better with customers and open more doors in the future.

With an estimated 1.9 million employees dispersed across the globe, supporting employees’ unique personal and professional goals would call for an innovative, comprehensive, solution — which is why McDonald’s launched Archways to Opportunity ® in 2015.

The Archways to Opportunity program helps McDonald’s employees across the globe improve their English skills, earn a high school diploma, work toward a college degree, and create an education and career plan with the help of career advisors. With the recently launched Archways to Careers app, McDonald’s employees can now access many of these professional development opportunities — and new ones — at their fingertips. Rob Lauber, chief learning officer at McDonald’s, says the app helps employees “find and unlock” their passions, identify related career opportunities, and make a plan to achieve them.

Let’s examine how McDonald’s has integrated professional development into the employee experience to set its workforce up for success not only at the Golden Arches but in life.

Archways to Opportunity: A Brief Overview

Since its launch in 2015, Archways to Opportunity has :

• Awarded high school and college tuition assistance to over 35,000 employees, totaling over $90 million.
• Had over 750 employees graduate from its career online high school program and over 7,250 employees graduate from English Under the Arches (launched in 2007).
• Increased access to education for over 50,000 people through its various programs.

While these initiatives undoubtedly benefit employees, they’re also good for business. For example, McDonald’s believes English Under the Arches has helped retain employees. Through a blended learning approach, the initiative seeks to teach employees the “English skills that restaurant employees need most,” such as common words and phrases they will encounter on the job.

McDonald’s education benefits are another way it attracts and retain employees in an industry currently facing a major labor shortage . Its employees are eligible for tuition assistance after working at least 15 hours per week for 90 days. Crew workers are eligible to receive $2,500 per year, and managers are eligible to receive $3,000 per year.

As John Colborn, director of the Aspen Institute’s Skills for America’s Future initiative, explains , “When companies like McDonald’s provide these kinds of programs, they not only enhance life opportunities for their workers, they also gain a more engaged and talented workforce.”

With the benefits the Archways to Opportunity program has brought to both employees and the company, Lauber says it “made perfect sense” to take the next step in supporting employees’ professional growth: launching a career development app.

Archways to Careers: Vision, Strategy and Measurement

McDonald’s launched its career development app, Archways to Careers, to supplement the Archways to Opportunity program with “personalized, one-on-one” professional guidance, Lauber says. By providing learning on demand, the app also aims to help reduce common barriers (e.g. transportation, costs and scheduling conflicts) for employees looking to advance their careers.

Unlike an in-person course or workshop, Lauber says, an app proved the best way to “touch as many people as possible.” For busy restaurant workers, it’s critical that they can access everything from career coaching to English courses on the bus ride to work, between the breakfast and lunch rush, or in the comfort of their own home.

With help from an existing partner and a coaching company, the app took roughly 10 months to build. A key part of the process was seeking and implementing feedback on the app’s progress to ensure the finished product would meet employees’ needs and deliver the value it was expected to, Lauber says. As the app is largely targeted toward learners who are just entering the workforce, McDonald’s decided to “support employees more directly” through one-on-one career coaching sessions with objective, third-party career advisers, Lauber says. According to the press release , the credentialed advisors will help restaurant employees “chart a path to achieve the future job or career they desire.”

Employees can also view education requirements and salaries for roles and industries that, based on conversations with employees, McDonald’s found to be of high interest, such as health care, technology and finance.

Measurement

McDonald’s will measure the app’s success in several ways, including monitoring downloads and tracking user engagement with career advisers on the platform. Of course, Lauber says, “Like any app, it’s only as good as its current version … we’ll be looking for ways to improve the app going forward with future releases.”

A Learning Experience

The Archways to Careers app expands the reach of McDonald’s career development opportunities. However, employees also gain numerous opportunities for personal and professional development on the job, whether it’s learning to communicate with co-workers of different backgrounds or using soft skills like empathy to understand customers’ points of view and provide stellar customer service. Lauber says, “The experiences people in our restaurants get, just from working there, set [them] up with excellent life skills.”

McDonald’s goal is to engrain professional development into the employee experience. As a result, even if employees don’t take advantage of the career development opportunities they’re offered, they still benefit from a “host of development opportunities while working in the restaurant,” Lauber says. They are constantly learning new skills, and refining old ones, on the job.

Although McDonald’s employees are each unique in their career aspirations, backgrounds and personal interests, they have one thing in common: an employee experience shaped by learning and development.

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Sarah Gallo

Sarah Gallo is the associate editor at Training Industry, Inc. and the co-host of The Business of Learning, the Training Industry podcast .

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Training and development programs typically involve educational activities that advance a worker’s knowledge and instill greater motivation to enhance job performance. These initiatives help employees learn and acquire new skill sets, as well as gain the professional knowledge that is required to progress their careers.

Training programs can be created independently or with a learning administration system, with the goal of employee long-term development. Common training practices include orientations, classroom lectures, case studies, role playing, simulations and computer-based training, including e-learning.

Sometimes referred to as Human Resource Development (HRD), most employee training and development efforts are driven by an organization’s HRD function. These efforts are roughly divided into two types of programs:

Employee Training and Development A strategic tool for improving business outcomes by implementing internal educational programs that advance employee growth and retention.

Management Training and Development The practice of growing employees into managers and managers into effective leaders by the ongoing enhancement of certain knowledge, skills, and abilities.

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Successful businesses understand that it’s more beneficial and cost-effective to develop their existing employees instead of seeking out new talent.

The top ten benefits of employee training and development programs include:

• Increased productivity : When employees stay current with new procedures and technologies, they can increase their overall output.
• Reduced micromanagement : If workers feel empowered to perform a task, they typically require less oversight and work more independently. 1
• Train future leaders : Organizations must have a solid pipeline of well-trained and innovative potential leaders to grow and adapt over time.
• Increased job satisfaction and retention : Well-trained employees gain confidence in their abilities, leading to greater job satisfaction, a reduction in absenteeism and overall employee retention.
• Attract highly skilled employees : Top recruits are attracted to firms with an identifiable career path based on consistent training and development.  
• Increased consistency : Well-organized training ensures that tasks are performed uniformly, resulting in tight quality control that end users can trust.
• Increased camaraderie : Training and development helps create a sense of teamwork and collaboration.
• Bolstered safety : Continuous training and development helps ensure that employees have the knowledge and skills to perform a task safely.
• Ability to cross-train : Providing consistent training creates a knowledgeable team overall where employees can help train or assist each other as needed.
• Added innovation : Consistently trained employees can help develop new strategies and products, contributing to the company’s bottom line and continued success.

The corporate marketplace is quickly changing, and businesses must be flexible and easily adapt to change. Technology is one of the key drivers in this rapid change, with automation and artificial intelligence (AI) in the forefront.

Here are four key trends impacting how organizations must rethink training and development.

Today’s corporations have discovered that it’s no longer just about what employees need to know, but also when, where and how the development experience enables performance. With the advancements in mobile technology , companies are relying more on mobile workforces . Training is migrating to mobile devices where apps provide “just-in-time” information and recommendations to workers across industries.

AI systems can process unstructured information in a similar way to humans. These systems understand language patterns and sensory inputs including text, pictures, and auditory cues. AI-based software can customize how training content is delivered to a learner, based on their learning style, suggest content based on a learner’s past performance and predict what information is most important for them to learn next.

Agile learning is a process that encourages employees to learn by doing and iterate often, inspiring organizational change and buy-in. For example, IBM® has introduced  IBM Garage™ , a tool for executing, scaling, and managing an organization’s multiple transformation initiatives. Companies like Ford Motor Company and Travelport are using IBM Garages around the world to create cultures of open collaboration and continuous learning. learning. https://www.ibm.com/garage

While distance learning has been around for a long time, the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for companies to have resilient, flexible, mobile workforce management. Organizations have learned that remote workforces need to be productive, engaged, and continually working toward learning and improvement.

Recent articles and industry surveys suggest that much corporate training may be ineffective. Most training won’t be fully retained by learners. Businesses must build a culture of ongoing self-directed, self-motivated learning with focused distance learning programs and mobile "just-in-time" training.

Organizations also must rethink the larger framework of what skills will be needed in the near future. A  recent meta-level IBM study  predicts that more than 120 million workers in the world’s twelve largest economies may need to be retrained in the next three years because of AI-enabled automation.

Several insights from the study include:

• Skilled humans fuel the global economy: Digital skills remain vital, but soft skills have become more important.
• Skills availability and quality are in jeopardy: The half-life of skills continues to shrink, while the time it takes to close a skills gap has ballooned, forcing organizations to find ways to stay ahead of skills relevancy.
• Intelligent automation is an economic game changer: Millions of workers will likely require retraining and learning new skills, and most companies and countries are ill-prepared for the task.
• Organizational cultures are shifting: The digital era has introduced the need for a new business model, new ways of working and a flexible culture that fosters the development of critical new skills.

The study concludes that traditional hiring and training are no longer as effective, and that different strategies and tactics can have a strong impact on closing the skills gap. Several strategies and tactics include:

• Make it personal: Tailor career skills, and learning development experience uniquely to your employees' goals and interests.
• Improve transparency: Place skills at the center of the training strategy and aim for deep visibility into the skills position across the organization.
• Look inside and out: Adopt an open technology architecture and a set of partners able to take advantage of the latest advancements.

Enhance employee engagement and productivity, reskill your workforce faster, and reimagine ways of working to become an adaptive, skills-based, and AI-powered organization.

Maintaining a competitive edge in a dynamic economy demands faster innovation. Your challenge is having the right people with the right skills and tools to drive digital transformation.

The IBM training and certifications offer you the ability to earn credentials to demonstrate your expertise. It is designed to validate your skills and capability to perform role-related tasks and activities at a specified level of competence.

With recent market changes and disruptions, organizations need a workforce with digital skills and innovative processes to respond to both customers’ and employees’ evolving needs.

Key areas of focus will ensure that your workforce is empowered to be productive today, while strengthening your business resiliency strategy to aid in re-entry to the new normal.

The enormous opportunities and benefits artificial intelligence can bring to an organization require skills development programs designed to ensure consistency and intentional outcomes.

Discover a new approach to training and development based on partnership networks, user experiences and emerging technologies.

Find out how to close the skills gap with a modern three-pronged workforce strategy to quickly reskill an organization’s workforce.

Discover how training and development fits into the larger scope of next-generation enterprise transformation.

IBM HR and talent transformation consulting partners work with our clients to address each company's unique talent goals and challenges, dig deep to understand their workforce realities and create strategies that unlock new levels of performance inside their business. Together, we reimagine HR with AI at the core.

1 The 6 key secrets to increasing empowerment in your team  (link resides outside ibm.com). Joe Folkman. Forbes article. March 2017. 

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Student resources, case study: learning and development at choc co..

Online Case Study: Learning and Development at Choc Co.

Choc Co. is one of the world's largest confectionery businesses with significant market share in many of the world's biggest confectionery markets, including many emerging markets. It has a long and proud tradition, stretching back more than 150 years, including a long history of developing its employees, which has remained part of its ethos during its progress to becoming a global company.

Despite very positive sales figures over the last 12months, Choc Co. has prioritised streamlining the business to make it more competitive and has placed a strong emphasis on reducing cost over the next 18 months. Despite being keen to preserve its longstanding reputation as a firm that is committed to developing all its employees, in respect of learning and development, this ‘streamlining’ activity has focused on:

• ensuring a clear return on investment in training activities
• changing the way that learning programmes are delivered and being more creative in developing approaches to learning
• connecting training activities to the strategic needs of the firm.

The most important driver of the assessment of its training provision at Choc Co. is change. Whilst performing well in the marketplace, senior management continue to express discontent with levels of productivity and employee performance. Moreover, senior management has determined that the company needs to become more flexible and adaptable to respond to change in its market context, for example by an ability to adapt organisational structures to meet new business needs or through the introduction of technological innovation. However, as a traditionally minded employer, and with low levels of employee turnover at shopfloor level, Choc co. appears to have instilled in its workers a mindset of stability and steady progress, which is at odds with competition in a rapidly changing global economy. Therefore, Choc Co. wants to move towards a system of continuous improvement by creating a culture whereby workers are empowered to implement small incremental changes, rather than have substantial change imposed on them from time to time.

Identifying training needs

Traditionally, training needs analysis at Choc Co. has been ‘gap-led’. In other words, training tends to be focused where Choc Co. identifies a gap in capability – for example, where the introduction of new technology requires worker skill to be updated, company policy is changed or a key worker leaves the firm, requiring training to be provided to their replacement. Typically this gap-led identification of need is conducted at a local level, with little reference made to the wider national or international workforce.

Whilst workers can put themselves forward for training courses, including those provided by local education providers, there is no formal channel for doing this and access to such training often comes down to personal relationships and the constraints imposed by departmental budgets. The culture at Choc Co. is very much one in which training needs are typically identified  for  workers rather than  by  workers.

Delivery of training

Currently, the company runs a number of large training events each year designed to update manufacturing staff on everything from health and safety changes, business strategy and company performance to the adoption of new production technology. This is sometimes coupled with skills training for these workers as and when appropriate. This has traditionally been done at the specialist training centre at their largest production facility, which doubles as the company’s headquarters. This practice partly stems from a time when the company only operated two production facilities in the country. It now operates across six geographically dispersed locations. Workers tend to view these training events as a bit of a waste of time, particularly when they are delivered by consultants with little real understanding of working processes at Choc Co. It is not unknown for workers to claim that the training they receive is outdated and tells them nothing that they don’t already know.

The head of training and development, responding to a call to cut costs from the HR director, is now of the opinion, however, that such long training programmes, often of up to three or four days, are no longer the most cost-effective and efficient means by which to develop the staff. Such training has the dual problem of requiring regular investment and repeat sessions to cover workers on different shifts or at different plants, as well as leading to undesirable downtime of certain aspects of production. In particular, the head of L&D is keen to reduce a reliance on external training providers to design and deliver interventions to different workforce groups, from senior management to shopfloor workers.

Moreover, the company has historically not evaluated the impact of these events. In the new era of cost-cutting and added value, however, the company is keen to ensure that the impact of all training interventions, however big or small, is measured.

Employee development programmes

A major investment in L&D at Choc Co. is in its manufacturing apprenticeship scheme and graduate development programme, both of which are widely viewed as models of good practice in the industry and beyond. These programmes are, however, under significant scrutiny by senior management to better understand the extent to which this investment provides value to the firm. One particular area under review is the turnover of employees who complete these programmes and then leave to work at other firms.

Ray Barbie, the head of learning and development at Choc Co. recently attended a seminar at a local university on ‘the changing nature of workplace HRD’. He was slightly alarmed to find out that much of the company’s practice was seen as outdated. In particular, he was interested in examining how some more contemporary approaches and techniques in HRD could help the company both reduce costs and better performance through continuous improvement.

• What changes would you recommend that Choc Co. make to their current learning and development provision in order to reduce costs and improve performance?
• Discuss how e-learning, competency frameworks and improved knowledge-sharing at Choc Co. might help to cut costs and make the HRD activity at Choc Co. more strategic.
• How might the firm seek to ensure a return on investment for its learning and development activity?

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How to Use Case Studies in Your Employee Training Sessions

Case studies can be powerful tools for learning and training. They're evidence-based stories that showcase the outcomes you want, so using them as the basis for your training can make the training itself more engaging and more effective. The question is, how can you use a case study to enhance your training for learners? There are several options.

• Identify personal leadership styles
• Capitalize on style strengths
• Minimize style trouble spots

Table of Contents

Design a case study to fit the training, develop training to fit a case study, use a longitudinal case study to demonstrate outcomes of training, use miniature case studies to prove individual points, thread a case study throughout training, ask trainees to predict case study outcomes, discuss potential alternative outcomes in case studies, turn a case study into an immersive simulation, create a framework case study and encourage trainees to fill it out.

First up, you have one major decision to make. Do you design training around a case study, or do you design a case study to fit your training? Both perspectives are equally valid as long as the study results and the training program goals are aligned.

Let’s say you choose to design a case study to fit your desired training. For example, you're trying to implement the  Delivering Exceptional Phone Service  reproducible training course for your customer service team. To back up the training, you want a case study that showcases how putting the techniques taught in the course into practice will bolster positive outcomes with customer service.

You have two options here.

• The first is simply writing a case study based on your own experiences, accentuating the necessary details relevant to the training, and pruning it down to the bare essentials to prove your point.
• The other option is to seek out existing case studies performed by renowned research firms that support your points.

In either case, you can then use the case study as a "real world" example of how the techniques in the training can be put to actual use and how they tangibly impact positive outcomes. Make sure to highlight specific aspects of the case study and how they relate to the practices put forth in the training module for better retention.

Your second option, as an alternative, is to develop your training to fit an already existing case study.

The process looks a little something like this:

• Begin by finding a case study that results in the outcomes you're seeking. For example,  this case study from Train Like a Champion  focuses on getting training to produce long-term results, something that every company can benefit from implementing.
• Next, review the case study. Look for salient details and mechanisms used to achieve the outcomes you desire. Ideally, the case study itself will support those mechanisms and expound upon how to use them.
• Finally, develop a training module that integrates the case study and its data, as well as the mechanisms you uncovered, to train your employees to achieve those same outcomes.

You can accompany the training module with the case study, with details and data uncovered along the way, or you can use it as a companion piece or use it as cited sources or proof for the claims you're making. None of these choices are inherently wrong, so pick the ones that work best with your staff and your means of training to create a better learning experience.

Longitudinal case studies are case studies that look at and measure specific data about their subjects over a long period. Such case studies can follow individuals throughout a particular period of years, their careers, or their entire lives. For example, longitudinal studies are often used in medicine to help study the long-term effects of various substances and illnesses.

A longitudinal case study can be a powerful tool for building training. You can point to specific, hard evidence that certain kinds of training not only improve short-term results and benefits for employees, clients, and companies but can increase the value of employees throughout their careers.

Using this kind of case study can be an essential part of encouraging your employees to take the training seriously. After all, it's one thing to encourage employees to participate in training because it benefits customers or the company, but it's quite a different incentive if you can showcase how that training will improve their career prospects.

The tricky part about this is that case studies can prove many different points because different people have different career trajectories and leverage different skills in different ways. That is why it can be essential to begin with training modules such as  What's My Leadership Style  to help employees identify which individuals to follow in the case study and which outcomes are most relevant to their specific situations.

If finding specific, relevant longitudinal studies isn't possible, an alternative approach involves leveraging small-scale case studies to reinforce key points throughout your training process. For example, throughout a comprehensive  customer service training  course, you can use specific case studies that highlight varied responses to an irate customer, showcasing how different approaches lead to distinct outcomes. These case studies provide tangible examples to support decisions about adopting a placating, resistant, or combative tone in customer interactions.

The benefit to this option is that there are, in general, many more small-scale case studies than there are more extensive, longitudinal case studies. Moreover, it's much easier to find them and use them to prove your points. Long-term case studies can have surprising outcomes, and they can have findings that contradict your studies and policies. That can be difficult to reconcile unless you're willing to wholly adjust your training and direction.

The biggest potential drawback to this option is that there are many small-scale case studies, many of which can have contradictory outcomes. With the vast pool of small-scale case studies available, there is a risk of cherry-picking examples that selectively support a specific viewpoint, regardless of their overall value. This practice could compromise the integrity of the training content and may not provide a holistic representation of the topic at hand. Trainers should exercise caution and ensure that the chosen case studies are relevant, unbiased, and contribute substantively to the overall learning objectives.

If you think back to some of the more effective textbook designs for schools in higher education, you may find a through-line. Many effective textbooks include an ongoing, long-term set of examples, or "characters," they follow along the way. For example, in courses where you learn a language, a textbook will often have a set of characters who interact in varying situations to showcase quirks of language, particularly conversational use of the language.

A case study can be used in this manner for your training. Fortunately, many comprehensive and overarching training courses have these kinds of examples and case studies built into them.

The goal is to allow your trainees to explore training in a multifaceted way. That might include links to studies, links to infoboxes, video interviews, and much more.

An added benefit of this training method is that you can make a single training module much more comprehensive in terms of answers to common and uncommon questions. Training employees from a point of knowledge can be surprisingly challenging because it can be tricky to judge even what the trainees don't know. Providing in-depth, interlinked, embedded answers to questions for trainees to explore helps bring everyone to the same page.

One thing that sets effective training apart from ineffective training is the level of interactivity. When training is interactive and engaging, trainees learn much more from it by participating in "real-life" examples and demos of the training in action. This approach enables participants to apply their knowledge in real-life situations, promoting a deeper understanding and emphasizing their problem-solving ability to choose appropriate resolutions.

One way to help encourage engagement in training is with a case study that puts that training into action. Divide the case study between setup and resolution, and have the trainees read the setup portion of the training. Cut it off as the individuals in the case study are making their decisions based on the training (or ignoring the training).

Then, ask the trainees to predict what the outcomes will be. Encourage them to write down their predictions. Then, you can progress with the case study and reveal the actual results of the training. While some case studies may follow predictable paths, introducing occasional curveballs keeps participants on their toes. These unexpected twists challenge trainees’ critical thinking skills and their ability to adapt their problem-solving strategies. You can then discuss why they made the predictions that they did and what led them to their decisions, whether right or wrong.

This interactive approach not only transforms training into a participatory experience but also creates a platform for meaningful discussions.

Like the above, you can leverage case studies and predictions to speculate. How would the outcome have changed if the individual in the case study made a different choice or acted differently?

What changes would your employees make?

"After reading a case study together or independently, you can have your participants write a different ending to the case study. For example, if you read a story about a woman who improved her communication skills after attending a workshop (just like the one your students might be in), have them write what would happen if she didn't attend the workshop. Have them write what would happen if she was engaged/not engaged. Ask them to consider what is going on in the woman's life that might impact her ability to communicate appropriately or efficiently during the time of training. Writing a different outcome prompts participants to consider the whole story and not just the parts that are presented to them." –  TrainingCourseMaterial

For an interesting case study of your own, you can ask your trainees to read a situation and convey how they would act in that situation before implementing the training in the first place. Then, progress through the training modules. When finished, ask the trainee to revisit, see how accurate their behavior is to the goal, and ask them what changes, if any, they would make.

Once again, studies show that the best training is training produced in the form of an immersive simulation.  

Look for industry case studies about particular incidents.  Several agencies  produce comprehensive investigations into the circumstances behind industrial accidents, often in factory, warehouse, or shipping processes. These case studies can form the basis of a scenario wherein you ask your employees to role-play how they would respond if the incident occurred in your facility.

You can then use the realities of the investigation to enforce consequences in the simulated disaster. For example, say you're training employees to handle a chemical spill in a warehouse. The established procedures outline specific actions to be taken. Within the simulation, introduce a scenario where one employee is found unconscious within the chemical spill. This introduces a critical decision point: will someone attempt a rescue, and if so, will they do so without proper preparation? You can then remove this individual from the training scenario because their actions led to them being incapacitated.

There are many such examples. Always remember that most, if not all, industrial and commercial regulations are built on the back of people dying because of loopholes or unforeseen circumstances.

This approach allows employees to engage with the training material in a hands-on, realistic manner. It not only reinforces the importance of adhering to established protocols but also highlights the potential repercussions of deviating from proper procedures. The immersive nature of these simulations helps employees internalize the lessons, making the training more impactful and applicable to their day-to-day responsibilities.

Finally, another way to use case studies for training is to turn your trainees into case studies themselves. Build a framework or a template of a case study, with questions about the scenario, their responses, the training, and their behavior after the training. Encourage trainees to fill out these case study templates, then participate in training, and fill them out again. For added value, track these employees for months afterward to see where they've gone, how they've implemented their training, and how it has improved their careers.

The use of case studies can be a powerful training tool, but they can only be effective if coupled with practical training modules. After all, you can't know how to reach your goals without knowing where you are. That's why we offer dozens of training options in our reproducible training library, as well as dozens more assessments (both instructor-led and self-guided) to help establish baselines and build awareness.

Check out our training library, and find case studies that align with your company values and learning objectives.

To learn more about how to help your employees, check out our  What’s My Leadership Style  course. This course is a management development tool, leadership style assessment, and online training workshop. This comprehensive tool is designed to pinpoint an individual's leadership style, offering valuable insights for organizational leaders, managers, and supervisors. By utilizing this tool, professionals can enhance their performance and cultivate the skills necessary to evolve into effective and impactful leaders within their respective roles.

Do you have any questions or concerns about using case studies in your employee training sessions to provide the best outcomes for your learners? If so, please feel free to leave a comment down below, and we'll get back to you! We make it a point to reply to every message we receive, and we would be more than happy to assist you or your company however we possibly can.

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About our author

Bradford r. glaser.

Brad is President and CEO of HRDQ, a publisher of soft-skills learning solutions, and HRDQ-U, an online community for learning professionals hosting webinars, workshops, and podcasts. His 35+ years of experience in adult learning and development have fostered his passion for improving the performance of organizations, teams, and individuals.

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Training and Development Case Studies: Lessons from Top-Performing Companies

• Introduction

Training and development case studies provide valuable insights into how top-performing companies have successfully implemented training and development initiatives. By studying these case studies, organizations can learn from the successes and failures of others and apply the lessons to their own training and development programs. These case studies can provide valuable information on how to create practical training and development programs, how to measure the success of those programs, and how to ensure that the programs meet the organization’s needs. By studying these case studies, organizations can better understand the importance of training and development and how to implement it effectively.

Table of Contents

How to leverage training and development case studies to improve employee performance, the benefits of investing in training and development case studies, the impact of training and development case studies on employee retention, how to use training and development case studies to create a positive workplace culture, the role of training and development case studies in enhancing employee engagement.

Training and development case studies can be a powerful tool for improving employee performance. Case studies can help motivate employees and provide tangible examples of how their performance can be enhanced by giving real-world examples of successful training and development initiatives.

Ensuring they are relevant to their current roles and responsibilities is essential when leveraging case studies to improve employee performance. For example, if the case study is about a successful training program for customer service representatives, it should be shared with employees in customer service roles. This will help ensure the case study is meaningful and applicable to the employees’ current positions.

It is also essential to ensure that the case studies are presented in an engaging and accessible format. For example, case studies can be shown in videos, infographics, or interactive presentations. This will help to ensure that the case studies are engaging and memorable for the employees.

When presenting the case studies, allowing employees to discuss the case studies and ask questions is essential. This will help ensure that the employees understand the key takeaways from the case studies and can apply them to their roles.

Finally, it is essential to provide employees with feedback on their performance after they have had an opportunity to review the case studies. This will help ensure that the employees can apply the lessons learned from the case studies to their roles and that their performance is improving.

By leveraging training and development case studies to improve employee performance, organizations can ensure their employees are motivated and equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed.

Investing in training and development is essential for any organization that wants to remain competitive in today’s ever-changing business environment. Training and development can help organizations to improve employee performance, increase productivity, and reduce turnover. Training and development can help organizations stay ahead of the competition by providing employees with the skills and knowledge they need to stay current in their field.

Case studies are an effective way to demonstrate the benefits of investing in training and development. Case studies provide a detailed look at how a particular organization has implemented training and development initiatives and the results they have achieved. By examining the successes and failures of a specific organization, other organizations can learn from their experiences and apply the same strategies to their own training and development programs.

Case studies can provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of different training and development strategies. For example, a case study may show how a particular organization implemented a new training program and the results it achieved. This can provide other organizations with an understanding of the types of training programs that are most effective and how to implement them. Additionally, case studies can provide insight into organizations’ challenges when implementing training and development initiatives. This can help organizations to identify potential problems before they arise and develop strategies to address them.

Case studies can also provide organizations with an understanding of the costs associated with training and development. Other organizations can understand the financial implications of investing in training and development by examining the costs associated with a particular organization’s training and development initiatives. This can help organizations make informed decisions about their training and development programs.

Finally, case studies can provide organizations with an understanding of training and development’s impact on employee morale and engagement. By examining the results of a particular organization’s training and development initiatives, other organizations can understand how training and development can improve employee morale and engagement. This can help organizations create training and development programs tailored to their needs and goals.

In conclusion, case studies effectively demonstrate the benefits of investing in training and development. Case studies provide organizations with an understanding of the successes and failures of a particular organization’s training and development initiatives, the costs associated with training and development, and the impact that training and development can have on employee morale and engagement. By examining case studies, organizations can gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of different training and development strategies and develop strategies tailored to their specific needs and goals.

The impact of training and development on employee retention has been widely studied in recent years. Studies have shown that employees who receive training and development are more likely to stay with their employer for extended periods. Movement and action can help employees develop their skills and knowledge, increasing job satisfaction and improving performance.

To better understand the impact of training and development on employee retention, it is essential to look at case studies conducted on the subject. One such case study was conducted by the University of Michigan in 2017. The study looked at the impact of training and development on employee retention in a large manufacturing company. The study found that employees who received training and development were likelier to stay with the company for extended periods. The study also found that employees who received training and development were more potential to have higher job satisfaction and better performance.

Another case study was conducted by the University of California in 2018. This study looked at the impact of training and development on employee retention in a large retail company. The study found that employees who received training and development were likelier to stay with the company for extended periods. The study also found that employees who received training and development were more potential to have higher job satisfaction and better performance.

These case studies demonstrate the positive impact that training and development can have on employee retention. Training and development can help employees develop their skills and knowledge, increasing job satisfaction and improving performance. This can lead to increased employee retention, benefiting both employers and employees.

Training and development case studies can create a positive workplace culture by providing employees with real-life examples of how their peers have successfully navigated challenging situations. By sharing these stories, employees can gain insight into approaching similar issues in their work environment.

Case studies can be used to illustrate the importance of effective communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. For example, a case study could demonstrate how a team of employees worked together to develop a creative solution to a complex problem. This type of case study can help to foster a culture of collaboration and innovation.

Case studies can also be used to demonstrate the value of professional development. By highlighting the successes of employees who have taken advantage of training opportunities, employers can encourage their staff to pursue further education and development. This can help to create a culture of continuous learning and growth.

Finally, case studies can be used to demonstrate the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. By highlighting employees’ successes from different backgrounds, employers can create an environment where everyone feels valued and respected.

Using training and development case studies to create a positive workplace culture, employers can foster an environment where employees feel empowered to take the initiative and contribute to the organization’s success.

Training and development case studies can be an effective tool for enhancing employee engagement. By providing employees with real-world examples of how their peers have successfully implemented new skills and strategies, case studies can help motivate and inspire employees to take ownership of their development.

Case studies can be used to illustrate the value of training and development in various ways. For example, case studies can be used to demonstrate the impact of exercise on employee performance. By providing employees with examples of how their peers have achieved success through training, case studies can help create a learning and development culture. Additionally, case studies can be used to demonstrate the value of training and development in terms of employee engagement. Case studies can help motivate and inspire employees to take ownership of their development by providing examples of how their peers have successfully implemented new skills and strategies.

Case studies can also illustrate the importance of employee engagement in the workplace. By providing employees with examples of how their peers have successfully implemented new skills and strategies, case studies can help to create a culture of collaboration and engagement. Additionally, case studies can be used to demonstrate employee engagement’s value in organizational performance. By providing employees with examples of how their peers have achieved success through collaboration and engagement, case studies can help to create a culture of engagement and performance.

Finally, case studies can be used to illustrate the importance of employee engagement in terms of organizational culture. By providing employees with examples of how their peers have successfully implemented new skills and strategies, case studies can help to create a culture of trust and respect. Additionally, case studies can demonstrate employee engagement’s value in terms of organizational culture. By providing employees with examples of how their peers have achieved success through collaboration and engagement, case studies can help to create a culture of trust and respect.

In conclusion, training and development case studies can be an effective tool for enhancing employee engagement. By providing employees with real-world examples of how their peers have successfully implemented new skills and strategies, case studies can help motivate and inspire employees to take ownership of their development. Additionally, case studies can illustrate the importance of employee engagement in terms of organizational performance, culture, and trust.

Training and development case studies provide valuable insights into how top-performing companies have successfully implemented training and development initiatives. By studying these case studies, organizations can better understand the strategies and tactics that have been successful in the past and use them to create their own successful training and development programs. By taking the time to analyze and learn from these case studies, organizations can ensure that their training and development initiatives are practical and successful.

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Home » Human Resource Management » Case Study of Dell: Employee Training and Development

Case Study of Dell: Employee Training and Development

Michael Dell, the CEO of Dell Computer Corporation, in a recent annual report, summarized where the CEO stands on the role that learning plays in his company. He said it was people who produced results in any business, laying emphasis on how building a talented workforce remained Dell’s greatest priority as well as its greatest challenge. This challenge contained two primary issues. The first being training, developing and retaining their existing employees so they continue capitalizing on the career opportunities Dell’s growth provides them. The second being to actually successfully recruit employees at all levels to support Dell.

The CEO said the company progressed pertaining to both issues in the previous fiscal year, adding Dell would continue to keep it a critical area of focus. Dell filled more than half of its executive-level positions with promotions from within the organization, hiring the remaining externally. Dell also modified its core training and development programs to improve employee effectiveness as well as, for the second successive year, compensation programs.

Michael Dell said hyper-growth companies that lack long-established practices have better chances of adapting with the ever-changing environment, while laying emphasis on the fact that enough structure had to be in place to ensure that growth would not go out of control. He said hyper growth needs to be dealt with in a particular manner regarding learning and leadership development.

Dell Learning was established to meet Dell`s needs pertaining to human resources. Although training had always been an integral part of Dell, in 1995, it realized the need for greater emphasis on ensuring the employees were sufficiently skilled to keep up with the firm`s hyper growth. Dell Learning, following the expansion in 1995, was also assigned a series of objectives:

• Bringing learning in line with Dell`s key business
• Making learning directly and openly available
• Creating a clarity around competencies required to maintain Dell’s hyper growth
• Providing consistency through a global curriculum

Naturally, as a response to hyper growth, Dell had to structure three fourths of its training program to target new employees, products and basic job skills. A centralized corporate team was established for training development and administration. Training managers were appointed to:

• Develop business based educational plans
• Hold business leaders responsible for execution of plan
• Ensure that sufficient resources exist to execute the plan
• Report on the plan’s impact

In addition to providing strategic direction, the corporate team includes fulfillment teams that serve Dell’s different businesses on demand. One team produces learning tools for training sales and technical audiences on Dell’s products and services. Another, ‘Education Services’, manages classrooms, registration, scheduling, tracking, and other logistics. A third group consists of highly experienced instructional designers who oversee development projects requested by the businesses. Essentially, the training organization operates as a federation. There are three parts: Corporate Training, Regional (HR) Training, and Regional (Non-HR) Training, held together by the senior management team and a series of Dell Learning councils.

The corporate group comprises six major elements:

• Corporate and Regional Operations – global education planning, financial management and reporting, and process and infrastructure.
• Dell Learning Services – instructional design services and consulting.
• Dell Learning Technology Services – enables rapid distribution of new learning technologies.
• Education Services – handles event management, vendor management, registration, facilities, and a wide range of administrative services.
• The New Product Training Group — provides core training materials for sales and technological support.
• The Program Management Office – develops strategies and aligns them with global curricula to support strategic initiatives. The specific areas of focus shift from year to year based on business needs.

The Corporate Group reports to Human Resources, a few groups, do however, report to marketing or customer service organizations even though they still take part in management meetings, operations reviews, and global strategy sessions.

This organizational structure is, in part, a response to Dell’s hyper growth status. The company’s training charter was revised around the time Dell University was reassessed and thereby renamed Dell Learning to include:

• Education should be business-issue based
• Education should be as cost-effective and time-effective as possible
• Business managers should be in charge of managing their own training investments
• Education must be flexible and able to scale
• All training should be competency based
• All learning should be just enough, just-in-time
• Learners should be in control
• Learning solutions have limited shelf life and should be treated accordingly
• Learning occurs everywhere, so our obligation is to leverage it across the organization
• The education function must create access to the intellectual capital of Dell

The establishment of such a charter as well as the nature of the computer business have forced Dell to take an aggressive take towards technology-enabled learning. In order to put learners in control, it was essential that learning solutions be available to them all the time, as well as them being able to control what they learn and when. Low-tech solutions made that possible, however, classroom learning never could. Technology has made learning omnipresent and a natural part of work.

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Precise article.Will be good if elaborate

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A Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Business Case for Learning and Development

Tl;dr: how to deliver an effective business case for learning.

• Research: Start by researching the main business challenges and strategic initiatives to identify where training can have the greatest impact.
• Form Alliances:  Form partnerships with key stakeholders, like department leaders, to formulate plans that tie back to tangible work in the organizations.
• Compile Options:  Gather all your material to formalize good, better, and best options that you'll present to senior leadership.
• Predict ROI:  With plans all but complete, estimate the potential ROI for your solutions. Weigh the costs against the risks and benefits.
• Present: Present your solutions to stakeholders, senior leadership, employees, and anyone else who stands to benefit from learning programs. Winning your case helps position the organization for growth.

Anyone who's dealt with budget cuts knows the frustration and stress of making do with less. Unfortunately, learning and development dollars seem to be one of the first cost-cutting areas when times are tough.

Tech executives who participated in Skillsoft's annual IT Skills and Salary survey say budget and resource constraints are the greatest challenge they face this year, followed by workload and talent retention. The first challenge, tight budgets, also impacts the latter two, creating a vicious cycle of divestment that hurts business and operations.

"When there isn't as much of an emphasis on learning and development, you certainly see a higher turnover rate and that attrition comes at a very high cost," said Bill Anderson, digital services training specialist at Corewell Health. "So, in essence, it has the opposite effect of what you're really trying to accomplish. That investment in learning and development will certainly pay back in lower attrition."

There are steps department heads can take to help prevent budget cuts because ultimately learning and development helps close gaps but also anticipates what skills the organization will need to remain competitive long term. For those leading these departments, the objective is to both educate and persuade executives that talent development can help more than hurt during lean times.

This win-win scenario unfolded at Corewell Health after a significant merge that  created Michigan's largest hospital system . Editor's note:  Corewell Health is a Skillsoft customer.

With the merge came a complex consolidation effort to cut costs, reduce duplicative efforts, and unify the two organizations. Virtually every aspect of the organization was under consideration, including technical training.

According to Anderson, the learning and development team managed to protect its training investments by building and presenting  an effective business case to leadership . It was a win for the learning team, but also a win for an organization focused on delivering modern, technology-powered experiences for employees and patients.

Here's how they did it:

Step 1: Research Strategic Priorities and Business Challenges

Building a compelling business case for learning starts with research. You want to have a thorough understanding of what the organization is going through and how that impacts goals. For this first step, ask questions and dig deep. You want to connect the top-level challenges to outcomes — good and bad.

For example:

Consider how  onboarding new technology without training could cause a ripple effect throughout the organization.

⬇️ The IT department onboards a new vendor. 

⬇️ Without training, employees don't know how to use it. 

⬇️ Adoption suffers, and some employees buy different solutions.

❌ IT doesn't see the ROI or meet its goal; organization takes on more risk.

In the scenario above, training could help in a big way. Telling the inverse of this story would show a clear need for learning programs that ultimately benefit different areas of the organization.

Where to Focus Your Research

By understanding the broader landscape and best practices, professionals can understand where training can have the greatest impact and tell why. Getting intel on what's listed below will help identify the organization's specific needs and demonstrate how targeted training can effectively address these areas. And remember, drill down.

Internal research:

• Current business challenges
• Current and future strategic initiatives
• New deployments
• Employee performance
• Retention rates
• Existing gaps in current skills
• Desired future skills or certifications

External research:

• Industry benchmarks
• Competitor training initiatives
• Published studies on the benefits of training

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Step 2: formulate a solution with stakeholders.

After gathering data and doing your research, it's time to visit with other department leaders who will likely benefit the most from training.

Department leaders across the business serve as both your stakeholders and your supporters when making the case to executive leadership. In essence, you must form a partnership with these leaders to ensure alignment between their department initiatives and the training that you will deliver. Doing so helps measure the readiness of the department against its intended goal and lends more tangibility to your case for learning.

You want to understand: 

• What their challenges and needs are
• Their expectations for training programs
• Impressions of third parties and vendors
• What skills or certifications they're focused on
• What vacancies they have on their teams

...And more. The more you know, the better.

Along the way, take notes and compile your evidence. Documenting your findings ensures all insights, data, and analyses are ready to share with others. When working with department leaders, thorough documentation can also demonstrate transparency and facilitate collaboration.

Step 2.1: Assemble a Team of Skill Champions

Through meticulous research, professionals can compile a data-driven, persuasive case that aligns organizational goals with training and demonstrates the value of L&D initiatives.

But what's it all for if adoption is low or employees don't see the value in it?

It's worth reiterating the importance of connecting with stakeholders early in this process and assembling a cohort of champions who not only see the value of training but also spread the word.

"We were fortunate enough to have a portion of our business that had already been using Skillsoft Percipio for learning and development," Anderson said. "So that word of mouth from those team members already using Skillsoft was very helpful when we went to extend training to our entire IT team."

Step 3: Form Your Argument with Good, Better, Best Options

By this step, you've done your internal and external research, met with department leaders, and you have a clear understanding of the organization's strategic priorities and key challenges.

Now, it's time to prescribe training as a solution in support of the organization. And it helps to offer options that illustrate the impact training investments can have at varying levels.

Providing several scenarios allows stakeholders to compare various approaches and their implications. This comparison should include both internal solutions, like leveraging in-house expertise and resources, and external options, such as partnering with specialized training providers.

What Does Good Look Like?

With a low investment, learning and development teams can support modest training programs that help meet compliance requirements and build select skills among a cohort of employees. 

The Pros and Cons: By keeping costs low, the upfront investment doesn't burden the organization while also meeting compliance and some skilling requirements. However, the solution may not scale easily, which makes it tough to forecast future needs, and the program may only benefit a limited number of employees and stakeholders.

What Does Better Look Like?

With more investment, learning and development teams can begin to scale learning programs more easily and offer more training to more employees.

The Pros and Cons:  While the cost is higher, training programs have a wider impact on the organization and stakeholders (employees, patients, customers, etc.). Programs scale more easily, and it becomes easier to see the short- and long-term impact of training at an organizational level, including cultural and behavioral changes.

What Does Best Look Like?

With a best-case-scenario investment in training, learning and development teams can deploy and support enterprise-level programs that are measured, optimized and scaled.

The Pros and Cons:  The upfront cost of this option is the highest, creating the most burden for the organization. However, the investment will pay the organization back in time through a range of dividends, including closed skill gaps, more productive employees, faster product development and time to market, and higher employee satisfaction.

By evaluating these options, stakeholders can make informed decisions that balance costs, benefits, and risks. Presenting a range of solutions also demonstrates to stakeholders the strategic approach to delivering effective training programs that solve business challenges.

Don't be Shy About the Benefits of Learning

Especially in tech, department leaders today struggle with talent recruitment and retention, developing stronger teams, innovation and change management, workload and more. And because of skill gaps, employees feel more stress, projects slow down, and business objectives falter.

All of these challenges can be solved — at some level — with investments in learning and development.

According to  Skillsoft's IT Skills and Salary Report , tech leaders say these are the top benefits of training:

• Improves team morale
• Shortens project durations
• Improves talent retention
• Makes it easier to attract talent
• Increases revenue
• Increases ability to innovate

Step 4: Estimate Your ROI of Training Investments

In L&D, demonstrating a return on investment is often difficult. Sometimes, the metrics aren't there. Or the effort is too cumbersome. But there are ways to simplify the process and still make your case.

The team at Corewell Health created a process that helped them assign a dollar value to training, which substantially strengthened their case for learning. The learning and development team looked at the resources being consumed and assigned dollar values to them.

For example, if learners accessed a book in Skillsoft Percipio, they cross-checked what it would cost for the individual to buy it outside of the subscription. They added up all the times a person accessed that book and totaled the cost. They took the same approach to other resources, including courses, labs and so on.

It looked like this:

Cost of books + Cost of courses + Cost of Labs + Cost of Certification Prep + = Cost of Training Resources

Cost of Training Resources x Number of Accesses = Gross Training Cost

From there, you'd identify the cost savings by comparing the "gross training cost" to, in this case, the cost of the training subscription. 

"Money talks," Anderson said. "What I found in our situation was our leadership really wanted to know how much money we were saving by taking classes with Skillsoft rather than taking them at other institutions. That really ended up being a great measurement to show how our team was adopting this tool."

When they tallied up the cost savings using this method, Corewell Health saved about $150,000. Anderson said a range of metrics can work in building your case, including  skill assessments , course or journey completions, badges earned, and gamification or leaderboards to show participation.

Other ways to show cost-savings include weighing the training investment against estimated recruiting costs or that of managed services, and the cost of team vacancies.

Read Next:  Measure Mastery: How Interactivity Showcases Earned Skills - Skillsoft

Step 4.1: Anticipate Opposition and Risks

From a business perspective, senior leaders want to keep costs low and benefits high. And when costs become too much, they have difficult decisions to make. During such times, leaders might see learning programs as less critical than other areas that can have short-term or immediate impact on the bottom line, ultimately diverting money away from these programs.

Corporate training programs often require an upfront investment in both time and resources, with benefits that may not be immediately visible. Additionally, skepticism fuels opposition. Some leaders may doubt the impact of training, questioning whether it translates into measurable business outcomes. This skepticism can be reinforced by past experiences with poorly executed training programs that failed to deliver.

Convincing senior leadership to overcome these reservations requires presenting a thorough argument that clearly demonstrates the success and ROI of well-implemented training programs and how the team helps anticipate future business needs. By preemptively acknowledging these concerns and providing compelling evidence to counter them, L&D leaders can build a stronger, more persuasive case for investing in learning.

Step 5: Present Your Case for Learning to... Everyone

Arguably the most important part of undertaking this effort is spreading the word throughout your organization because training can (and does) have a tremendous impact on developing new leaders, securing coveted skills, and fostering a  vibrant company culture . As you present your case, it's important to consider your audiences and what they care about.

"Understanding your audience and communicating value effectively can significantly enhance the impact of your business case," writes Cathy Hoy, CEO of CLO100.

Hoy recommends  presenting your case for learning  using a flow like this:

• Executive Summary  — Condense the presentation and list key takeaways.
• The Business Challenge — Call out what hurts the business today.
• The Benefits   — Answer what the organization gains by implementing the solution.
• The Risks — Get in front of the risks or concerns people may have and refute them.
• The Costs — Address what the investment costs the organization and why. Include the estimated ROI.
• The Timeline  — Communicate what people should expect and when.
• The Call-to-Action  — Articulate what you need from your stakeholders and ask for it directly.

As you embark on the campaign trail, tailor your messages to the respective audience. Pro tip:  Constantly ask yourself, "what's in it for them?"

Your Message to Executives — Communicate how training aligns with strategic business goals both now and in the future, highlighting the financial benefits and ROI over time. Their buy-in secures funding and protects your investments.

Your Message to Department Leaders — Show how training can lead to outcomes they care about, like improved team performance, while supporting the organization's overarching mission. Their buy-in ensures smoother implementation and ongoing support.

Your Message to All Employees — Educating the broader workforce about the value of ongoing learning fosters a culture of continuous improvement. When employees see how training will benefit them — career advancement, improving performance, etc. — they are more likely to participate. Their buy-in ensures the adoption of training programs, the closure of skill gaps, and more systemic outcomes, like higher morale, lower attrition, and more.

An Effective Business Case Protects Investments, Secures Budget

When done well, an effective business case for learning can protect hard-won learning programs and demonstrate to leadership the impact training can have on powerful outcomes, like customer and employee satisfaction, productivity, and more.

However, it takes time to build a thorough case — especially alone. Doing so with support from other areas of the business will strengthen the argument for learning while also decentralizing the planning and execution process. This will help while building a case, but also when the case has been won.

If you're building a case for your programs, consider reviewing Skillsoft's Total Economic Impact Studies, commissioned through Forrester Consulting. Each of these studies shows the potential return on investment a composite organization would realize by investing in Skillsoft training.

• Total Economic Impact of Skillsoft Technology and Developer Solutions
• Total Economic Impact of Skillsoft Compliance Solutions
• Total Economic Impact of Skillsoft Leadership and Business Solutions

Further, this year's  Lean Into Learning Report and  IT Skills and Salary Report dive deep into training data and industry trends to help inform L&D strategy. Use resources like these to bolster your argument in favor of training.

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From Hiring to Retiring: The Lifecycle of Training and Development in Employee Career Stages

Explore the dynamic journey of employees from onboarding to retirement, uncovering the nuanced training and development differences at each career stage. Discover key insights and best practices for optimizing employee growth and retention.

When you say organizational development, you definitely cannot ignore the significance of training and development in nurturing employee talent and driving business growth. Statistical insights indicate a substantial 24% increase in profit margins for companies with robust training programs, underlining the strategic advantage of investing in employee skill enhancement.

Further reinforcing this perspective, studies highlight a consensus among 86% of HR and business leaders regarding the pivotal role of creating a cohesive employee experience across all career stages.

This collective acknowledgment showcases the imperative for your organization to tailor training initiatives as per employee lifecycles. You should ensure your L&D programs are attuned to the nuanced needs and challenges encountered by learners throughout their professional journeys.

With this context in mind, let’s go through a structured exploration of the intricacies surrounding training and development, specifically focusing on the nuanced differences observed from recruitment to retirement stages in employees’ careers.

Table of Contents

Milestones of Growth: Training and Development Differences Across Employee Lifecycles

Let’s check out how training and development strategies evolve from the initial stages of onboarding to the later phases of career advancement and retirement planning. We’ll uncover the pivotal role of tailored approaches in nurturing skills, fostering leadership, and ensuring a seamless transition into retirement.

Onboarding: The Foundation of Success

When you are entrusted with shaping the trajectory of your organization’s talent development initiatives, you must understand the critical role of onboarding. Onboarding serves as the crucial bridge between recruitment and employee integration, laying the groundwork for long-term success and retention within your workforce.

Effective onboarding programs are meticulously designed to encompass a spectrum of essential elements that directly impact employee engagement, productivity, and retention rates. Let’s delve deeper into these key components:

Comprehensive Orientation Sessions

A cornerstone of successful onboarding is the implementation of comprehensive orientation sessions that go beyond basic administrative tasks. These sessions provide new hires with a deep dive into your company’s culture, values, mission, and strategic objectives.

By instilling a sense of purpose and alignment from the outset, employees are more likely to feel connected to the organization’s overarching goals, leading to heightened motivation and engagement.

Personalized Training Plans

Recognizing that each employee brings unique skills, experiences, and learning styles to the table, effective onboarding programs incorporate personalized training plans. These plans are tailored to individual roles and responsibilities, ensuring that new hires receive the specific knowledge and skills required to excel in their positions.

By catering to individual learning needs, you can accelerate the onboarding process, enhance job proficiency, and minimize the time it takes for employees to become fully productive contributors.

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Mentorship Programs

Integrating mentorship programs into the onboarding process is instrumental in fostering a supportive and collaborative environment for new hires. Seasoned employees or designated mentors provide guidance, support, and valuable insights, helping newcomers navigate the nuances of company culture, team dynamics, and organizational processes.

Mentorship not only accelerates the acclimatization process but also instills a sense of belonging and camaraderie, reducing the likelihood of early turnover and enhancing overall employee satisfaction.

Technology Integration

In today’s digital age, leveraging technology plays a pivotal role in enhancing the onboarding experience. Interactive onboarding modules, e-learning platforms , and virtual reality simulations can immerse new hires in real-world scenarios, allowing them to gain practical skills and knowledge dynamically and engagingly.

Technology integration also facilitates seamless access to resources, training materials, and support networks, empowering employees to navigate their roles effectively and independently.

Success Metrics and Continuous Improvement

To ensure the ongoing effectiveness of your onboarding programs, it’s essential to establish clear success metrics and mechanisms for continuous improvement. These metrics may include:

• New hire retention rates
• Time-to-productivity metrics
• Employee feedback surveys
• Performance evaluations

By regularly evaluating and analyzing these metrics, you can identify areas of strength and areas for enhancement within the onboarding processes, driving iterative improvements and optimizing the overall employee experience.

Early Career Growth: Nurturing Skills and Knowledge

During the early stages of their careers, employees require specific training and development initiatives to cultivate essential skills and knowledge. This phase is crucial as it sets the foundation for long-term growth and career advancement within your organization.

Training and Development Needs

Employees in their early career stages often require foundational training in technical skills, industry knowledge, and job-specific competencies. Additionally, soft skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving are vital for their professional development. You must identify these training needs and design L&D programs that address them effectively.

Importance of Skill Development

Skill development is a cornerstone of early career growth. Employees need opportunities to enhance their skills through hands-on experiences, workshops, seminars, and online learning platforms . Investing in skill development boosts individual performance and contributes to overall organizational productivity and competitiveness.

Mentorship programs play a pivotal role in nurturing early career growth. Pairing junior employees with experienced mentors provides guidance, support, and valuable insights. Mentors can help navigate challenges, provide career advice, and facilitate networking opportunities , contributing to the professional development and confidence of early-career employees.

Continuous Learning Initiatives

Encouraging a culture of continuous learning is essential for early career employees. Offering access to resources such as e-learning modules, certifications , and developmental assignments fosters a mindset of growth and adaptability. Organizations that prioritize continuous learning empower employees to stay abreast of industry trends, acquire new skills, and drive innovation.

Mid-Career Advancement: Specialized Training and Leadership Development

As employees progress into mid-career stages, there is a noticeable shift in the focus of training and development initiatives. This phase is characterized by a need for specialized training, leadership development programs , and opportunities for advancement to ensure continued growth and engagement.

Shift in Training and Development Focus

The mid-career stage marks a transition from foundational skills to more specialized competencies. Employees at this stage often seek opportunities to deepen their expertise in specific areas relevant to their roles or career aspirations. Training programs tailored to mid-career professionals should focus on advanced technical skills, industry-specific knowledge, project management, and strategic decision-making.

Importance of Specialized Training

Specialized L&D programs play a critical role in mid-career advancement by equipping employees with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in their current roles and prepare for future leadership positions. This type of training enhances job performance, boosts confidence, and fosters a sense of professional fulfillment.

Leadership Development Programs

Mid-career employees are often prime candidates for leadership development programs. Such L&D programs aim to cultivate essential leadership skills such as communication, decision-making, team management, and strategic thinking. Your leadership development initiatives may include workshops, executive coaching, mentorship, and opportunities to lead cross-functional projects.

Opportunities for Advancement

Providing clear pathways for advancement is crucial for retaining mid-career talent. You should offer opportunities for career progression, promotions, and lateral moves that align with employees’ career goals and aspirations. Recognizing and rewarding mid-career achievements can also contribute to job satisfaction and employee engagement.

Best Practices for Retaining Talent and Fostering Leadership

• Competitive Compensation and Benefits: Offer competitive salaries, bonuses, and benefits packages to attract and retain top talent. Provide opportunities for salary advancements, promotions, and incentives based on performance.
• Ongoing Learning and Development: Provide continuous learning and development opportunities tailored to mid-career professionals’ needs. Offer access to advanced training programs, certifications, workshops, and industry conferences to enhance skills and knowledge.
• Positive Work Culture: Cultivate a positive work culture that values collaboration, diversity, inclusion, and innovation. Create opportunities for mid-career employees to contribute ideas, collaborate on projects, and take ownership of initiatives.
• Mentorship and Coaching: Implement mentorship programs that pair mid-career employees with senior leaders or experienced mentors. Provide coaching and feedback to help them navigate challenges, develop leadership skills, and achieve their career goals.
• Recognition and Rewards: Recognize and reward mid-career achievements, contributions, and milestones. Offer public recognition, awards, promotions, and opportunities for career advancement to motivate and retain top performers.
• Work-Life Balance: Promote work-life balance initiatives such as flexible work schedules, telecommuting options, wellness programs, and employee assistance programs. Support employees in maintaining a healthy work-life integration.
• Career Pathing and Advancement Opportunities: Provide clear career pathing opportunities and advancement pathways for mid-career professionals. Offer promotions, lateral moves, leadership roles, and cross-functional assignments aligned with their skils, interests, and career aspirations.

Late Career and Retirement Planning: Transitioning with Grace

As employees approach the late stages of their careers and retirement, specialized training and development strategies become essential to facilitate a smooth transition and ensure knowledge continuity within the organization. This phase is crucial for implementing succession planning, knowledge transfer initiatives, and retirement preparation programs to optimize the employee’s final career stage and benefit the organization as a whole.

Exploring Training and Development Strategies

Late career training and development strategies focus on preparing employees for retirement while leveraging their expertise and experience to benefit the organization. These strategies may include phased retirement options, specialized skills training, mentorship programs for knowledge transfer, and opportunities for employees to share their insights and best practices with younger colleagues.

Succession Planning and Knowledge Transfer

Succession planning is vital in identifying and preparing potential successors for key roles within the organization. Knowledge transfer initiatives, such as mentorship programs and shadowing opportunities, facilitate the transfer of critical knowledge, skills, and institutional wisdom from retiring employees to their successors. This ensures continuity and minimizes disruptions during leadership transitions.

Retirement Preparation Programs

Retirement preparation programs aim to support employees in planning for and transitioning into retirement smoothly. These programs may include financial planning workshops, retirement seminars, health and wellness resources, and counseling services to address the emotional and practical aspects of retirement.

By helping employees prepare for life after retirement, organizations demonstrate their commitment to employee well-being and long-term success.

Benefits of Investing in Late-Career Development

Investing in late-career development L&D programs benefits both employees and your organization.

• For employees, it provides a sense of fulfillment, purpose, and a smooth transition into retirement. It allows them to share their knowledge and mentor younger colleagues, leaving a lasting legacy within the organization.
• For organizations, late-career development ensures knowledge continuity, minimizes talent gaps, and preserves institutional knowledge, ultimately contributing to long-term sustainability and success.

Training and development initiatives are integral to every stage of an employee’s career, from onboarding to retirement planning. By understanding and addressing the unique needs of employees at different career milestones, your organization can foster talent growth, enhance job satisfaction, and drive long-term success.

From nurturing skills in early career stages to facilitating smooth transitions into retirement, investing in comprehensive training and development programs not only benefits individual employees but also contributes to organizational resilience, innovation, and sustainability. As the workforce continues to evolve, prioritizing continuous learning, mentorship, and leadership development remains essential for organizations aiming to thrive in dynamic and competitive environments.

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Employment Research in Brief: An Annotated Bibliography of ETA- and CEO-Sponsored Studies 2012–2016

Publication info, research methodology, country, state or territory, description, other products.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) sponsors numerous research studies, evaluations, pilots, and demonstrations on a broad range of topics relevant to the agency’s mission. This annotated bibliography provides abstracts of impact evaluations and other systematic analyses funded by ETA and published on ETA’s Research Publication Database or DOL’s Chief Evaluation Office research page from 2012 through June 2016, as selected by researchers from Mathematica Policy Research with guidance from ETA staff. The summarized publications include research, evaluation, and demonstration reports, as well as other papers and sets of policy recommendations. Each abstract provides a brief overview of the intervention studied, the type of research, data sources, analytical methods, and findings. These publications were not reviewed for quality or strength of design, and their inclusion in this bibliography does not imply any endorsement of their design, methods, or content by ETA or Mathematica.

This bibliography is organized along eight major topic areas: training programs under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA); training programs other than WIA; services to military personnel, veterans, or military spouses; population-specific programs; trade adjustment assistance; unemployment insurance; labor market information (LMI); and regional economic development. Within some topics, publications are categorized under more specific sub-topic headings. Publications related to more than one topic are summarized in the section where they are most relevant. For publications that do not cover a specific program area or grant program, the annotated bibliography classifies them according to the most relevant topic area and describes the logic for its inclusion in the topic summary.

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Southwood School: A Case Study in Training and Development TrAining AnD DevelopmenT instructor's Manual

It is a case study about HRD and it focuses on the importance of HRM in organizations

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