Identifying Competencies & Behaviour

How Businesses can benefit by investing in Corporate Training?
Id like to discuss this specifically from Behavioural Training perspective, however, the aspects I mention will benefit technical training initiatives too.
Current Trends:
What is the training function responsible for?
Is it to ensure better profits or savings to the organization? These are responsibilities shared among all functions within corporate organizations, as every function contributes towards the company’s overall objectives in its own specific way.

Significance of training function anytime, before Corona or after Corona remains the same. It is to enhance and build required levels of Competencies in a workforce, so that they dispense capabilities matching requirements to achieve organization’s goals. Currently, training is reduced to identifying workshops scheduled in a calendar, in response to which individuals from various functions are expected to nominate for. Nothing wrong with it. However, there’s nothing more to it barring a peek given to the overall feedback of the participants and then filing away required docs for reference. It is left to the participant to determine if the workshop was of any particular benefit that could render useful at work or outside. Maybe discontinuing an external training vendor if the overall feedback was poor.

How training can make a contribution?
We must identify that the ultimate responsibility of training is ‘Behavioural Change’. Behavioural change contributes to change in Results. If we consider a focus group who is to be trained, it becomes important to understand competencies that will enable the focus group to contribute willingly & effectively towards organizational goals in the long run. The competencies must be further identified with relevant behaviours that need inculcation during the workshop
For example:
1 Competency: Communication Skills
Relevant Behaviours:
Delivers Messages in a structure
Paraphrases conversations before responding
Writes specific and descriptive subject lines
Expresses self clearly during disagreements

1. Competency: Time Management
   Relevant Behaviours:
   Maintains To-Do List
   Prioritizes Actions using Action Program
   Is gracious with people and Asserts Objectives
   Reviews progress at least 3 times a day
   The above serves as examples for what I mean a competency and relevant behaviours. If concerned stakeholders like reporting
   managers, HR Manager, L&D executives can also collaborate in arriving at competencies and behaviours with the training
   community, it becomes easy to assess the extent of application by learners after workshop, provide feedback and encouragement to
   team members to do so. As I say, if there is noticeable positive Behavioural Change after the session, it will certainly contribute to
   positive change is results, profits and savings for the company in longer run.

Steps to Benefit optimally from training program:

1. Identify the objective of the training session: For example: if it is Personal Branding, be clear how a training session on
   Personal Branding contributes to the overall organizational objectives
2. Identify the various competencies relevant to training topic that relate well with the company objectives
3. Identify at least 3 clear behaviours that relate well with the identified competency
4. Restrict a session only to 3 or 4 competencies maximum. Behavioural Change takes time & hard work
5. Identify the focus group: Who needs training? Is the focus group from one function or multifarious functions? Ensure the
   focus group don’t exceed the limit as prescribed by the training faculty
6. Ensure the training workshop is designed effectively to focus only the identified competencies and behaviours. Eliminate
   any unnecessary information or insight from the content that is not relevant
7. Provide a list of competencies & behaviours addressed during the session to all concerned stakeholders
8. Provide a 30 day plan after workshop to learners, to guide them on how to start and master the learning gained during
   session
9. Concerned stakeholders and training fraternity could assess the extent of application and be in touch with the focus group
   whenever possible to encourage them in their application
10. Conduct one 2 ones with every participant from the focus group to discuss and understand extent of practice and benefit
    concerning the competencies and behaviours after 30 days from completion of training session
11. If the above 10 aspects are observed within corporate organizations, I am sure training will be a worthwhile investment for every
    corporate organization. Positive changes will begin to appear in the approach of a workforce that will eventually deliver positive
    results.