The single biggest waste of training dollars is when management spends money on training

but doesnt understand why.

Training & Development
The main reasons for the rapidly growing demand for training and development are for self-
enrichment and survival in response to the chaos of the current workplace. Employees are
realizing that the knowledge and skills they acuired in college are becoming obsolete! and
they need to constantly stay fle"ible! marketable! and competitive. #apanese companies are as
committed as ever to workers training$ and skill development. This will be helpful in
combining over all organizational growth along with personal growth! which enabled
fulfillment to the individual as well as the organization. Training used to be focused more on
enabling an employee to perform his%her current &ob effectively and efficiently and the
evaluation used to be based on whether it contributes to current strategic goals.
In the modern era as globalization and competition increase training systems have to
change focus. With the knowledge economy enveloping the world the traditional
hierarchical organizational structures are giving way to flatter and fle!ible
organizational structures. Work pressures are on the increase due to the increasing
stresses and strains. "rganizations now work with fle!ible teams and an employee is
a member of different teams simultaneously. #mployees$ e!pectations in terms of
responsibility as well as rewards have changed dramatically. %ewards come when
the organizations starts identifying the relationship between the training and bottom
line performance.
To prove this! the European 'ociety (or Training and )evelopment 'tudy reveals that *+, of
the companies invested in training got back *-, of the higher profit margins! +., en&oyed
the Total 'hareholder /eturn i.e. 01, higher than bottom half. 2hen the companys spent
310. per employee to get suitable training fetched 1, increase in Total 'hareholders /eturn.
4n todays tough economic climate! the challenges have never been greater for Training and
)evelopment 5T6)7. Technology-led learning now plays a fundamental role in most learning
strategies! with the trend towards more innovative practices largely being driven by todays
generation of technology savvy learners. 8s organizations focus more closely on the bottom
line! measuring the effectiveness and business value of T6) has never been more important.
9arket background and key drivers like :lobalization and the need for organizations to be
more competitive than ever before have led to changes in working practices. This! in turn! has
changed the way that organizations train their workforces at home and overseas in the uest to
succeed in todays increasingly competitive knowledge economy.
The corporate learning landscape has undergone a ma&or transformation during the last few
years from instructor-led to e-learning and blended learning. 8dded to this is the dramatic rise
in informal learning with social networking! 2eb technologies and other interactive tools
increasingly contributing to the mi".
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This shift to technology-led learning has created tremendous opportunities and challenges for
T6). 8nd! at the same time! the economic downturn has brought additional pressures. There
are a number of pressing issues that T6) must address - ;ow can 4 harness the power of new
technologies and integrate them effectively within my T6) strategy< ;ow can 4 do more with
less< ;ow can 4 demonstrate to the board! functional heads and line managers the business
value and impact T6) has on performance<
2ith spending on training being put under the spotlight! having a strong /eturn on 4nvestment
5/=47 focus! from day one! has become essential. Technology-led learning is continuing to
grow at a phenomenal rate across the world. The world market for e-learning is e"pected to
e"ceed >'3+*.1 billion by *.?.! according to :lobal 4ndustry 8nalysts. The >' retains its
dominance in the corporate e-learning market with a share of over 1.,! followed by Europe
with a share of less than ?+,.
@lended learning continues to rise in popularity too. =rganizations are increasingly
recognizing the business benefits of combining bite-sized chunks of personalized content that
can be delivered to the desktop in real-time with learning techniues such as shorter
classroom-based training sessions and on-the-&ob line manager training.
The right e-learning and blended learning solutions implemented successfully and cost
effectively! are proving to be powerful business tools that help organizations ma"imize
training budgets! improve performance and achieve long-term growth. @oth techniues are
capable of engaging learners more effectively and mean that training can fit around day-today
work activities more easily. This means less time spent away from the office and more time at
the desk being productive A particularly important in the current economic climate.
Todays generation of technology savvy learners have become a significant driver of
technology-led learning. /esearch among companies operating in Europe shows that the
greatest users of e-learning are managers and the under B+ and that employees are now stating
a preference for e-learning and blended learning over traditional classroom%instructor led
training.
2eb technologies and social learning are set to grow most dramatically in the ne"t few years
as a result of the e"pectations of :eneration C and the proliferation of social tools like
(acebook! CouTube and Twitter. /esearch predicts that the global enterprise market for 2eb
technologies will reach >'3-.1 billion by *.?B. The analyst house also e"pects serious
games to take off in the ne"t five years due to technology populism and the :eneration C
effect.
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Training e"penditure are decreasing with the global economic slowdown! but most big
companies across the world remain committed to investing in training. ;owever! reduced
budgets mean that less training is being delivered and different methods are being considered
and used. The >' and Europe have traditionally been on a par in terms of average training
e"penditure. >D Trade and 4nvestment estimates that large companies from the >' and
2estern Europe typically invest more than *-B, of their revenue in training. 8verage
training e"penditure as a percentage of payroll was *.?+, in *..E among companies
surveyed. 4n Europe! recent figures show that average training e"penditures have fallen ??,!
from 3?!*.* per learner in *..E to 3?!.E+ in *..0. These figures include training budgets and
payroll. 9id-size companies have been affected to the highest degree with a -0, drop in per-
learner spending. 4t is perhaps not surprising that midsize firms are the most vulnerable
segment of the market A being neither as lean as small companies nor having the depth of
resources of large enterprises. 'pending in small companies is down only slightly! with large
companies seeing a drop of F,.
The economic crisis leads to a reduced investment in training and development. 4t also leads
to more uestion on how training and development can have added value in companies 5more
discussion in learning7! both on the individual level as well as on the strategic level.
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4nvesting in skills isnt something enterprises should do because someone tells them to! but
because its central to their future success.
Trends on &%D and training in #urope
/esearch shows that in Europe! --, of employees receive &ob-related technical skills training
and BB, receive 4T skills training. ?0, of employees have undertaken sales related training
in the past year! while *+, have undertaken personnel development skills training! *? ,
management skills training and ?+, leadership skills development.
T6) professionals are increasingly recognizing that skills like managing change! sales and
negotiation are going to be key in helping organizations win through the recession. (or many
companies! investing in professional skills development is a key priority for improving
performance! motivation and retention and ultimately driving long-term business growth.
Glanned training methods for professional development in *.?. among companies operating
in Europe reveal sales training to be a key growth area for *.?? with *+, of organizations
planning to increase sales function training! focusing on both managers and individual team
members in order to secure increased business and drive growth. The greatest cuts were
planned for trainer development and coaching and development at the top level of the
business.
=ne of the key challenges facing most organizations today is how can 4 make training more
effective< The key to implementing successful training programs lies in listening to what
employees actually like and want.
Trainers want to see more technology-driven learning developed during the ne"t few years
and have a preference for e-learning and blended learning over classroom learning.
Employees are keener to embrace collaborative tools like blogs! forums and wikis. There is a
gap between what employees like and want! and what ;/ professionals are actually planning
to develop over the ne"t few years. ;alf of employees across Europe want more e-learning
and blended learning compared to -., of ;/ professionals. --, of employees want to see
collaborative techniues developed compared to under a third 5B*,7 of ;/ professionals.
(ace-to-face learning is more popular among the human resources function with -*, of
respondents wanting to see more classroom learning compared to B0, of employees.
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Trends on training and &%D in 'elgium
9ain trends on training and ;/) in @elgium includeH
?. 8 focus on 5short7 fundamental training! focused on the current &ob of the employee!
result-driven
*. 8 financial pressure on 5formal7 training. This leads to more interest for informal ways
of learning on the &ob. Talent-based development has been introduced
B. 8 shift from training to learning
The additional trends for the (lemish part of @elgiumH
?. 9anagement of talents during periods of economic crisis
*. Iabour market in transition! less borders between labor market and other social
systems
B. 4nnovative organizations! towards self-steering teams
-. Jualification structure enabling better communication about ualification between
labour and social worlds.
The economic crisis is not influencing training and ;/) that much. ;owever! it leads to more
integration of development into other ;/ tools 5training as Kone of the tools not as a separate
issue7. There is less time for reflection and benchmarking. The economic crisis also leads to
links between education and training in companies 5the civil effect of training becomes more
and more important7.
Trends in training and &%D in Italy
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9ain trends on training and ;/) in 4taly includeH
?. The link between schools! universities and training becomes stronger. The industry is
asking for certification 6 uality. There is a lot of discussion on certification of
individual ;/)-professionals 5difficult to get this realized7.
*. There are lots of uestions on how to facilitate the match between training needs and
offers.
B. Leed for innovation 5new tools! new services! web *.. tools etc! how are people
learning<7.
The economic crisis leads to a global reduction in ;/)%training investments. There is an
increasing use of financed training. The training is more focused on basics%core and on
technical training. @ecause the constant reduction of investment of the government in the
education system 5schools! universities7! there is a growing need in companies to improve
knowledge and skills of employees.
Trends in training and &%D in (pain
9ain trends in training and ;/) in 5Lorth7 'pain includeH
1. 8n increase in distance and online training initiatives and linked to this a focus on the
uality of training! effect of training! results of training.
2. 8 focus on short training activities 5* A -. hours7 on reuest of the employee.
3. Training is focused on professional 5functional7 training 5not focused on business
training7.
4. The number of immigrants in increasing. This leads to more demands for language
and intercultural training.
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The economic crisis increases the demand for training! since the 'panish government
is giving financial support to companies that are having problems because of the
economic crisis. The money from the government can be spent on training for
employees. The state even pays a little salary to employees during training.
Trends in training and &%D in )ortugal
Mompanies in Gortugal are obligated to provide at least B+ hours of training per year to
employees. The government is assessing initial and continues training and there is a well
working certification program for trainers. Trainers are well ualified and certified. ;owever!
the focus of managers in the Gortuguese companies is still mainly on business! not on the
people. This makes it difficult to introduce and implement training and ;/). 8 complicating
factor is that ;/)-professionals are still working on administrative processes! not on
partnership in business.
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Trends in training and &%D in *rance
Training investments in (rance are paid by the companies itself! who have to contribute ?!1,
of the wage bill to training funds. This only applies for companies over *. people. The
position of the bodies that hold the funds is very strong. There is lots of money available for
training! but sometimes it is hard to get. >nemployment is growing and everything is focused
on this.
9ain trends in training and ;/) in (rance includeH
?. (rance is in a period of change. 4n #anuary *..F 8ccord Lational 4nterprofessional is
signed by the unions. The law has been published. This should lead to an optimized
system 5funds allocated7 and secured professional careers.
*. The power of intermediary bodies in the training system is increasing
These training funds finance BB, of each training.
/egional bodies are becoming more important.
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B. 4ndividualism gets stronger in training. This is a ma&or cultural change for a country that
thinks on a collective basisH
)4( 5droit 4ndividuel N le formation7
O8E 5official recognition of skills and knowledge7
The economic crisis leads to a reduced training budget. 4nnovation is focused on the uestionH
;ow to close the gap between strategic uestions%needs and the solutions< The position of
training managers gets more unsecure.
Trends in training and &%D in +ermany
9ain trends in training and ;/) in :ermany includeH
?. The sector is redefining the role of the trainers 5working on certification! education of
trainers! 9@8 for trainers$ there are about ?...... A ?+..... trainers in :ermany7
*. The responsibility for training is shifting from the company to the individual
5companies are focusing on functional skills$ soft skill development is own
responsibility of the employee7. Training is getting shorter and more on the &ob.
B. 'trategies for Iifelong Iearning are defined to support training. 4ndividual training
vouchers are introduced and the government is stimulating the use of training.
The economic crisis lead to less investment in training and ;/). The gap between companies
who spend money on training and those who cancel training 5e.g. car industry7 increases. The
training topics are shiftingH less talent management! less soft skills$ focus on pro&ect
management and entrepreneurship. Training is shorter and more on the &ob. 9ore standard
trainings are used.
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Trends in training and &%D in the ,etherlands
9ain trends in training and ;/) in The Letherlands includeH
?. 8n increased focus on the return on investment for training. Mompanies want to know
what the added value is and ask more uestions on the /=4 before they decide to
invest in training and development.
*. There is a shift from formal training to informal learning. 9ore learning on the
workplace. 8lso an increased demand for accreditation of prior learning.
B. Talent management has been introduced in several companies. The uestion now
arises what the result of talent management is or could be. Talent management is
linked to performance management. This also leads to discussions on diversity!
authenticity and role of the leader.
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-onclusion
:iven the current economic climate! key focus points for the development and
delivery of both techniues will be cost! /=4 and making learning more effective. =ne
of the keys to achieving this will be listening to learner needs and ensuring that the
individual is at the center of all learning activities. The best way to achieve this is
through a three way partnership between the organization! the individual and the
training provider 5either internal or e"ternal7.
Technology is undoubtedly changing the way people work on a global scale. 2orking
remotely coupled with an increasingly mobile workforce and the increase in wireless
mobile broadband! means that training delivery methods need to continue to adapt to
todays paced work environment. This is being seen in the rise of the development of
mobile learning platforms and how organizations are providing bite-sized learning
that can be accessed from almost anywhere. ?-, of the European organizations
currently deliver learning on mobile platforms and the use of podcasting for training
purposes has grown to ?+,. 4t is likely that organizations will continue e"perimenting
with podcasting and vodcasting 5video podcasting7 to ensure efforts are directed at the
right audiences.
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Two key challenges facing learning and development professionals are the integration
of informal learning with more traditional learning and measuring the effectiveness
and business value of these different components. 4t is essential that /=4 become
central tolearning strategy decisions.
(or multinational organizations! the globalization of training content is one of the
remaining challenges in meeting the goal to achieve economies of scale and
4nternational bestpractice. 'uccess will depend on being able to adapt content to a
multicultural audience while ensuring localized delivery.
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