Corporate Training Reality Check: What 20+ Years in the Industry Has Taught Me
Last week l watched a room full of managers zone out during another “breakthrough” leadership workshop. Cant say I blamed him really. Just another pricey presentation about “enhancing human capital” that nobody asked for. Twenty three years I’ve been in corporate training and development, and I reckon about most of what passes for professional development these days is just costly box ticking.
The thing that drives me absolutely mental. Companies are spending buckets of cash on training programs that nobody remembers after the first coffee break. Sydney companies are throwing away serious dollars on workshops that teach people how to “think outside the box” whilst keeping them firmly inside the most rigid, cookie cutter training formats you’ve ever seen.
The thing that drives me absolutely mental. Companies are spending buckets of cash on training programs that nobody remembers after the first coffee break. Brisbane organisations are wasting massive budgets on workshops that teach people how to “think outside the box” whilst keeping them firmly inside the most mind-numbing, one-size-fits-all approaches you’ve ever seen.
Here’s what gets me fired up though. Companies are spending buckets of cash on training programs that nobody remembers after the first coffee break. Melbourne businesses alone probably blow through millions each year on workshops that teach people how to “think outside the box” whilst keeping them firmly inside the most mind-numbing, one-size-fits-all approaches you’ve ever seen.
My contact at a major corporate shared this story with me. The company had dropped serious cash on a management course that cost more than a expensive car. Ask them now what they got from it and you’ll hear crickets. But hey, the completion certificates looked impressive on LinkedIn.
It’s not that employees lack enthusiasm to improve. You can see the engagement spike when sessions address real workplace issues. We’re delivering McDonald’s training when people need restaurant quality development.
It’s not that employees lack motivation to improve. You can see the engagement spike when sessions address genuine workplace issues. The issue is we’re treating professional development like a one-size-fits-all tracksuit from Big W when it should be more like a bespoke suit from Collins Street.
Here’s how these workshops normally unfold. Opening day : forced networking games that make people uncomfortable. Middle day : fancy models and theories that dont solve real workplace problems. Day three : action planning sessions where people write down goals they’ll never look at again. Imagine paying Netflix prices for free to air quality content.
What really works though?
Hands on, practical challenge tackling. Give people actual challenges they’re facing right now. Skip the theoretical examples from decades ago, but the stuff causing actual stress about real workplace situations.
What really works though?
Hands-on, practical challenge tackling. Hand them the problems keeping them awake at night. Forget the textbook scenarios that bear no resemblance to reality, but the stuff creating genuine anxiety about tomorrow’s challenges.
There was this building firm on the Gold Coast having serious communication issues between supervisors. We skipped the usual presentation skills courses, we had them tackle genuine issues from their current projects . The team examined their information pathways, spotted the breakdowns, and created workable fixes. Within half a year, they were finishing jobs 25% faster. No theoretical breakthroughs, just real solutions to everyday issues.
Now I’m going to upset a few readers. I reckon most professional development should happen within business hours, not piled onto people’s personal time. Companies that expect their people to do training in their own time are kidding themselves about commitment levels.
Here’s where I might lose some people though. I reckon most professional development should happen during work time, not as an add-on to already overloaded schedules. Organisations demanding after-hours learning are dreaming if they think people will be engaged.
Now I’m going to upset a few readers. I reckon most professional development should happen during work time, not as an add-on to already overloaded schedules. Companies that expect their people to do training in their own time are kidding themselves about commitment levels.
Here’s another unpopular opinion : leadership isnt for everyone. Everyone acts like professional growth automatically means becoming someone’s boss. The star players often want to master their craft, not supervise others. Advanced technical development seems to only exist alongside management courses now.
What really gets my goat is the non existent follow through .
You send people to a two day workshop, they come back full of energy and new ideas, then… nothing. No support, no check ins, no way to put into action what they’ve learned. It’s like buying someone a gym membership and then locking the doors.
The other thing that drives me mental is the follow-up. Or complete lack thereof.
Employees return from training buzzing with possibilities, then get zero support to implement anything. No guidance, no resources, no chance to actually use their new skills. Think of it as purchasing exercise equipment and hiding it in the garage. Data indicates that without reinforcement, most learning evaporates within 30 days. Then businesses wonder why their development programs fail to create change.
I recommend clients allocate matching funds for both workshops and post session coaching. If you’re spending $5,000 on a workshop, plan to spend another $5,000 on coaching, mentoring, and applying support over the next six months. Otherwise you’re just throwing money into a very costly bin.
Here’s where I’m going to argue against my own point. Occasionally the greatest growth comes from unexpected situations. Challenging assignments that dont go to plan often teach more than structured courses. We might do better by supporting spontaneous growth rather than forcing structured development.
IT organisations get this concept while old school companies lag behind. Google’s famous innovation time allowing staff to pursue personal interests during work hours, has produced some of their most innovative products. It’s professional development disguised as creative freedom.
The thing that absolutely infuriates me. Learning initiatives that operate in a cultural vacuum. You can teach people all the collaborative leadership techniques in the world, but if they return to managers who rule with iron fists, what good does it do? Think of it as training pilots and then giving them bicycles.
Intelligent organisations address both environment and education together. They avoid the magical thinking of education without environmental support. They establish cultures that encourage and appreciate newly developed abilities.
The return on investment question comes up constantly. CEOs want to know exactly how much revenue each training dollar generates. Reasonable request, but the reality is more complex than that. How do you measure the value of preventing a key employee from quitting because they finally felt supported in their development? How do you quantify preventing accidents through improved safety training?
One industrial client tracked $3.1 million in prevented workplace incidents following their safety development program. Good luck convincing finance teams who focus solely on quarterly profit improvements.
Maybe the main issue is we’re calling it the wrong thing entirely. This phrase implies external action rather than personal drive. What if we called it “work improvement” or “getting better at stuff”? More straightforward, more practical, certainly clearer about our true objectives.
What I think will happen over the next few years. Businesses that merge training with real job activities will crush their rivals. Not because of fancier qualifications or accreditations, but because they’ll be more adaptable, more confident, and more engaged with solving real problems.
The future belongs to organisations that stop treating professional development like a separate activity and start treating it like breathing. Essential, continuous, and completely integrated into everything else they do.
That’s probably enough ranting for one article. Time to get back to designing training that people might actually remember next month.
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