What Nobody Tells You About Professional Development Training
Last month I sat through yet another training session in Perth where half the participants were answering emails while the facilitator talked about “dynamic management success.”
I have been in this for 17 years now, and I can tell you straight up that about 71% of professional development programs are complete rubbish. Not because the content is terrible necessarily, but because nobody’s paying attention to what actually works in real Australian companies.
The thing that frustrates me most is watching businesses copy international training formats without considering whether they make sense here. Meanwhile, Sarah from accounts is managing two kids, overtime, and trying to figure out the new software system that IT rolled out last Tuesday without any proper training.
Actual development takes place during real work situations. Its watching experienced team members deal with challenging situations and learning from their approach. Its learning from people who consistently get results in tough situations. Its making mistakes on actual projects and learning from them, not role playing scenarios in some hotel conference room.
Now, this might be contentious, but I actually believe structured training can work incredibly well. Just not the way we are doing them at the moment.
The problem started when HR departments decided they needed to justify their existence by booking pricey external trainers for everything. Management development became this mystical thing that required certificates and frameworks instead of just… leading people and learning as you go.
I recall working with a mining company in Perth a few years back. They had thrown $90,000 at some leadership development project focused on “planned dialogue systems” and “adaptive leadership models.” Pretty sophisticated content. Meanwhile, their biggest problem was shift supervisors not knowing how to have challenging conversations with workers about safety issues.
Know what fixed it? Getting supervisors to shadow experienced ones for two weeks. Cost them maybe three thousand dollars in overtime. Results were instant.
The fixation on certificates and credentials is destroying hands on development. You dont need paperwork for every skill. Often the most effective development comes from throwing people in the deep end with good backup.
When it comes to support , that’s where most programs fall apart completely. Staff go to development sessions, get excited briefly, then face the identical organisational dysfunction that necessitated training in the first place.
The team at Westpac handles this brilliantly. Their leadership program offers six months of ongoing support once the classroom sessions finish. Clever approach. Transforming how teams operate needs sustained effort and feedback, not just initial education.
Time to discuss effective approaches, because criticism without alternatives is pointless.
First, make it meaningful. If you are training retail managers, use retail examples. Genuine examples, not invented scenarios about imaginary businesses. Work with genuine customer feedback, authentic staffing issues, and actual regulatory demands.
Secondly, timing beats content every time. Developing leadership capabilities immediately prior to promotion? Ideal. Trying to fix poor management practices after they have become entrenched? Nearly impossible.
The third point, which most initiatives totally overlook, is fixing the workplace culture rather than just developing individuals. There’s no point developing communication abilities if the company structure discourages honest feedback. That’s just setting them up to fail.
About twelve months ago I consulted with a transport business in Queensland. Their drivers kept getting customer complaints about communication. Instead of sending them to customer service training, we looked at what was actually happening. The scheduling software was creating unrealistic timeframes, leaving drivers perpetually behind schedule and anxious. Fixed the scheduling, complaints dropped by 60%.
Development programs could not have addressed that issue. Process changes did.
Here’s another contentious opinion : most soft skills training is completely wrong. We focus on making people better at talking, leading, and collaborating. Yet we ignore teaching people to analyse their work environment and resist when organisational systems are faulty.
The best professional development creates people who can spot problems and fix them, not just people who can cope better with existing dysfunction.
Having said that, some traditional training approaches do work. Skills based skills training is usually pretty solid because its testable and specific. You either know how to use the new software or you dont. Sales development works when its grounded in real customer insights and market realities.
But leadership development? Team building? Communication workshops? Half the time they are just pricey ways to avoid dealing with real management problems.
Businesses that excel at development treat it like any other important business decision. They monitor outcomes, track performance improvements, and modify approaches based on effectiveness. They dont just book training because its budget time or because someone read an article about the importance of upskilling.
The team at Canva takes an intriguing approach to development. Their emphasis is on peer to peer learning and sharing expertise internally. Employees training employees. This approach grows with the company, stays relevant, and strengthens workplace relationships.
That’s actually where the future of professional development is moving. Reduced formal sessions, increased practical learning, guidance, and experience based growth. Businesses are learning that quality development involves offering substantial projects with appropriate guidance.
Obviously, numerous training providers continue peddling identical recycled material repackaged with fresh jargon. Digital transformation workshops that are really just change management 101. Agile methodology training that disregards whether your business structure supports agile practices.
The trick is posing better questions before arranging any professional growth activities. What exact behavioural change or skill deficiency requires attention? How will you know if it’s working? Why are not people already performing at this level? What continued help will people need once the development session ends?
Above all, what’s the real business challenge you’re attempting to fix? Because if training is not connected to real business outcomes, you’re just ticking boxes and wasting time.
Professional growth works when it’s intentional, focused, and adequately resourced. All other approaches are costly team activities that create temporary enthusiasm before normal workplace pressures return.
This could appear negative, but having witnessed numerous training programs, I choose realism about results over pretending every workshop will transform your business culture.
Effective professional growth happens when people encounter difficulties, get assistance, and address actual business problems. All other approaches are simply administrative costs.
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