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When Is a Training Program Not a Training Program?
Businesses tend to focus on performance more than on training. You can integrate training into your processes to help improve performance, without even calling it training. If you design your curriculum carefully, you will have materials that can be used in or out of a classroom setting. Distributing information in the form of checklists, templates, or other job aids gives you an opportunity to embed instructions and guidance. These kinds of job aids can eliminate the need for some training, by providing just-in-time performance enhancements.
Training itself can be thought of as a job aid and be built into the workflow instead of something separate. You could think of it as just-in-time training, but it is even better to make it a part of the design and development of the project itself. Instead of a classroom instructor, you can provide the project team with a coach, mentor, or facilitator, and use examples that are related to the project and exercises that contribute to the project.
For example, the start-up and planning phase of a proposal can be a multi-day facilitated session consisting of a 50/50 ratio of process orientation (training by another name) and group projects that result in a written proposal plan. Topics like developing win strategies are based on the current opportunity and topics like RFP requirement cross-referencing use the RFP specific to the current opportunity. The presenter-led introduction to the topics and exercises provides training for those who need it and gets everyone on the same page regarding terminology, process, and expectations.
Instead of thinking of a training program as the sometimes necessary evil expense of sending people to a class, think of tools, procedures, and training all as part of development. Instead of developing your procedures and then implementing a training program as an afterthought, consider developing a training program and addressing the procedures as part of the curriculum development. An investment of time and resources will still be required, but instead of it being some kind of additional expense, it should be part of the cost of opportunity pursuit.
It is important that any investment be based on specific measurable outcomes. Tools, procedures, and training are all part of what it will take to achieve your objective. If your goal is to change your win rate, then your approach is going to require people to do specific things. To whatever degree that these things can be automated, you should use tools. To whatever degree checklists, templates, or other job aids can enhance performance or eliminate the need for training, use them. What remains is the need to get everyone on the same page, working together to fulfill expectations. This will require you to change your approach to training. Instead of a periodic, and usually rare, event, it is part of the communications mix required to achieve the desired outcome.
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