Newsletter - May 2009
Is the Economic Downturn Creating the Perfect Storm?: Continuing the Investment in Training and Development
May 14, 2009 - Lisa Smith
In this environment, like none we have seen in decades, organizations are challenged to “do more with less.” Well, what does that mean? It could suggest that we do more of the same with fewer people, or it could translate to re-thinking the way that the work is done—to include who does it, why we do it and how the task is actually performed. That is exactly where training and / or development enters the room. Not just doing more as it relates to volume, but performing the process with more measurable efficiency and momentum that ultimately tie back to the business need and organizational objectives.
Training and development is the perfect marriage, but like any great couple they have individual identities and sometimes need time apart. Let’s assume for the sake of argument that training is simply directed toward a particular function within a specific area of the business. It would be easy enough to create a learning tool to help improve that function. However, what happens when the organization needs to move the individual who improved their functionality to a role where they are now challenged to create and lead future implementations? Chances are they did not learn anything in the earlier skills training that will be applicable in their new role. Therefore, we could possibly have training dollars spent, a frustrated new leader, a work group that is missing the productivity target, and a division manager forced to give a negative performance critique. Why? Because the development part of the component was left out of the equation. The “how to do it” is ultimately important to the process, but the “what to do” and “why we do it” are critical and will only manifest through professional development.
With businesses reeling from huge losses in profits, which have translated to record layoffs, it is hard to imagine spending dollars on training and development, which could be viewed as a luxury item. Most of us know from past experiences that things get better and when they do, will our business be ready for the increased demand for our products and services? I am not in the minority when I say that this may be the best opportunity for organizations to look at their practices, performance issues and manpower to decide where they want to be when the floodgates re-open.
In many ways this is the perfect storm. If we are paying close attention, we will uncover our rising stars: the ones who assumed additional responsibility after many in their departments were laid off. We can now get a better look at processes that were not the most efficient, but the flaws were difficult to see with so many hands on deck. Many companies have viewed this as a great time to appraise the communication skills and conflict resolution styles of the team, and survey management’s overall leadership effectiveness under the guise of looking for improvement opportunities. Investing in improvement(s) is the catalyst for businesses to compete, attract and maintain the best and the brightest. We are in an era where there seems to be a variety of employees in the workforce at once, i.e. (Post WWII, Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y). Recycling skills will be replaced by such terminology as upgrading, efficiency, emotional intelligence and problem solving.
Investing significant time and dollars in skills training and professional development may prove to be the lifeline for many organizations as the pendulum swings toward better economic times. Many organizations have coveted training and development as a valuable business practice whether it is delivered in-house or outsourced. They agree that it is difficult to envision growing the bottom line without first seizing every opportunity to nurture and grow the team.
Lisa Smith is director of Training & Development for OI Partners – Russell Montgomery & Associates in Memphis. She can be reached at 901-763-1818 or lsmith@oipartners.net.
