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Workforce Management Community Center Forum Index � � General Forum � � Maintaining training when budgets are tight

Author	Maintaining training when budgets are tight
10161991 Joined: Aug 09, 2007 Posts: 13	Posted: 2008-10-16 13:19 What steps can HR professionals take to overcome the organizational tendency to cut training when money is tight?
nork3 Joined: Feb 12, 2002 Posts: 3876	Posted: 2008-10-16 22:11 The only real defense to training department cuts is to quantify the benefits of training, preferably in terms of return on investment. The more immediate and bigger the return, the better the chances of fending off cuts.
howard7 Joined: Sep 13, 2001 Posts: 2615	Posted: 2008-10-17 09:38 I would spend time analyzing what the training budget is being spent on. For example: Training tied specific skills upgrading Training tied to development programs Training tied to succession programs Feel good seminars etc. Once I fully understand the spend then I would proactively have a redesigned spend assuming 25-50% cuts in the budget. What can be done for less?
Hrpro Joined: Mar 16, 2007 Posts: 809	Posted: 2008-10-17 17:07 You work on changing the culture about 'cuts" and evaluate just exactly what it is you are investing in your people assets (human capital). Simply looking at people dollars as costs has historically resulted in a lower return. While traditional short minded accounting types will always look at cost as a determiner of immediate organizational health they will also ignore the long term value of HC investment. Integrating training as one component of a broad based HC strategy will begin the trend away from cutting costs related to your HC assets and focus more on aspects that truly drive business results (skills, knowledge, competencies, etc). Training to train has no value. Training that drives productivity, and subsequently reduces waste, has performance related value. Showing the value of these efforts through solid financial and statistical analysis will change the culture (assuming you aren't working for quick hit turnaround specialists whose only goal is short term profit without regard to long term business sustainability and profit). Look at actual bottom line results. Don't look at volume or timing measurements (how many were trained, how many training sessions were given etc are NOT good.) This takes time and trending analysis. You'll have to use your knowledge of statistics, how your company makes money and benchmark KEY outcome areas that have true impact. It doesn't always work but if you partner with your finance team as well as operational management you should achieve the desired outcome.
lesallan Joined: Apr 16, 2007 Posts: 108	Posted: 2008-10-19 18:10 I don�t now whether your training is designed and delivered by in-house staffs or whether it is outsourced. This will make a difference to how you interpret my suggestions below. 1. Cut costs by providing more self-help workbooks and on-the-job aids. 2. Conscript local experts or coaches to take the place of some training sessions. 3. Cut non-value add training sessions; that is, those that don�t really advance real organizational objectives. 4. Review your list of training suppliers for more economical alternatives. 5. Rationalize your list of training suppliers to obtain volume discounts. 6. Save on material costs by printing on both sides of paper when producing learner materials, sending out softcopy versions of learner guides, etc. 7. Demonstrate the achievement of organizational objectives (that is, that achieving the learning outcomes led to real benefits to the organization) and return on investment on your training programs. The first six suggestions above go along with the idea that everyone needs to tighten their belt in tough times and that the training function is not sacrosanct. The training function will be more respected by replacing a �Yes, but �� response with a �Yes, and this is what we are doing about it.� The final suggestion uses a different approach. It says that if you cut these training programs, the organization will actually lose money. For this approach, you can use my Training Evaluation Toolkit www.businessperform.com/html/training_evaluation_toolkit.html to help you with the evaluations. The two approaches, of course, are not mutually exclusive. I hope this gets your thinking started. Les Allan Managing Director Business Performance Pty Ltd www.businessperform.com
cynbrandt Joined: Nov 11, 2003 Posts: 1782	Posted: 2008-10-20 08:27 What Les has listed as #3 I would list as #1.
howard7 Joined: Sep 13, 2001 Posts: 2615	Posted: 2008-10-20 10:23 Les-Your suggestions are good but lets leave out any suggestions about buying your products on this website. This is to be strictly between HR professionals who wish to offer suggestions/advice etc to their brethren
work4will Joined: Dec 11, 2007 Posts: 2	Posted: 2008-10-21 10:42 I would agree with the responses above that suggest that avoiding cuts isn't the issue, that training has to participate in cuts along with their colleagues in other departments. One of the key answers to "how to minimize cuts in hard times" is to maximize your contribution in good times. That is, the perception of the value training brings to your organization has been built up (or not) over the last couple of years. If your organization takes training for granted when they are doing well, rather than seeing it as one of the real factors in their success, then they are not going to be impressed when the training department becomes more vocal about their value to the organization only when the budget is under threat. In short, clearly linking training activities to the organization's good outcomes, when things are up, is the best defense against taking a disproportionate or inappropriate hit when times are bad. And, as other have noted, a willingness to take an appropriate, proportionate hit, to make an extra effort to be responsive and supportive when the company needs to cut back, is one of the best ways to build relationships and garner support for training in anticipation of when conditions improve. With that said, some of the suggestions above will help you make those cuts. I might add some simple tips to maximize the impact of your training. Better lead-in and follow-up -- contacting trainees before and after training events, perhaps through a series of e-mails -- can help them apply what they learn, at basically no additional cost to the department. Better results in hard times, again, boosts your credibility with the rest of the organization. And for live events, perhaps letting class size creep up will save you a session here and there. Consider recruiting a "teaching assistant" from the department that benefits most from a particular class, and with that extra help to handle discussions, activities, break-out sessions, you might be able to handle a larger enrollment for a given event, significantly cutting costs. Will Kenny Best Training Practices www.besttrainingpractices.com Home of The Training Tipsheet
adfdl Joined: Oct 21, 2008 Posts: 1	Posted: 2008-10-21 13:15 All this advice is great, but what if you DO work for "...quick hit turnaround specialists whose only goal is short term profit without regard to long term business sustainability and profit?" I am, most unfortunately, in this position. I was hired as the first and only Training Manager at a company with about 80 employees that is micromanaged by the company President himself, whose ideas about training are about 15 years out of date: train for training's sake and not tie training goals to business goals (in fact, don't even let the Training Manager in on what the business goals are); measure training hours and dollars only, not ROI because it's too difficult; don't let staff have time for training because they need to produce revenue with their every hour. I'm getting ready to throw up my hands, admit these guys just aren't ready for a training program and try to find myself another job...
Hrpro Joined: Mar 16, 2007 Posts: 809	Posted: 2008-10-21 15:15 adfdl that is exactly what I just did. No matter what the data was wrong, the financials were wrong (even when obtained in collaboration with my Finance department), the metrics were wrong, complaince was wrong, and so forth. You finally just say, "these people are not worth my time or energy" and go somewhere else.