Marketing Your Training Department

08-17-07

Host: Jay

Attendees:

Jay Naumann – Manager of Corporate Training - RC Willey

Wes Stockmann – Performance Development Manager - Nicholas and Company

Mirella Addante – Professional Development Manger – IntelliDyne, LLC

Cathy Perkins – Training Manager – Tenet Healthcare

Discussion Summary

What Learning Departments offer: 

The ability to take training needs and ideas and convert them in to learning events.  A manager may think creating a PowerPoint presentation is training – we bring understanding of Adult Learning to take the ideas and concepts from the PowerPoint and create activates and an learning environment where people will learn and change behaviors – not just listen to someone talk about it.

Training departments are seen as neutral and can often survey or get more honest answers than a direct manager. We can use this information to identify needs and gaps that can then bee filled through training.

Consider creating a list or a slide that shows what your department can offer or do for other departments and the company as a whole.

Some ways to market training, training initatives and your department:

Arrange for space in your company news letter. Use this space to write articles about current training initiative.  Include your name, department  and your picture if you can. 

Use company intranet or closed circuit television systems to run commercials about up coming training or to repeat key concepts and ideas.

Use logos for each training initiative and even your department so everyone knows who created this program.

Identify groups or levels of management that you have little or no interaction with and find ways to communicate with and support their efforts.  They won’t use your department’s resources if they don’t know about what you offer.

Meet with your direct boss and upper management as much as possible.  Make sure they are updated on each project you are working on and the status of each project.  They should never be wondering what you do all day, they should have clear a understanding – this will also help them support your efforts making your job easier