Today I had the opportunity to meet and mentor a young professional who was very eager to grow in the #training field. He had got in touch with me to get certified in Extended DISC last year and we had been in touch since. He has spent 9 years in HR in a generalist profile and wanted to specialize.
Over a cup of coffee, we brainstormed and this was the approach we took. We focused on how to move from point A where he currently was to point b where he wanted to be 10 years from now.
- Question 1 : Where are you now? Point A was very clear as he described his career path and his current profile.
- Question 2: Where do you want to be? Point B was a lot more unclear.We started by eliminating what he was clear he did not want to do. Recruitment was one such area as was pay rolling. He was interested in training and OD was also of interest.
- Question 3: “Why Training ? Why Organization Development?” He shared that he felt a surge of energy when he interacted with people and when he trained and therefore thought training was an area he should focus on. OD sounded interesting but he had no real exposure to the same.
So he now asked, what should he do to create a career in training?
This is my advice to him (And I then thought, why only to him):
- Get maximum number of training hours under your belt, fast: Do anything to get this opportunity. Conduct inductions at your company, take guest lectures at business schools, teach a couple of subjects at a business school. Basically learn the dynamics of the classroom, how to create learning environments and handle participants.
- Shadow a senior #trainer, if you get an opportunity: Make yourself useful. Help them in the room (distributing handouts, arranging the tea), help in creating content, basically do anything to get the opportunity to observe someone. This is a difficult task especially for freelance trainers, but not impossible.
- Get a conceptual understanding of critical concepts in learning: This too is a critical step.Underneath are some concepts and theories that you should gain an understanding of. Please do invest your time to learn about them.
The training cycle
5 Learning theories – behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, social learning & humanism
Knowles theory of Andragogy , Learning grid
Kolb’s learning cycle
Learning Styles – Honey & Mumford & Sensory preferences-VAK
Multiple Intelligences by Howard Gardner
Setting of learning objectives: Blooms Taxonomy & Krathwohl’s Taxonomy
Gagne’s nine steps (Events of instruction)
ADDIE model and basic ID principles: chunking, reinforcement etc.
Curriculum design approaches: Spiral, problem centered etc.
5 Training methodologies – lecture, role-plays, guided discussion, audiovisuals, games etc.
Evaluation of training effectiveness – Kirkpatrick, Philips ROI method
Plagiarism and creative commons - Obtain some certifications in a strategic manner: Do not go for every certification in the market. More important than getting certified in many areas is applying what you have learnt. Though I was aware that in the case of most certifications (unless there was an assessment criterion) many participants do not understand enough to apply what they have learnt. However, I never thought there was any downside to getting many certifications till recently I saw a client shortlisting trainers. They basically grilled people on their experience and certifications and eliminated those who could not answer insightful questions on the same. The rationale was if they do not have depth on areas they have put on their profile and in which they claim they have expertise, then they obviously were not the right option. I realized the client was looking at higher order thinking skills, the ability of the trainers to apply, analyze and evaluate what they had learnt or done.
- Keep updated on the latest technology in training: Technology is changing every facet of life including learning. As trainers we need to constantly be on the lookout for the same. E-learning, Mobile learning, Web 2.0 all can be used successfully in creating training solutions.
He had a key concern: Did I think he was cut out for training?
My answer: “What I think is irrelevant, what is relevant is what you think? You will never know till you try. Grab every opportunity in the field till you get a clearer understanding of what you want. Because today professionally we are do not have a famine but a feast.”
Enjoy the feast!
Contributed by Lovely Kumar, Chief Projects, Larks Learning Pvt. Ltd.
Wherever you are in India Larks can assist you in behavioral training and psychometric assessments, for more information please contact on lovely@larkslearning.com or 91-9899108659.
