Asked: Is there an appropriate ratio for classroom trainer:trainee?

Although managers influence the job commitment and satisfaction of employees, as many as one-in-three managers are not held accountable for engagement levels in their organization, according to a new study recently conducted at Right Management.

Training directors and corporate trainers need new tools and new technologies to produce the measurable results that management is now demanding to transform your organization! Our 17th annual training and performance improvement conference will provide you with just that-new tools and technologies for ROI.

Want fast information on how to deal with difficult participants? Or perhaps fun and effective ways to make web-based learning interactive? The Bob Pike Group is offering numerous interactive webinars during August and September. These 75-minute sessions are only $149; however, if you sign up for three or more, the cost drops to only $99 per session. Group rates also are available.

The Bob Pike Group has a lot of free resources available to you, and we want to make sure you know about all of them. Using the internet, we have multiple ways we are connecting with learners.

Why are all the good ideas left behind in elementary school? Remember recess? One of the best parts of the day. We should leverage these decades-old learning strategies to make adult learning more memorable and workplaces more enjoyable.

It might be common sense to figure out your company's goals and then tie training to that-but we all know common sense isn't so common. As a training director in your company, your first item of business needs to be identifying the true business/productivity goals of your company.

Some managers might think that with the economy the way it is, it's not as critical to figure out how to manage the Millennials. After all, aren't they just lucky to have jobs? And the answer to that question would be "no." If the job isn't all they wanted, they'll simply quit - and if they need to, move back home - and that's not such a bad deal. Beyond that, the Millennials are here to stay - and the boomer generation is not. More and more of them are retiring, and someone is going to have to take up the slack. And those someones are the Millennials. Managers who learn to understand this generation and how to work with them are going to be extremely valuable over the next 20 years. Will you be one of them?

Despite the recent headlines about the record number of boomers nearing the age of retirement, many aren't planning to retire any time soon. According to AARP, 27 percent of workers aged 45 and older said the economic slowdown had prompted them to postpone retirement and 76 percent said they intend to keep working in retirement. However, another recent survey says that Boomers aged 53 to 61 reported significantly less support from their supervisors to get additional training to further their careers and fewer flexible work options than those younger. This can be a mistake.

We should give up the false belief that any image says more than a thousand words. We are so convinced that an image trumps words that we fool ourselves into believing that everyone will get what we mean, no matter what image we choose. Trust me. Nobody gets what we mean until we tell them what we mean.