New Managers Ill-Prepared, Survey Says

Many people in corporate talent management and training show a lack of confidence in the ability of first-line managers, sales representatives, customer support representatives and entry-level employees to successfully execute their jobs, according to Bersin & Associates’ quarterly analysis of key trends.

   “The pressures and stresses of downsizing and reorganization are definitely felt most acutely at the bottom of the corporate ladder,” says Josh Bersin. “For instance, supervisors and first-line managers are typically thrown into situations for which they’re ill-prepared and required to make very difficult, often life-changing decisions about the people they manage.”

   Not surprisingly, findings of the winter survey reinforced the generally dismal state of business. The research also revealed how significantly the economy has changed HR priorities. Almost 40 percent of respondents say they are grappling with issues related to layoffs and downsizing, up from 17 percent in the fall. Creating a performance-driven culture is the top priority for HR this quarter, with 71 percent of respondents citing this as urgent or important. More than 60 percent cite cost reduction as the top business challenge this quarter, compared to 37 percent three months ago.

You can download the full report here.

Product Inventory Clearance at The Bob Pike Group

We’re clearing out the warehouse this month and prices have been slashed on many of our great training resources. SCORE Twois only $16.50 through May 31; that’s more than 55% off the list price! Wuzzles for Presentersis now only $10 (Wuzzles are word puzzles—great for opening a session and creating curiousity!) Click here to see a list of all our products, about 30 of which are on sale!

How to Cut Learning Costs by 30%

In these recessionary times, learning and development teams are under pressure to maintain training activity, yet cut the cost of learning. Kevin Lovell claims that 30% can be shaved from learning costs by tackling four areas of inefficiency.  These are: supplier management, administration, scheduling and solution design.

   For supplier management, you can create a preferred supplier list for all external training which minimizes the number of supplier relationships you have to manage and maximizes the potential for discounts.

   For administration, invest in technology which automates the process of course bookings and post-course evaluations—repetitive and labor-intensive work that swallows resources. This could reduce your admin costs by 30%.

   For scheduling, increase and enforce higher fill rates for classes. Also, do a 12-month planning process to assess and plan for expected need. The ability to react to short-term changes may be a virtue, but it’s an expensive one. Planning ahead allows you to buy your training less expensively.

   Finally, you could achieve a net cost reduction of 9.5% by redesigning your learning solutions. The relevance and effectiveness of training interventions should be reviewed at least every two years. Business needs change; ideas about best practice change; technologies change and training delivery methods change. Having reviewed your interventions, the next step is to consider redesign.

   Training is still dominated by classroom-based courses. There is often considerable scope to redesign these into shorter classroom events (perhaps modularising one long course into several shorter ones) or turning to blended solutions. A traditional classroom-based event may become a combination of self-study, elearning, webinar, shorter classroom course or some other face-to-face event: seminar, coaching session, etc.

   Thoughtful and creative introduction of new learning modes (particularly those related to technology), coupled with a keen sense of the business needs, have the capacity to make a significant impact on costs.

   To read the whole article and link to a download of Lovell’s white paper, click here. This appeared on trainingzone.co.uk.