Does your organisation review the impact of the investment it makes in Management Training and Development?  How much money was spent last year on Management Training and Development and how did the organisation benefit?

Before these questions can be answered, the organisation must be clear about the objectives of any Management Training and Development.  For example, what particular people issues need to be resolved?  What is it that the business needs to see differently from a particular person or group of people?  For example, do your managers need to:

  • Be more strategic and think longer term to enable them to develop new business?
  • Demonstrate greater leadership capability to improve the motivation, commitment and performance of their staff?
  • Manage the performance of their staff more consistently and effectively?
  • Be more confident and capable of managing change and managing their teams in an ever changing environment?
  • Have more effective and productive working relationships with their colleagues?

Once the organisation is clear about what needs to change, the benefits can be more easily delivered.  Evaluating and measuring the effectiveness of development programmes and interventions can be achieved in a number of ways. For example:

  • Individual – The impact the interventions have had on the individual manager’s behaviour and performance.  How an individual has changed can be assessed from observations on their performance, achievement of targets, and feedback from others (for example via a 360 degree leadership questionnaire).
  • Team – The impact the interventions have had on team effectiveness and performance. How an individual has influenced their team, managed change and improved staff morale and motivation.  These can be assessed by the achievement of team targets as well as using team analysis tools.
  • Function/Business – The impact the interventions have had on the performance of the Function/Business can be assessed through a range of operational performance measures as well as using tools such as cultural assessments.

It is important that longer term benefits are also examined as organisations that invest in management development and training will not only find it easier to recruit quality personnel, but they will also enjoy lower rates of staff turnover.

There is also evidence of less direct business benefits. Regular training and development is seen as a sign of professionalism and helps to create a positive image for the organisation in its market place.

Whatever Management Training and Development your organisation undertakes it is vital that the outcomes are clearly defined at the start and measures put in place to ensure that your investment pays off.