Training Events versus Learning Solutions: What Matters

Training Does Not Always Makes Sense
Asking whether training is the right answer is more than prudent — it’s just smart business. And surprisingly often, the honest answer is “no.” Consider sexual-harassment training as a useful lens for distinguishing the difference between training events versus learning solutions. The comparison makes it easier to see when training adds real value and when a broader, more integrated approach is required to shift behavior and reduce risk.

Sexual Harassment Training
Most sexual-harassment training exists because the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that organizations must demonstrate adequate employee training on anti-harassment policies to limit liability. While these programs can help reduce legal exposure and convey essential information, they rarely address the deeper challenge: preventing inappropriate behavior before it occurs. In many cases, the training checks a compliance box without meaningfully shifting mindsets, strengthening accountability, or changing the day-to-day dynamics that allow harassment to surface in the first place.

When Check-the-Box Training Does Make Sense
Stand-alone sexual harassment training does makes sense if you need to comply and mitigate risk and are not too worried about currently having an unfair or disrespectful workplace.  This is certainly true of many well run and highly functioning workplaces.

When Training, by Itself, Probably Does Not Make Sense
If the goal is to address the underlying issues that plagued companies like Uber or Fox News, relying on sexual-harassment training alone misses the mark. Training can play an important role, but it’s insufficient on its own.

Real prevention requires reshaping the workplace culture — creating a culture where respect is the norm, power imbalances are confronted, and people feel safe speaking up. The same principle holds true for sales, leadership, and management development. Even the most thoughtfully designed, highly tailored training can enhance skills and awareness, but without broader cultural reinforcement and systemic alignment, it won’t deliver meaningful or sustained change.

Training Events versus Learning Solutions

We say “Training Does Not Always Makes Sense” because there is big difference between Training Events versus Learning Solutions.

• Training Events
  Training events typically strive to improve the awareness and insight of specific skills and knowledge to satisfy the fundamental compliance, health, and hygiene learning needs required to attract, develop, engage and retain talent.

  Success is typically measured by participant satisfaction surveys.  Unfortunately, our research shows that without other reinforcement and support mechanisms, only 20 percent of participants change their on-the-job behavior and performance from standalone training — regardless of the quality and relevance.

  Not great odds.

• Learning Solutions
  Learning solutions aim to measurably change behavior and improve performance. Success is typically measured by the adoption of new skills and behaviors and the corresponding lift in performance.  Learning solutions are most often deployed as part of a broader change initiative for a team or group to solve a specific and important business problem.

  Done right, learning solutions should make a measurable performance impact.  You will know you have more of a learning solution when the stakes are high enough to warrant:

• • Coaching
    By far, coaching has the highest correlation to the transfer of training and performance improvement.  Our research found that consistent and frequent coaching makes a 4-to-1 performance difference.  Do the leaders know how to effectively coach their people?  Do they make the time to coach?  Are they expected to coach?
  • Scenario-Based Training
    We have found that every client and every role has a unique set of scenarios that matter most to their job performance and employee engagement.  While basic training can set the foundation, ensuring that your participants can excel at the top 5-10 scenarios that matter most sets everyone up for success.

    Have you identified the scenarios that matter most?  Can you target audience consistently excel at each scenario when the stakes are high?  Have you considered learning simulations to assess capabilities?

  • Learning Reinforcement
    Along with coaching and scenario-based training, online job aids and practice helps to reinforce and hone skills. Are you using microlearning video vignettes, tools, and job aids to support your learners?

The Bottom Line
If training doesn’t clearly strengthen your ability to attract, develop, engage, retain, protect, or elevate your workforce in a way that supports a meaningful business priority, its value should be challenged. Get crystal clear on both the learning outcomes and the business results you expect before committing a dollar. Only with that clarity can you determine whether a streamlined training event will suffice or whether the situation demands a more comprehensive learning solution that drives lasting capability and measurable impact.

To learn more about Training Events versus Learning Solutions, download 3 Steps to Building a Smarter Training Initiative – One that Gets Business Results

by Tristam Brown: CEO

Tristam Brown is an executive business consultant and organizational development expert with more than three decades of experience helping organizations accelerate performance, build high-impact teams, and turn strategy into execution. As CEO of LSA Global, he works with leaders to get and stay aligned™ through research-backed strategy, culture, and talent solutions that produce measurable, business-critical results. See full bio.