Four Questions to ask before sending staff on courses

As a Manager or Employer, consider the following before sending staff on courses……

1. Are they fully engaged and genuine about staff development?
2. Are you clear about what form of ‘ROI’ you are looking for from the staff member?
3. Have you thoroughly researched appropriate courses on offer – how closely do the course topics and content match what you’re after?
4. Do you plan to set out a pre-course and post-course plan with the staff member?

Pre-course

• By going on this course what do you want to achieve?


• What do you want the staff member to gain from attending the course?


• Ask the staff member to document what they believe they will gain from the course and present to you(accountability)

Post-course

• Does the staff member know how to translate what they learnt into their role? Look for a clear demonstration (Theory versus Practice)


• Where appropriate ask the staff member to share what they learnt with other members of their team in a presentation


• Are you able to incorporate the practical application into the team members KPI’s (accountability and a demonstration of ROI by them)?

The key and skill will always be to guide the team member to adopt learning’s into their everyday role. You don’t have to know the subject inside out yourself but it’s critical that you can refer the person back to the course framework if required.

Be mindful of your reasons for sending someone on a course – is it to “oil the squeaky wheel” or to provide a development opportunity that will provide value back to the business.