Background:

A global health organisation was making significant investments in staff training and transfer of learning to local experts and communities. Feedback from the training initiatives indicated inconsistent quality and effectiveness. Following the establishment of an organisation wide learning policy, the organisation desired to improve organisation learning at all levels.

Problem:

Many subject matter experts were delivering training in traditional directive ways which was not having the impact intended. In addition lessons were not being gleaned on a consistent basis from executed programmes and activities.

Goal:

Improve the competence and performance of in-house trainers and create a cadre of in-house facilitators able to ensure collaborative decision making and after action reviews to contribute to organisational learning.

Service:

We conducted interviews and reviews with staff in 6 regions worldwide as well as with key informants at the headquarters. We developed a proposal for establishing a learning architecture which included kick off workshops, action learning sets, performance management processes to link to existing appraisal systems and to drive personal development through a facilitated self directed learning approach. We then designed specific initiatives in ‘SELF directed learning’, ‘Brain Based Learning Approaches for Trainers’ and ‘Facilitating Group Decision Making’

Result:

The first workshops created a real paradigm shift for the participants both for their personal careers and in their professional endeavours. Their experience in brain based approaches led staff to re-evaluate and redesign a wide range of training initiatives throughout the organisation. Once major area of impact was the training related to an ongoing organisation change process and resulting learning connected to new business processes and ERP systems. Trainers reported greater success and buy-in for the change due to their brain friendly design and delivery.