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How much does good training really cost?

Guest post by: Anne Warfield

Article Overview: I just completed a weekend of training that cost me $13,000. Sounds like a lot right? I mean really, can’t I find the same information at a lower cost?

How much does good training really cost?

I just completed a weekend of training that cost me $13,000. Sounds like a lot right? I mean really, can't I find the same information at a lower cost? Well, believe me, those thoughts ran through my head as well. I also thought about how long I have been in business-15 years. So what can this person teach me that costs me almost a $1000 per year of being in business to learn? And can they really teach me anything I don't already know.

Well, my first day back from the training I closed over $30,000 in business and I know I will turn that investment for my clients in to multiples of savings down the road.

So, was it worth it? Oh, Yea!

After the weekend, my bigger question was, "How much have I cost myself by taking the less expensive mainstream route for 15 years?"

As a society we have gotten vary focused on cost rather than value. We look to learn, use, and throw away. We forget the value of things that last a life time rather than a moment in time.

I know our education for corporations can seem expensive to some people. The real question isn't the cost, it is the value. I can't tell you how many times I have heard people say "This seems high. We are going to go with a local person that will charge less." Then after the training when we follow up we hear, "It didn't go as we thought. We now need to look at some more training in order to get what we want."

But this isn't about an event. It is about your corporation learning how to communicate with a mindset that allows people to speak in a compelling fashion that matches your corporate culture.

We don't look to "train" your people on how to present, negotiate or lead. Rather we look at how to educate people on how to "think" differently so they can "act" in a way to adds value to all who come in contact with them.

You didn't learn how to communicate overnight. So why look for an "event" to shatter it? Wouldn't you rather learn a process of how to think and view each and every communication so you make the impact you want?

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Article Tags: communicate, communication, leadership, presentation, training



Related Forum Posts
Training - Louis: Some regulated industries mandate that you attend training. However, even then, finding time to meet those requirements becomes an issue. This may explain the growth of tele-seminars. To answer your questions though, ROI is very important and everyone needs to sell or market no matter what they do. The best tip I ever got on training is not to pitch training as training b/c even big companies have limited budgets for training but training rebranded as "sales support." It makes the ROI argument that much more appealing. Hope that helps. Good luck.
One Thing To Note - As a trainer myself, I'm always amazed at the lengths organizations go to to pay for training and then not follow through. Any training I design myself has to have at least an offer built in for future support as well, for the benefit of those receiving the training, the organizer and the people the trainee works with. Corporates don't seem to like this too much - they often seem to want to budget, sign it off, run it and close it off. I'd always ensure that there is the offer of ongoing support/challenge/development in some shape of form. Not sure what Louis or any other training providers find...
Re: Franchise of a popular call center - If you have knowledge in running a call center and know how to manage it effectively then it sounds like it’s a good business for you. Workforce management relates to employee matters like payroll, HR, and employee training. Knowledge management relates to research, strategies, innovations and the effective use of technology. In both cases your prime clients are corporate sectors especially those who want to reduce their cost and increase performance at all levels.
Re: What financial education *do* kids receive in school? - [quote="BuzzAroundBooks":2m9qwpuh][quote="OmnivoreInk":2m9qwpuh]Most American families are two paychecks away from bankruptcy....[/quote:2m9qwpuh] I think it's because businesses are training people to live on credit, rather than with the cash they actually have. On all of those shows where they profile couples on debt, they always have one thing in common: multiple credit cards.[/quote:2m9qwpuh] Yep. And with the current mortgage crisis and so on... credit card companies are raising their interest rates... so anything you buy that is going to take you a long time to pay will cost you more than twice as much as the original cost...
Training Budgets - Louis, When I first started out there wasn't any money for training. Everything went into making the product and trying to close a sale. Now that I have staff I'm starting to look at professional development as an investment in them. It helps keep them motivated and hopefully they bring back some skills that can help my company. Do you have any suggestions on what a good target % would be to spend on training / professional development? Jennifer.


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