A ‘Training Culture’ Critical to Ongoing Corporate Success, Elite Trainer Advises Banking, C.U. Executives
Dick Kendall, a leading trainer at financial institutions, provides an incisive look at the critical elements of establishing a "training culture" at a corporation or organization. Speaking at the Floyd Forum & Leadership Conference in Austin, TX, in May, he touches on management commitment, curriculum, "training the trainer," internal vs. external trainers, facilities, organizing/tracking/competence and the importance of incentives for trainees.
Austin, Texas (PRWEB) June 3, 2005 -– No matter how good the trainer, the
curriculum, the facilities and the incentives, without a “management commitment
to a well-organized training culture,” an organization can expect only
negligible benefits, says a leading trainer for financial institutions
(FIs).
Dick Kendall of Houston spoke to separate sessions of banking and
credit union executives during the 2005 Floyd Forum Leadership Conference in
Austin, Texas, in May. He said:
“Management commitment is more than a
passing nod to the need for training. It is its dedication and assurance that
money and resources, qualified trainers and satisfactory settings, as well as
adequate time for training, are integral elements of a first class training
program. Thriving, progressive organizations of every size generally make
training an endemic feature of their strategic growth plans.”
Kendall,
who joined John M. Floyd & Associates of Baytown, Texas, in 1994, is a
regularly featured speaker at state and national conventions. He has published
numerous articles and a book – “Nobody Told Me I’d Have to Sell” – on the
subject of marketing and sales training. KENDALL PHOTO URL: http://www.jmfa.com/DickKendall.asp
Previously, he was
a founding officer and director of marketing for Allied Bancshares, Inc. He
formed Kendall Marketing in 1976, subsequently working with more than 400 firms
to help them increase their sales and profits.
The best trainers at FIs
typically have years of in-depth financial services experience, Kendall said.
Teaching experience is a plus, but it is generally trumped by “the love of
training; being in front of a group.” Hiring trainers from within may accelerate
the “message buy-in” of those being trained, but hiring trainers from outside
can also bring “innovative, challenging perspectives.
“The best trainers
are themselves well trained,” he contends. “By that, I mean they clearly
understand the training objectives and know the audience. Their content is
organized, timed and has powerful openings and closings. They include trainee
participation, a lively use of props and a careful preparation of the physical
environment.
“Everything from flexible lighting, sound system and
acoustics, and current audio/visual equipment to comfortable seating, HVAC,
breaks, bathrooms and refreshments must be scrutinized to engender the best
learning environment,” he emphasized. “And the confident trainer always invites
a written evaluation to improve every succeeding session.”
Ideally, a top
quality trainer also is a superb organizer, “but it takes different skills,” he
noted. “The organizer must coordinate training; help develop and follow the
training plan; organize training to fit within work schedules, and maintain
records of training by individual, department, etc. That critical continuity is
practically impossible for the external trainer. A dedicated staff member or
Human Resources employee of the bank or C.U. often assumes that
responsibility.”
Kendall called curriculum the “heart of training. To be
both effective and efficient, you must decide what you want people to know – by
department, by job and by experience level.” He believes the touchstones of a
valid training curriculum should include:
? Orientation, to quickly
introduce new hires into the corporate culture;
? Job skills, the basics of
how to do their job;
? Regulations; continuous training in the ever-changing
regulatory environment;
? People skills (customer service, management);
communication skills with customers and fellow employees; and
? Sales and
product knowledge; listening for sales opportunities, knowledge of the FIs’
available products.
Curriculum can be developed in house or from vendors,
the speaker suggested, but every bank or credit union should put into place a
system of testing for content competence. FIs should track the training received
and the competence levels achieved by each participant to measure progress.
“Organizations typically find they get higher involvement and better
results when they provide rewards and recognition for individuals completing and
successfully applying what they’ve learned,” Kendall said. “Knowledge is power,
and incentive programs are like booster fuel when it comes to fully engaging
participants in the training process.”
John M. Floyd & Associates (www.JMFA.com) sponsored the
week-long Floyd Forum, held at the Barton Creek Resort & Spa. The
performance improvement firm, founded in 1972, is nationally known for its
creation of the automated overdraft privilege program. It has implemented nearly
1,000 variations of its JMFA OVERDRAFT PRIVILEGESM program. JMFA has served more
than 2,000 financial institutions in 49 states and Central America, adding
billions in increased pre-tax earnings for its clients.
Contact:
Steve
Swanston, EVP-Sales
John M. Floyd & Associates
Baytown, TX
800-809-2307
e-mail protected from spam bots
www.JMFA.com
Preston F.
Kirk, APR
Kirk Public Relations
Austin, TX
830-693-4447
e-mail
protected from spam bots
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/6/prweb247363.htm