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Seward and Gers

In a twelve-year longitudinal study Seward and Gers raised learning trans-
fer to an average of better than 95 per cent and held it there, by:

n Relating training to a specific strategic or tactical goal.

n Ensuring management’s informed support by means of a concise,
but thorough introduction to what was to be taught and how it was
relevant to the attainment of important strategic and tactical
needs.

n Ensuring that delegates attended training where possible in self-
selected, mutually supportive pairs sharing tactical and strategic
goals.

n Integrating peer and supervisor coaching skills and expectations
into all programmes.

n Strictly applying behavioural objectives. (Objectives stressed what
the delegates “will do” NOT “will be able to do” on completion of
the training.)

n Requiring that responsibility for both learning and ensuring
application were firmly placed on the shoulders of the trainer, not
the learner.

n Warning learners that a short-term fall-off in performance is a
normal part of the learning process that is quickly overcome.

n Persuading learners to expect major productivity and quality gains
once the learning barrier had been overcome.

n Supplying post-learning information and tools to facilitate ongoing
peer coaching.

n Providing a decreasing time schedule during working hours to
enable peer and supervisor coaching based on celebrating
successful application rather than fault-finding.

n Introducing and supporting mutual contracting to implement and
share learning.

n Should we review our training to ensure that it meets the
requirements of effective peer and supervisor coaching to ensure
transfer of learning to the workplace?
– Can our internal or external professional trainers develop a
method that improves on Seward and Gers results at lower
cost?
– If they can do neither what are we paying them for?

Stop wasting the training budget! 201