3 ‘sticky learning’ secrets to ensure cost-effective learning effectiveness

The corporate training market is worth $200 billion!… And yet academics* who research learning transfer effectiveness (learning stickiness) say that in ‘average’ training scenarios, only 10-30% of learning is retained. The good news is that over 100 factors have been identified that can improve this worryingly low statistic.

At People Untapped we have applied all the suggestions about training design and delivery, but in this blog, we want to give you some easy wins.

You’ll know that the learners who care the most, learn the most. We don’t expect you to applaud us for telling you that, but you may not know how to increase the motivation of your learners. Here are 3 ways to do just that… and as a result increase the stickiness (and therefore cost-effectiveness) of your learning programmes.

Answer the “What’s in it for me?” question. If you tell someone they’re going on a course they can feel punished. Instead, tell them that you care about their future and want to invest in them as a person. Then link the value of the course to one of their personal ambitions… If you don’t know any of their personal ambitions, it’s time to start asking.

Get the delegate’s manager to care. We’re all excellent at sensing hypocrisy, so if the company is sending someone on a course but the delegate’s line manager isn’t interested, or worse, says that the course is an inconvenience that takes the employee away from their important tasks, that’s a problem! It’s unlikely this will result in a motivated learner. Imagine the different outcome if the manager said “I’m excited about you going on this course. When you get back I want you to share the key learning with us at the next team meeting and tell us what changes we’re going to see from you going forward.” Positive accountability is an incredible motivator.

Sleep, food and hydration have a surprisingly high impact on learning stickiness. We can say that this is the responsibility of the delegate (and of course that’s true), but we can help. I’m sure you provide free drinks and don’t ask delegates to attend courses at 4 am so let’s talk about food. A delegate who missed breakfast won’t be very engaged at 11 am. I give the gold standard award to one of our clients in Switzerland. They offer restaurant-standard food at breakfast and lunch for all delegates. I know it made a difference because I always took advantage of their hospitality. My energy (and therefore delivery) was improved as a result.

And a bonus one: Choose your external learning partners wisely. A useful test is to ask them if they’re happy to deliver a 3hr course on a subject with no pre-contact or post-work… A good provider should push back and want to have a conversation about engagement and motivation, learning stickiness and how to embed new skills.

We’re always happy to talk about learning stickiness. Come and find us at the World of Learning Summit on 28 February, Olympia London.

*Dr Ina Weinbauer-Heidel: ‘What makes training really work’ 2018: An analysis of over 200 studies.

**Author**: Chris Billington, Client Director, People Untapped

Chris has 14 years of experience in learning and development. He’s passionate about enabling organisations to work more effectively through improved communication and understanding of human motivation.

People Untapped deliver behavioural learning that sticks. A global learning & development partner, truly committed to nurturing the growth of people and organisations of all sizes to reach their full potential. They design & deliver live, human facilitated learning to build behavioural capabilities, including -Team Development, Management & Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, Professional Skills Training, Graduate/Early Talent Development, Female Leadership.