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I remember giving my business card to someone who questioned my title. They knew I was in the training industry, but didn’t know the details of my job. I realized they weren’t questioning my abilities, as much as what the title meant. The title I’m referring to is, “Performance Consultant.”
What ensued was a quick, down-and-dirty, five-minute explanation of the performance consultant role, and how it’s both different and similar to a traditional training role. They both begin with a job performance need, usually in the form of a request for training. Something is wrong, and someone must fix it. Performance consultants use a systematic approach to evaluate employee job performance and then recommend the appropriate solution.
Since the title, Performance Consultant, isn’t familiar to everyone, I thought it might be fun to share my “take” on training versus performance consulting (PC), and why a PC approach can make you a valuable asset to your company.
Traditional Training Approach
A traditional training approach has a (mostly) reactive response to a performance issue, and almost always involves training as the answer. This approach is often viewed as a cost center because it focuses on delivering standardized training programs to address skill gaps.
Key Characteristics:
1. Standardization: Training programs are uniform, ensuring consistency across the organization. This can be beneficial for onboarding new employees or ensuring compliance with regulations.
2. Curriculum-Based: The content is pre-determined and follows a set curriculum designed to address common skill gaps. This makes it easier to roll out training across large groups.
3. Instructor-Led: Training is often facilitated by an instructor or trainer who guides participants through the material. This can include a traditional classroom setting, on-line synchronous training (virtual classroom), or e-learning modules.
4. Assessment: Participants are usually assessed through tests or practical exercises to measure their understanding and retention of the material.
Benefits:
- Consistency: Ensures all employees receive the same content.
- Efficiency: Can be delivered to large groups simultaneously, making it cost-effective.
- Foundation Building: Provides a solid foundation of knowledge and skills that can be built upon with further training.
Limitations:
- One-Size-Fits-All: May not address individual learning needs or specific job challenges.
- Short-Term Focus: Often emphasizes immediate skill acquisition rather than long-term performance improvement.
- Limited Flexibility: Less adaptable to changing business needs or emerging skill requirements.
Performance Consulting Approach
In contrast, the performance consulting approach has a proactive response to a performance discrepancy. It identifies undesired performance and its root cause and then partners with management to resolve the discrepancy in a manner that best supports the organization’s business objectives. By adopting this approach, you will become more of a strategic business partner as you’re now offering both training and non-training solutions.
Key Characteristics:
1. Needs Analysis: Begins with a thorough analysis of the organization’s performance gaps and the factors contributing to them. This involves data collection in the form of surveys, interviews, observation, records, and reports.
2. Customized Solutions: Interventions are tailored to address specific issues, which may include training, process improvements, or changes in organizational structure.
3. Collaboration: Involves collaborating with stakeholders to understand their needs and develop effective solutions. This ensures the solutions are aligned with business goals.
4. Continuous Improvement: Emphasizes ongoing evaluation and adjustment of interventions to ensure sustained performance improvement.
Benefits:
- Targeted Interventions: Solutions are specifically designed to address the unique challenges of the organization.
- Holistic Approach: Considers all factors affecting performance, including standards, conditions, capacity, measurement, feedback, and human behavior.
- Sustainable Results: Focuses on long-term performance improvement rather than short-term skill acquisition.
Limitations:
- Complexity: Requires a deep understanding of the organization and its challenges, which can be time-consuming.
- Resource Intensive: May require significant investment in terms of time, money, and effort.
- Change Management: Implementing performance consulting solutions often involves significant change, which can be difficult to manage.
If your only tool is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail! If performance consulting is something you’d like to investigate further, attend Langevin’s course, Consulting Skills for Trainers.
This article was first published July 20, 2015.