Posted: Mon 16 Feb 2009
In challenging times consultants need new and very different tools to deal with new market conditions - conditions that many will never have experienced before. At the same time, training budgets tend to be under every Managing Director’s microscope. We all know the economic arguments and can empathise with businesses who may feel that training is not critical to bottom line profit. But cutting out training and development programmes altogether can not only have a devastating effect on morale, but also on your results.
Ultimately developing your talent is a long term commitment - a strategic investment in your organisation’s future and a key element in creating competitive advantage. Obviously you need everybody to be firing on all cylinders but to achieve that, consultants need to be given the tools they need to survive and succeed.
This is a time where consultancies want to keep their teams strong and so training has to reach everyone. Consequently, it’s vital to remember that not everyone learns in the same way. Use this market as a time to be creative by utilising a blended approach and include a mix of online training, internal and external courses, DVDs, coaching, seminars and webinars. Those organisations who continue to develop their consultants and managers - and train them on how to deal with different markets - will have a real competitive edge over those that only know how to recruit in the easier times.
Fiona Lander, Managing Director of Lander Associates, training and performance experts to the international specialist recruitment sector.