We fail as training professionals if our participants do not transfer what they have learned in our programs back to their jobs. Too often we focus too much of our time, talent, and treasure to creating the best learning events – and usually we succeed.  But we lose of what is really important is that our participants increase their job performance from we have taught them.

I always encourages organizations to think beyond training sessions to ensure the information “sticks” and will be used effectively in the workplace. We must offer total immersion learning experiences that emphasizes training transfer, which drives adoption, which drives impact (company value).

Here are a few hints to drive Training Transfer:

1. Map design to Adoption: When designing training look beyond the session and ask yourself: “What do we expect participants to do on-the-job based upon the course design?”  I call these the Adoptive Behaviors. Make sure your course objectives and content are supportive of the behavior. You will be surprised how often we teach content that will never be used because the participant has no need or opportunity for that content. Highly transferable training has tightly aligned content to adoptive behavior. In the same light, the activities and techniques you employ to practice new skills needs also to align to adoptive behaviors.
2. Practice, Practice, Practice: For every 1-minute of content delivered, design in 3 minutes of practice. Highly transferable training gives participants large amounts of time to practice what we want them to do on-the-job. New skills that are not adequately practice have lesser chances of being transferred. I suggest that you set a minimum of 3 to 1.  For every 1 minute of content, at least 3 minutes of practice. I like more than 3 to 1, but consider setting this as the minimum design ratio.
3. Use the buddy system: learn really well when working with other participants – each gains in the exchange. Trying out new things and getting immediate feedback are excellent transfer enablers Note: there is a risk here that needs to managed – that being that some participants will coach/support incorrect behaviors.  Not intentionally, but it does happen. These pairs may also become learning partners post training to support and coach each other – another good tip for increasing transfer.
4. Use table coaches : Design training where very little (less than 5-10%) is lecture in the front of the room. Place participants into small groups with a table coach (facilitator) where new content is introduced and practiced.  Keep the table coach and their participants together for the entire session.
5. Reality rules: Design experiences/exercises that mirror real world work environment. Ensure debrief sessions clearly tie by to the workplace and how the skills can be used. Whenever possible, design activities that map to real world scenarios. For example, in sales training, have real customers in the session or via teleconference for participants to practice with. At times, we have “experiential activities” that teach a concept we want participants to employ, such as a ropes course, simulation, etc. These are fine as long as the debrief takes it from the abstract and ties how to use what was learned back to the workplace.
6. Hold pre-course conversations: During training, many participants feel overwhelmed by the quantity of information presented to them.  A pre-course conversation between the participants and their supervisors helps them focus on the content that is relevant to them, their team, and/or the company. Training departments are often reluctant to ask supervisors to do “one more thing.” Providing a pre-course conversation job aid for supervisors makes this approach as easy and as focused as possible. My experience has shown that spending just a few minutes with participants before training makes a significant difference in what the participants focus on and therefore what gets adopted.  The conversation is usually short 10-15 minutes and can be done in person or via phone.
7. Hold teleconference/webcasts with managers to inform them of the course: Providing managers with a thorough understanding of the course allows them to send the right employees at the right time. It also aids them in conducting the pre-course conversation and begins their involvement of what they can do to support their employees post-training.
8. Let them know what you expect: Show expected Adoptive Behavior before, during, and after content & practice.  Left to their own devices, participants will form judgments on how to implement learned skills, which may be different than what we are hoping for. Simply tell them what the adoptive behaviors the company wants are – do this early and often. Not just what they will learn, but what they can do with it.
9. Have supervisors and employees attend the class together: Learning the same thing together at the same time has the potential to form a training transfer bond that is hard to break. Both parties can shape how newly learned skills will aid their department/team and the individual – greatly enhancing transfer.
10. Journal: At conclusion of course modules, participants document what they learned and what they possibly could do with it back on-the-job.  Participants forget what was learned on Monday morning – journaling often and at the conclusion of course modules provides a basis for putting plans in place of what to do back in the workplace. Try to spend no more than 5-10 minutes per journaling effort. Note: Journaling is usually private and not shared with anyone.  Journaling is not only for classroom courses.  For e-learning programs, the journal can be built into the code for the participant to access, enter their thoughts, modify entries as they progress through the course. Consider having a print feature built into the course so that they have a hard copy if they wish.
11. Incorporate Reflective Practice: Reflective Practice is a means of enabling participants to learn from their experience. This is used when participants have completed some activity such as simulations or practice sessions. I use this model is to the right.  Reflection is a way of helping participants better understand what they know and do as they develop their knowledge and skill through reconsidering what they learned. Reflection, then, places an emphasis on learning through questioning and investigation to lead to a development of understanding that will add in increasing transfer to the job.
12. Do Action Planning: Have participant author their own personal transfer plan of how they will apply what they have learned back on the job.
13. Do Action Mapping: Action Mapping takes action planning further – it is modeled upon the principles of force field analysis. The participant authors their goal (plan of action back on the job). They then identify the barriers and enablers to goal accomplishment. Finally they create actions to deal with the barriers and just as important use enablers for goal accomplishment.

For more imformation my approach to a complete training system, go to