The link between employee engagement and development opportunities is undeniable.
Recent research released as part of the LinkedIn Workplace Learning Report highlights that seven in 10 people say learning improved their sense of connection to an organisation. Meanwhile, eight in 10 say that learning adds purpose to their work.
TSW’s Train the Trainer online course is designed to develop your management team so that they can pass on knowledge and experience to other employees.
This commitment to development could be the key to igniting your team’s productivity. But what is Train the Trainer?
What is Train the Trainer?
Train the Trainer certification gives people the skills they need to deliver effective coaching for adults.
Through a uniquely dynamic and flexible approach, the course provides basic training techniques to professionals.
The course is perfect for those who need to inspire and educate fellow professionals either on a full-time basis or as part of their job role.
One of the benefits of Train the Trainer is that, although it usually takes two days to complete, longer and shorter versions are available to suit your team’s needs.
When you consider that 70% of employees said self-paced courses are their preferred learning method, the course’s flexibility becomes a great asset.
Who Should Take Train the Trainer Courses?
Train the Trainer courses are very effective at enhancing staff development, and such opportunities are imperative to cultivating a strong workplace culture.
While development options are important for staff at all levels, a core selection of team members could benefit specifically from Train the Trainer coaching.
These individuals include:
- Professional coaches and trainers
- HR team members
- Directors or business owners
- Management
Train the Trainer Qualifications
As we just mentioned, certain individuals or groups in your organisation could stand to sharpen their skills significantly through Train the Trainer training.
Let’s expand on those people in more detail.
Professional Trainers – Existing and New
Staying up to date with your training is vital in all roles. Whether you’re an experienced trainer or simply trying to ensure your staff are aware of fire safety processes – it all requires regular coaching.
Train the Trainer accreditation is ideal for those in a coaching or mentoring role.
HR Personnel
It’s incredibly important for Human Resources personnel to be able to spot training opportunities for their colleagues.
Additionally, as well as noticing those chances for improvement, HR staff should be able to define what type of developmental chances would get the best results.
Alongside this talent to perceive development channels, it’s reasonable to expect your HR team to deliver training, too. This coaching could cover topics such as tips on giving constructive feedback or how body language can affect performance.
Company Directors, Managers, and Team Leaders
Business owners have a duty to provide regular training to their employees – especially when it comes to health and safety courses.
However, they are also in charge of ensuring that their management team has ready access to leadership training.
Recent studies showed that 69% of Millennials are concerned that their workplace does not develop their leadership skills.
In addition, an analysis published by the Journal of Applied Psychology highlights that businesses that invest in leadership training saw a 25% uplift in organisational-level improvements, including boosts to profits, turnover and staff absenteeism.
Line Managers and Team Leaders are responsible for delivering results in their respective sectors. However, ensuring they have all the coaching available to make sensible decisions and understand how to motivate different personalities is key to unlocking potential.
Types of Train the Trainer Courses
There’s no doubt that these courses can be a boon for your business. The TSW Train the Trainer certificate covers all areas of the qualification.
More specifically, full-time or part-time trainers, subject matter experts, supervisors, managers, and anyone required to provide professional training can benefit from our two-day course.
But what other types of Train the Trainer courses are there?
Training Delivery & Evaluation Course
Perfect as an introduction to professional training delivery. The Training Delivery & Evaluation course is made up of four core modules:
- Concepts and theories: Learn more about the different styles of learning in adults. This module will also help define the importance of motivation in training while highlighting effective evaluation models.
- Planning to succeed: Split over two areas, this module aims to outline the factors and legislation that affect training – including trainer styles, learning methods, and training environments.
- Delivering engaging training: The biggest of the four modules. This area focuses on how to deliver sessions as effectively as possible. From polishing presenting skills and handling nerves to crafting body language and showcasing how to explain theory effectively.
- Evaluation of training: Highlighting the importance of evaluation in training processes. This module encourages trainees to self-evaluate their performance, as well as offering insights and techniques on how to complete constructive self-evaluation. Everyone learns in different ways. This module is dedicated to ensuring you know how to engage all manner of students.
Training Needs Identification & Design Course
Split up over five modules, the Training Needs Identification & Design course is perfect for HR teams. The course is aimed at sharpening those training opportunity perception skills. The five modules are:
- Concepts of training: Outlines the purpose of adult learning, as well as covering the principles of positive training in the workplace.
- Instructional System Design Models (ISD): An overview of celebrated ISD Models like the Honey & Mumford Adult Learning Styles or Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle. Each model focuses on a different approach to resonating with mentees.
- Factors affecting training: Identification of barriers to training and the impact of business strategy on development. Barriers to training can take many guises, from staff confidence to physical or learning disabilities. This section helps recognise and break down those barriers.
- Training needs analysis (TNA): A module dedicated to the importance of effective training analysis. It also includes a range of techniques for completing effective TNA.
- Design training programmes: The final module aims to bring all previous elements together. It helps define clear training objectives, create sample sessions, devise suitable exercises and provide a cost-benefit analysis of training investment.
QQI Special Purpose Award In Training and Development Course
This is the highest level qualification in the collection. A QQI Special Purpose Award in Training & Development is for anyone wanting to train professionally or people who regularly offer coaching to employees.
The QQI Special Purpose Award brings together the learnings from previous sections.
However, you must have completed the two courses mentioned above before being able to sit this course.
Importance of Train the Trainer Model
So, why is Train the Trainer important?
The core functionality of the model is enhancing the level of knowledge in your business and leveraging in-house expertise to manage that knowledge.
However, there are additional useful fragments of this coaching model to highlight.
Tailored Learning Experience for Trainers and Trainees
In-house trainers have the luxury of knowing about every element of the company in which they deliver learning.
From knowledge of company products to culture, consumers, brand tone and specific sectoral challenges. They understand where enhancements in information are needed. This allows them to tailor the learnings to business needs.
Cost-Effective Practice for Organizations
Having one expert deliver specialist sessions to subject matter experts is more cost-effective than the overheads attached to regular external training sessions.
Fast and Easy Dissemination of Information
Once a team member has completed Train the Trainer qualifications, they can have the ability to deliver courses to the wider business.
Having such high-performing individuals in your company is perfect when high-level developments are happening, such as cross-functional change initiatives being rolled out.
Superior Training Follow-Ups for Continuous Improvement
Having a qualified trainer on-site means they are on hand to offer staff any top-up information or reminders.
Additionally, this can mean keeping workers up to date on any training updates and the latest guidance.
Curriculum Consistency Across Trainers
When one of your team completes the coaching, they can disseminate course literature or knowledge documents throughout your team.
Perfect for large organisations seeking assurance over the quality of training throughout the business.
Increased Internal Trainer Acceptance
Team members are more likely to be candid about holes in their knowledge when learning from peers as opposed to external coaches.
Additionally, peer-to-peer coaching can help trainers and trainees develop their leadership skills and soft skills like communication, empathy, problem-solving and emotional intelligence.
Tips for Building A Top-Quality ‘Train the Trainer’ Training
When it comes to understanding how to curate an effective Train the Trainer model, it helps to focus on core areas of development.
Define the Program’s Purpose
Firstly, it’s essential to outline what goals you are hoping to achieve from the training. What do you want your employees to achieve?
To complete this, it could help to use the GROW Model. GROW stands for goal, reality, options (or obstacles) and will (or way forward).
Additionally, think about running workforce surveys to define where development opportunities exist.
Establish Assessments and Measurements
When you have outlined what goals you want to achieve, the next step is to highlight how you will get there.
Having pre-defined assessments and measures in place throughout the training will help keep your coaching on track.
As we mentioned earlier, evaluating your training is a crucial element in measuring the effectiveness of your approach.
Design the Training Curriculum
The Train the Trainer curriculum is centred around both teaching subject matter knowledge and enhancing training delivery skills. With that in mind, it helps to curate a curriculum that leverages both.
A robust curriculum will also incorporate training delivery skills and develop group facilitation.
Create Effective Training Materials
In the wake of COVID-19, the global workplace has seen more of a shift towards hybrid working. According to Forbes, in 2022, a quarter of UK employees worked from home at least some of the time – as opposed to just 4.7% in 2019.
With that in mind, it helps to know how to deliver an effective virtual training experience.
How To Become A Certified Trainer
Of course, passing the Train the Trainer course is the best way to become an accredited trainer.
But there are more elements to the process than that. Plus, some of these areas could help prepare you for the training.
Acquire Knowledge and Skills As A Trainer
As we mentioned earlier, developing your soft skills as a trainer is crucial. A good place to start improving your skills is to gather feedback from your colleagues to see where you can improve.
However, polishing your soft skills is as much about self-evaluation as gathering external feedback.
Identify your own strengths and areas for improvement, then put the time into developing in those areas.
Assist and Observe Experienced Trainers
Find mentors or role models you admire. It could be the person who inspired your move into training as someone who has an engaging way of relaying information.
Go on training courses and learn from trainers who are already excelling in the position.
However, go into this stage with your eyes open and don’t just look at where the trainer is strong. You should also analyse weaknesses in their delivery and use them to enhance your skills.
Assume the Lead Trainer Role With Guidance
Once you have learned from those key people, it’s time to put what you know into practice. A good way to do this with your training wheels still on is by assuming the lead trainer role with a mentor in attendance for guidance.
Gather feedback from the mentor and audience on these sessions, then use that knowledge to enhance your delivery.
Again, it comes down to evaluating your training efficacy.
Independently Deliver Training Sessions
Now that you have observed, been observed and taken the feedback on board, it’s time to start practising your craft in earnest.
As Malcolm Gladwell said in his 2008 book ‘Outliers: The Story of Success:
“Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good.”
Get regular training sessions booked with the teams in your industry and work on your delivery.
Practice is vital at the start of any development journey. However, your coaching also needs to stay up to date with new thoughts and industry trends.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions about what is Train the Trainer.
What Makes A Good Trainer?
To be a good trainer, you should have a decent command of your hard and soft skills. This will give you a clear understanding of how to engage with your trainees through subject knowledge and training techniques.
What Are Accredited Train the Trainer Courses?
Train the Trainer courses are a range of accreditations which teach participants how to deliver practical training experiences.
The courses cover everything from refining delivery skills to prioritising self-evaluation.
Conclusion
Train the Trainer qualifications are perfect for developing the professionals in your business.
As we’ve highlighted, employers who prioritise employee training see strong improvements in colleague engagement and productivity.
Not to mention the positive knock-on effects this training has on minimising your business’s ongoing training costs.
Take advantage of TSW’s excellent assistance programme and +99% pass rate by enrolling your team on our two-day Train the Trainer course now.
