Focus Magazine - Summer 2017 - 32

FEATURESTORY

presenting the material to a group of
peers. With activity-based learning
assignments, innovative LDPs strive to
increase impact by providing clear
direction and holding the individual
accountable for delivering results or
meeting expectations. Additionally,
participants are provided detailed
feedback and required to report on
their experience.
Dual participation and thorough
feedback are critical to the success of
learning from others activities. In this
case, most of the responsibility falls on
the person leading the training, not
the candidate. In traditional LDPs,
where participation and feedback are
not necessarily mandated, learning
from others activities oen fail when
the facilitator decides not to take the
assignment seriously or provide
meaningful feedback from the
experience. With innovative LDPs, it
is mandated that the person leading
the training provide feedback, in the
form of a written evaluation and live
discussion, to the candidate and
members of management. is
approach ensures the person leading
the training will deliver on
expectations, which increases the
overall value of the training activity.
Other diﬀerences between the
traditional and innovative LDP
curriculum are that innovative LDPs
have no timeline, progress is not
monitored, participation is not

prompted, and tasks must be
completed in stepwise manner. Unlike
traditional LDPs, innovative LDPs do
not have a member of the training
department monitoring a candidate's
progress or prompting them to
complete tasks based on a set
schedule.
On the contrary, they put the onus
on the candidate to complete program
requirements. Along those same lines,
Innovative LDPs do not let the
candidates choose which tasks they
complete and when. Instead, the
curriculum utilizes a stepwise
approach, where one assignment has
to be completed before the next
assignment can begin. is approach,
coupled with the fact that
participation is not prompted, helps to
separate out those committed to the
program from "would-be leaders" that
do not have the drive or skills to selfnavigate through an LDP.

Incorporating Innovative
Methods to Traditional
Programs
Any established LDP can, and
should, incorporate innovative
methods to make it more eﬀective. In
most cases, modifications can be
made without significant cost or
disruption. Even if there were costs or
disruption, it is a worthwhile exercise.
Nothing could be costlier to an
organization than continuing to use

an ineﬀective program to develop its
future leaders. Below are several
suggestions on how to improve an
existing traditional LDP by
implementing the innovative
approaches discussed in this article.

Eligibility:
* Lower sales rank requirements to
increase candidate pool.
* Consider initiative and eﬀort when
evaluating candidates.
Competency Assessment:
* Only include competencies that
can be measured objectively.
* Use a 3rd party when possible.
Curriculum:
* Self-Paced Activities - Incorporate
participatory teaching methods
such as "Teaching Others."
* Activity-Based Learning - Provide
clear direction, solid feedback, and
hold the candidate accountable for
results.
* Learning from Others - Mandate
full participation of the trainer and
collect thorough feedback.
* Implement a stepwise approach to
completing requirements and do
not prompt participation.
* Add a 360° feedback exercise and
teamwork component. ■

Brad Hummel is an oncology sales training & development consultant at Performance Development Group. Email Brad at
bradhummel@hotmail.com.

FOCUS | Summer 2017 | www.L-TEN.org

http://www.L-TEN.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Focus Magazine - Summer 2017