This article is copyright Robert Bacal 1998. Our policies regarding reprints and use of this material have changed. Training and development activities can increase the capabilities and abilities of most organizations. That said, training as a whole, is not consistently valued by managers or staff. Even when managers support training through what they say, when the time comes to allocate resources for training, it is often the new photocopier that wins out.
Staff can also be ambivalent.
We've noticed a shift in the perceptions of employees regarding training. Ten years ago, training was often regarded as a pleasant break from work, a chance to learn a few things and meet others. Now overworked staff are more hesitant to even attend. Being away from the workplace for a day means that somehow a day's work must be made up. Since we work in the training delivery sector, you might expect us to attribute the undervaluing of training to neanderthal managers, prehistoric like organizations, or burned out employees.