BUYERS BEWARE BY JOE MELTON DIRECTOR OF SAFETY SERVICES
“You get what you pay for” is not a new concept. We have heard this phrase since we were children bouncing on our grandpa’s knee as he was telling our parents to be fiscally responsible, save up their money, and do it right the first time. No matter what we are doing, there are always varying degrees of quality in anything we acquire, manufacture or build. In anything, there is a point of diminishing return. Training and education of our employees are not exempt from these rules. The conversation of quality, effective, and efficient training/education is one with many layers. Let’s dive into it. First, we establish why we train and educate our employees. It is simple to increase the overall effectiveness of their regular job tasks. Our motivation for training can come from regulatory requirements, industry trends, insurance provider guidance, organizational reliability, or signatory contractual requirements. When establishing training, it is most effective to establish the purpose and desired best-case scenario outcome and work backwards to accomplish this goal. An example of this all parents can relate to is teaching your children to read. You wouldn’t start them out by handing them the Wall Street Journal and saying, "Read this to me." You would take small steps. First, you would read to them before bed showing them how to properly accomplish the task. Then you start with the letters of the alphabet and then we start breaking down words. From here, we make natural progressions toward reading. 32
Once an organization has established the need for training, it is time to select the trainer. Some organizations have more internal resources and can perform training in-house, while others may have little to no internal resources and thus fully rely on external trainers. Though we can perform a course in-house, there are times when it would be more beneficial to source outside the organization. I think back to when I started my own career as a safety consultant at the ripe age of 23 performing Counter-Balance Forklift operator classes for my clients at the time. I was provided the trusty video cassette tape, the driving evaluation checklist, and a computer. I trained over 100 different employees at multiple locations and on a variety of forklifts, all of which I had not personally operated. The true experts of these pieces of equipment were the ones receiving the training, not the 23-year-old going through the motions. Just because we’re compliant does not mean we provide high-quality and effective training. What we find is numerous organizations seek out the cheapest or free option through a variety of avenues, either through regulatory agency’s consultation programs, insurance provider’s internal resources, local community colleges, or other free resources. All these resources have passionate people, provide quality services, and can be a viable solution. Where we find the gap is when a safety generalist is asked to provide specific or technical training in an area that is not their core discipline or expertise.
