A large number of UK businesses and organisations send delegates on behaviour management training programmes every year. While some do this simply as a box ticking exercise, most invest in behaviour management training hoping it will benefit their team members and their operations. Unfortunately, a lot of the time, even carefully planned behaviour management training simply doesn’t work. We’re going to look at why.
Going Through The Motions
All too often, businesses send delegates on behaviour management training courses simply because they’re going through the motions. Managers, L&D departments and HR know that behaviour management training and development is important—however, they’re often not exactly sure what they want to achieve from these efforts.
In many cases, organisations spend their money on behaviour management training even when they have little idea about what the real issue is. Without fully understanding where improvements need to be made, it’s almost impossible to select the right course and get the best possible outcomes for behaviour change and better management.
Training becomes a routine process, a matter of “because we have to,” rather than a thoughtful intervention designed to change behaviours and attitudes. This means delegates may attend a behaviour management training session without a clear purpose, failing to connect new skills to improved performance. When desired behavioural improvements aren’t identified in advance, results are hard to measure and, ultimately, organisations struggle to transform management practice in any meaningful way.
Engagement
If you’ve ever been on a behaviour management training or development course, you’ll know that engagement can be a real issue. Delegates often feel that behaviour management training isn’t designed for them and so arrive with the expectation that they won’t get anything useful or meaningful from the day. With much of the behaviour management training delivered in the UK done to a fairly mediocre standard, it’s hard to blame them.
Often, training is communicated as something that is happening “to” delegates, rather than “for” them. This lack of personal connection is a major obstacle to engagement and learning—especially if behaviour management training is viewed as a tick-box exercise. When L&D professionals fail to generate genuine buy-in, delegates simply do not engage, and any commitment to behavioural change is lost before it has begun.
Practice
Most behaviour management training days involve a variety of presentations, slides and discussions. What they generally don’t include is the opportunity to practise what’s being taught. Practice is an essential part of development as it gives delegates the space to put their learning into action, gain immediate feedback from real-life situations, and understand how their habits and behaviours impact those around them.
When practice is included during a behaviour management training session, especially using actor simulations or feedback-based environments, delegates receive valuable insights. Experiencing management scenarios, reflecting on their performance, and seeing themselves in action allows managers to change their habitual behaviours more effectively. This practical approach is critical because behaviour management is all about what managers do, not just what they know.
Yet, in the absence of meaningful practice, most delegates will revert to their old patterns once the training day ends. Presentations and lectures alone are not enough to create sustained behaviour change. The more opportunities delegates have to practise and receive constructive feedback, the more likely they are to implement new management behaviours in their workplace.
Implementation And Measuring Outcomes
As well as a lack of focus in the lead-up to a behaviour management training event, and often low engagement at the event itself, a lot of programmes fail to encourage any real implementation of learnings back in the workplace. Furthermore, because it is rare to see any real measurement or success criteria set, the lack of implementation is rarely picked up and rectified.
It is not unusual for behaviour management training to end with little accountability or follow-up. If delegates return to their jobs with no plan to put their skills into practice, and no measures for tracking progress, behavioural improvements will be inconsistent and short-lived. Although qualifying and measuring behavioural change isn’t always easy, it is essential if behaviour management training is going to make a real difference.
Organisations must define desired outcomes before training takes place, and monitor change after the event. This includes setting clear goals for new management behaviours, collecting feedback from team members and managers, and measuring the impact on team engagement, productivity, and organisational performance. Without continuous monitoring, businesses miss the opportunity to understand which elements of their behaviour management training are effective and where further development is needed.
The Truth About Behaviour Management Training
The reality is, UK businesses, their internal L&D departments, and the external training providers they work with could do so much more to build commitment, provide inspiring development experiences and ensure far greater application of behaviour management principles. By making crucial changes to behaviour management training before, during and after delivery, outcomes can be transformed and training could become less of a reluctant cost and much more of a positive, worthwhile investment.
This means taking the time before training to identify what success looks like in terms of behaviour and management style; hosting engaging, practice-focused sessions that put theory into action; and tracking results after training through specific, measurable benchmarks. The combination of clear intent, practical experience, and meaningful measurement is what drives lasting change in management behaviour.
Ready to Begin?
If you would like to learn more, check out our newest guide on why most behaviour management training doesn’t work and what can be done to improve the opportunities for everyone involved. If you want expert advice tailored to your needs or are ready to discuss your organisation’s behaviour management development, click here to contact our team today.
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