Even during normal economic periods, HR practioners have often complained of how management usually cuts down training budgets, particularly when the need to reduce general spending occurs in the organisation. These HR practitioners are quick to cite insensitivity on the part of mangement when it comes to issues bordering on people development. While the marketing department makes a strong case for increased budget as a result of their 'cost centreness', the HR/training unit often finds it difficult to justify the need for an increased budget, primarily because they find it difficult establishing a clear link between their efforts and the bottomline.

As I write, I recall a conversation I had with a training consultant last week. I had demanded to know how the economic downturn affected his busines. His reply? "Most clients have cut down on their training budget and as a result, I am currently experiencing about 30 percent reduction on my usual fees." The training consultant's situation is better compared to other organisations, which have slashed training budgets by as much as 50 to 80 percent. But as an expert rightly puts it, organisations need to have the right people with the right attitudes and skills in the right place: "If money for training is the first thing to get sacrificed, then staff get resentful," she says. "In hard times, you need staff who can think on their feet and spot opportunities. Unless you have a well-trained workforce you will not be able to do that."

Don't stop training unless it is necessary

If truth must be told, a lot of organisations were not doing much training before the recession. Training budgets were haphazardly allocated based on the health of the organisation. If the company's revenue increased, training budget increased and if revenue decreased, it automatically registerd on the amount allocated for training. Rather than sack employees, management most consider the option of top skills training to sharpen the requirement necessary to see the organisation through the recession. In my humble opinion, sacking should be a last option. As I speak, some banks are setting unrealistic financial targets for their staff as a prerequisite for sack. knowing full well it will almost be impossible to meet 'overwhelming' targets particulatrly in a recession as this. Some organisation have been known to redeploy staff to branches and regions where they are almost too sure the redeployed staff would reject and subsequently resign. All these needn't happen if the organisation is keen on proper staff empowerment. Recession shouldnt mean an end to staffing or staff development, rather it should signal the beginning of true change.

Battle the downturn by training staff

According to a research, nearly nine out of ten HR professionals (88 percent) believe properly planned staff training can play a major role in addressing the challenges created by an economic slowdown. A report has it that when HR professionals were asked about the effect of the economic downturn on training budgets, an overwhelming 80 percent agree that cutting training budgets during a downturn causes more problems than it solves.

The same research shows that HR professionals place a high value on training staff whatever the economic situation, which is extremely encouraging.

Adapt Training To Key Organisational Requirements

When times are challenging, that is the right time to adapt training to key organisational requirement. For example, an organistaion may wish to strengthen its marketing department through selected trainings on creative selling. The research goes on further to say " Over four in five (87 percnt) respondents have the same opinion that it is vital for training to settle in fast and proficiently into organisations' shifting needs in times of economic downturn. HR departments should desire flexibility from their staff training. While they might in the past have had the comfort of using an assortment of training tools and techniques, reduced budgetary allocations indicate they have to create and adapt resources to suit a variation of situations. Ideas can be created swiftly and resourcefully and knowledge activities can be shared in a one platform that can be tailored to precise business processes.

Review Your List Of Training Consultants

When the economy was on an upward swing, it was not hard to find organisations that engaged the services of all manner of trainers. Proposals came from the chairman's brother, friend, sisters, uncles etc. and most of these proposals lacked depth or relevance. They were simply accepted because the consultants were 'connected' to the 'powers that be'. All this needs to be stopped, particularly in an economic downturn. It, therefore, means the key word for engaging outside trainers must be depth and as earlier mentioned relevance of such training to the organisation. This, translated, means affected organisation may have to shop for new consultants/trainers as it sheds its list of under performing trainers.

Engage The Services of In-house Trainers

One sometimes wonders why a lot of organisations do not source for trainers within their organisation. If the organisation is big enough, it may pay the company to search out high performers, who have the ability to communicate effectively, to train other staff. I have also noticed that many organisations are staffed with high flyers, who cannot or do not know how to communicate or train other employees. The economic downturn should naturally signal to the HR/Training manager that it is high time they introduced public speaking as a compulsory training course for these set of people. The research further shows that 78 percent of top HR mangers and consultants believe it is important to reduce costs such as those incurred on external training courses, while over half (57 percent) want to minimise the time staff spend out of the office on such courses. In addition, the research shows 78 percent of those surveyed believe it is important to execute a training programme that offers flexible training times for employees. I t is obvious this idea is best implemented using in-house trainers. This is ideally the period when every ambitious organisation requires well-trained and well-informed personnel to see them all the way through these rough times but as someone rightly puts it, it mustn't be at the expense of productivity. My advice is simple; "never cut training and development activity more than you absolutely have to". See you next time.