Management entails much more than just ensuring everyone on your team does what they need to on time, to a high standard, and within budget. Failure to invest time in your own professional development can result in damage to your team’s morale as you fail in your duties, which in turn harms the wider company or organisation.
The problem is, training also requires financial investment, and decision-makers will want to be sure they’re not throwing away money. Are you about to approach the C-suite and ask to go on a training course? Here are five practical steps to persuade them to invest in a good management training course for you.
Managers coordinate the teams on the ground, which is why training them adequately is so important. When putting together your case for training, there are five important things you must do.
Highlight the benefits of management training
Unfortunately, the decision-makers aren’t just going to okay your training without a moment’s thought. They’ll be asking themselves what they get out of it. They also have to justify any spending, so they need to see how it will benefit the company.
Spell out what you’re going to learn and why this will be beneficial for you, your team, and anyone else the training will affect. Show how taking the course will help you to perform better, solve problems, or deliver results. You’re more likely to persuade them.
Outline the problems and opportunities
Anything that could save money, increase profits or productivity, or add value is going to make the C-suite sit up and take notice. If the business is going through any period of change or is implementing a new strategy, the directors will appreciate new skills that will contribute to the success of the project, so this is also an opportune moment to make your case.
Focus on the problems the training will help you resolve and any opportunities it could create. Illustrate how your freshly acquired skills will improve the way you work and help you to deliver on the most important parts of your role.
Concentrate on the outcomes and results
Conventionally, we look at training as a way to work on our weaknesses and turn them into strengths, but these don’t have to be the object of our intentions. Why not turn your strengths into superpowers?
You can capitalise on training opportunities to reinforce your strengths and deliver even better results or contribute in new ways to the company or organisation.
Imagine you had razor-sharp sales skills. To generate even more business, you could work further on closing sales or negotiating. In a management role, you could improve your coaching skills to develop others on your team or even elsewhere in the company.
Quantify the benefits and compare them with your training costs
Presenting a detailed plan that quantifies the benefits of the training programme will go a long way to soothing any fears that money is being wasted. Think about your role and the skills you need to execute tasks successfully. Now think about how acquiring new skills could:
- generates revenue;
- boost productivity;
- improve quality or performance;
- save time or money, or better still, both;
- or drive the company or organisation closer towards attaining its objectives.
If your course will allow you to improve productivity by saving each team member an hour a day of admin, they’ll be able to make six more sales calls per day on behalf of the company, for instance. Specifics sell. That includes numbers.
Anticipate difficult questions and find ‘yes’ answers for them
You’ll encounter objections when you request your training. These will come in the form of phrases such as ‘You haven’t thought about…’, ‘This sounds too good to be true’ or ‘This isn’t possible,’ or similar.
To make your case effective, play devil’s advocate when putting it together, which will allow you to think of potential objections to investing in the training and counter them. You’ve got to demonstrate what you’re saying is possible.
Remember that they’ll be considering the strategic objectives of the business, so tie the benefits of your training in with these, if possible. As we’ve already discussed, the decision-makers will be interested in anything that generates more revenue, cuts costs, saves time, increases productivity, or improves quality. Keep these in mind and illustrate how the training course will enable you to make it happen.
Book your training with us
Book an online management training course with us. We offer a variety of courses, such as our CMI Level 5 Leadership and Management Programme and our CIM Level 5 Coaching and Mentoring Programme for you to get the best out of yourself and others for your company or organisation. You’ll learn in one of our supportive virtual classrooms, with a highly experienced facilitator leading you through the course.
Find out more about our courses on our Courses Page, send us an email at enquiries@inpd.co.uk or a message by using the form on our Contact Page. You’re also welcome to speak to us directly on 0161 826 3139. We’ll be happy to help you take that next step in your professional development journey.
