To Train Or Not to Train in Tough Economic Times

We all know that times are tough. Bad economic news bombards us 24/7.

I graduated college in 1979 with a business degree. I was an enthusiastic, though still wet-behind-the-ears, future manager. I pranced out of the hallowed halls of academia and plunged chest deep into the murky waters of recession: circa 1980. Not since the early 1930s had America experienced such economic woe, evidenced by lost homes and businesses, plant closings, layoffs, high unemployment and double digit interest rates.

Fast forward to the 21st Century. As Yogi Berra so famously said, "It's deja vu all over again," with the exception of the high interest rates, anyway.

So what strategic counter measures did I (and those of my generation) learn from our bosses of decades and recessions past? What tricks of the trade did our managers teach us?

Unfortunately, they must have taught us the bad tricks of balancing a budget. I'm sorry to say, they were too busy foolishly doing what too many of their modern day contemporaries are tempted to do today. They focused on indiscriminately slashing all "unnecessary" costs, including leadership training programs, in an effort to "right the ship." In budget meetings they screamed, "Look at what those training programs are costing us!" in an attempt to justify their shortsighted views. Few stopped to consider or calculate the future peril-and heavy cost-that a lack of trained leaders might ultimately yield. Now, back to the future. We find ourselves at that critical juncture again.

In a recent Wall Street Journal article by Dana Mattioli we're told: ...a December (2008) survey of 117 large U.S. companies by Watson Wyatt Worldwide Inc. found 23% of respondents had recently cut training programs, and another 18% planned to do so this year. Almost 40% have made, or are preparing to make the same mistakes, as their predecessors? Incredible! Hold on, not so fast. Happily, there's more to this story. There seems to be at least a glimmer of hope that 21st Century decision makers may be a bit more prescient than we initially give them credit for being. This WSJ article goes on to report:

...Despite layoffs and recession-starved budgets, many employers are investing in leadership-development programs, hoping not to be caught short of strong managers when the economy recovers..."Identifying and grooming leaders is important in good times," says Bret Furio, senior vice president of consumer lifestyle for Philips Electronics North America. "In times of crisis when the economy is struggling," he adds, "it's imperative."

And Yaarit Silverstone, global managing director for the organizational-effectiveness practice at consulting firm Accenture Ltd., reiterated in the article what many forward-thinking decision makers already knew:

...companies historically cut leadership-development programs during downturns, but the moves backfired, prompting midlevel managers and top performers to leave when the economy recovered. Now, she says, executives believe that without capable managers, "their ability to come through [the recession] in a healthy fashion is diminished."

So what's a manager to do in tough times such as these? To train or not to train, is no longer the question. Hopefully, we're well past that. We surely know better.

Tough minded decision makers today will resist doing what weak minded decision makers of times past did too readily. They will resist jeopardizing the future of their organization by depriving it of its very lifeblood-effective, well-trained leaders. They will now and forever see the preparation of leaders through focused training exactly for what it is-an investment in the future, not a simply an easy cost to be eliminated.

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