2005 – Aug – McDonald – Training to a Specification or How to Ruin a Good Training Course

Wayne McDonald BE (Elec) FIRSE Westinghouse Signals Australia Rail authorities include some interesting requirements in specifications for technical training to be deliveres as part of a signalling contract. Few of these have any relevance to the delivery of high quality, competency skills that will aid the participants perform their tasks more efficiently and effectively. Specification often place unreasonable demands on a supplier who has made a huge investment on training. The important facets are often overlooked along with any follow up or effort to improve the training in future. This paper looks at some of the issues from a Training Provider's view - what works, what doesn't what's reasonable and what adds cost with no value. It offers some suggestions on some of the more important short and long term considerations to maximise your benefit from training. In particular, it examins the best ways to ruin - and not to ruin - good training.