Organisations’ attitudes to training and development are getting better, but there is still room for improvement, according to the Training Trends 2004 survey.

The survey of Training Zone and HR Zone members found that while 72% described their organisation’s attitude to training as generally positive, almost half went on to say that their company’s good intentions did not match up to reality.

And just 23% said that training and development was an integral part of company strategy.

There were also signs that there would be an increased need for training professionals to make the business case for training.

Over a third of respondents expected return on investment to more important for them in the coming year.

Evaluation is also becoming a bigger issue for 59% of you.

Almost all – 98% – carry out evaluation, with the feedback form being the most popular method.

Training Zone user panel member Jason Woodford, Development Director at Academy Internet called the findings “encouraging”.

However, he added: “Aligning training resources to business needs is a core principal of the Investor in People model and essential to the credibility of the training function in business.

“In its apparent absence, it can be a valuable role for providers to help their customers to develop and communicate the business case to budget holders. Those that do might find their phone ringing more frequently over the coming year!”

Training Trends 2004: Predictions of Increased Demand will be published on Wednesday, 12 May.

Results in Brief

Your organisation’s attitude to training

Asked how closely your organisation’s training and development policy fitted with what actually happens:

Time for Staff Development

Responsibility for Training

Evaluating Training