One important way to trim the cost of your training programs is to centralize your training support, rather than your processes.

Let me explain.

First, we can probably all agree that decentralized administration is inefficient.

It begins when the same tasks or transactions are performed in multiple ways, by multiple administrators, in multiple groups across a learning organization. Variations in processes and procedures are actually very common. For example, standards for registration requirements or course description details often develop over time. Typically, these differences are driven by lack of bandwidth or administrative training. Even if standards exist, they can be overlooked.

For example, consider the process of uploading courses to an LMS. If various administrators perform this function, they often use different schemes for course names and descriptions. As a result, it's difficult for learners to find courses, or for managers to research and assign courses, or for executives to generate reliable reports from the system. This seriously hinders auto-enrollment, skills management and learning measurement. The resulting issues can be very costly, both in the short-term and long-term.

Centralization of learning support is a key to resolving these issues.

On the other hand, it's not wise to develop inflexible processes that don't adapt to the needs of your customers in business units. Be careful to maintain customized support they may have grown to expect. Dissatisfaction quickly rises when executives feel their needs and interests are ignored.

Ideally, your approach to centralizing training support should help business units feel comfortable, knowing they'll receive consistent administrative services. This frees them to focus on tailoring programs to their employees' specific needs. And over time, your organization will better align learning with business objectives.

For more information about this topic and other ways to trim operational expenses, download the recent webinar or read our white paper, Eliminate Waste and Reap the Rewards: Nine Ways to Trim Operational Expenses to Fund Strategic Learning, both available at http://www.trainingefficiency.com/.

Or, to discuss how your organization can increase the efficiency of your learning technology or training processes, contact me.