Section 3.4 in the CPTD Certification program for ATD is Talent Strategy & Management. Section E states, “Skill in establishing and executing a marketing strategy to promote talent development.”

You can have the most effective and complete training curriculum, but if most people in the organization are not aware of it or how to obtain the training, it will lead to disappointing results.

It takes energy and skill to pull together a professional marketing strategy for promoting the program. This short article will discuss the process.

Business Case

First of all, there must be a business case. The training will improve the skills of the people attending, but what is the total payoff for the organization? For example, if training in “Lean Production Concepts” is projected to boost productivity by 15% and reduce waste by 10%, then managers can verify that those numbers more than offset the training cost.

Often, the training program is for the ultimate development of the people involved, and the payback will be in the form of lower turnover and recruiting costs.

Sometimes a training program will be for purposes of pursuing a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion plan. If so, include that fact in the promotional material.

Whatever the impact on the return for the organization, estimate it so that managers can test the validity of the assumptions.

Promotion of the Training

Once we understand the business case, we can promote the training program by including it in daily briefing meetings. When managers appoint people for the training, the rationale will provide the basis for discussion.

Include the training program in an overall training strategy and present it to the shareholders as well as the general public.

Add the training effort to the Learning Management System for the organization as part of the overall plan.