One of the biggest misconceptions in workplace training is that success is measured by how well a session is delivered. Clear slides, confident facilitation and positive feedback at the end of the day can all feel reassuring. However, great trainers know that delivery alone is not the goal. What really matters is whether learning transfers into the workplace.

This is a key theme we explore on our Train the Trainer programmes, because training that looks good in the room but changes nothing afterwards has limited value.

In This Article You Will Learn

• What learning transfer actually means in practice
• Why strong delivery is not enough on its own
• How effective trainers design sessions that lead to real behaviour change

What Is Learning Transfer?

Learning transfer is the process of learners applying what they have learned in training back in their real working environment. It is the point where knowledge becomes action and confidence turns into competence.

If learning transfer does not happen,

When someone starts delivering training for the first time, they often feel a mix of excitement and pressure. They want to get it right, look credible, and keep people engaged. The problem is that most new trainers focus on the wrong things.

These mistakes are common — and completely fixable. In fact, they are exactly the challenges we help people overcome on our Train the Trainer courses, where we support trainers to deliver sessions with confidence, structure and impact.

In This Article You Will Learn

• The most common mistakes new trainers make
• Why these mistakes happen
• How to avoid them using simple, practical techniques

Mistake 1: Trying to Cover Too Much Content

New trainers often feel they need to “show value” by including as much information as possible. This usually leads to rushed delivery, overloaded slides, and learners who feel overwhelmed.

How to Avoid It

• Decide on the key outcome first: what should learners be able to do after the session?
• Cut anything that doesn’t support

When trainers think about delivering a successful training session, they often focus on content, slides, timing and delivery. But there is one factor that influences learning more than all of these put together: group dynamics.

Understanding how groups behave, react and learn together is what separates a good trainer from a great one. Even the best-designed session can fall flat if the trainer fails to manage the people in the room.

If you'd like to deepen your skills as a trainer, our ILM-accredited Train the Trainer courses can help you develop practical techniques you can apply immediately.

In This Article You Will Learn

• What we mean by group dynamics
• Why group dynamics are crucial in every training session
• Common challenges trainers face with groups
• Five practical techniques to manage group dynamics with confidence

What Do We Mean by Group Dynamics?

Group dynamics refer to the behaviours, relationships, interactions and emotional climate within a group. Every group — regardless of

Many trainers try to teach adults the same way they were taught at school. The trainer talks. The learners listen. Everyone hopes the information sticks. Unfortunately, this rarely works. Adults learn differently. They bring experience, expectations and pressures that shape how they take in new information.

If you are developing your skills as a trainer, our ILM-accredited Train the Trainer courses explore adult learning principles in a simple, practical way so you can apply them with confidence.

In This Article You Will Learn

• How adults actually learn
• Why adults learn differently from children
• Simple ways to improve your sessions using adult learning principles

What Do We Mean by Adult Learning?

Adult learning is the process of helping grown learners understand, apply and feel confident with new skills or knowledge. Adults do not simply absorb information. They compare it with their experience, question its relevance and want to know why it matters. If we ignore this, training becomes

In the world of learning and development, effective trainers do more than deliver information — they reflect, adapt and continuously improve. One of the most powerful yet underused tools for trainer development is reflective journaling. It’s simple, structured and proven to transform how trainers think, behave and perform.

If you're looking to strengthen your delivery skills and develop deeper trainer self-awareness, our ILM-accredited Train the Trainer courses show you exactly how to apply these reflective techniques in practice.

As we head into the new year, Target Training Associates is excited to introduce a new tool designed specifically for trainers: Monkey Journal for Trainers — part of our brand-new Monkey Series of books. This journal has been created to help trainers build habits of reflection, self-awareness and deliberate improvement.

Before we explain what makes reflective journaling so impactful, let’s explore why reflection matters so much in the first place.

The Missing

People often think that good training is about standing at the front and sharing information. We see this a lot on our Train the Trainer courses. It is easy to assume that the more you tell people, the more they learn. In reality, real learning does not happen this way. Good training is structured, clear and focused on helping people feel confident to use what they have learned.

This article explains what good training really looks like and how you can apply these core principles to create sessions that work.

In This Article You Will Learn

• The five core principles of effective training
• What separates average training from great training
• How to use these principles to improve your own delivery

What Do We Mean by Good Training

Good training is training that leads to genuine understanding and real world application. Learners leave the session confident, clear and ready to apply their new skills. They know what to do, why they are doing it and how to do it well. Good training does not overwhelm.

Coaching and training are two of the most widely used development tools in organisations today, yet they are still often misunderstood. Many managers think training and coaching are interchangeable, or they treat coaching as simply “training with questions.” Others believe coaching is something you do after training, rather than a powerful development tool in its own right.

These misunderstandings stop organisations from gaining the full benefit of workplace coaching, and prevent managers from using coaching skills confidently, effectively and at the right time.

In This Article, You Will Learn –

• Why so many managers misunderstand the difference between coaching vs training
• How confusion leads to poor use of both tools
• Why using coaching and training together improves performance, confidence and behaviour change
• What each approach is designed to achieve

What Do We Mean by “Coaching vs Training”?

What is training?

Training provides knowledge, skills, tools and techniques. It is structured,

As we move into 2026, the workplace is changing faster than ever. Managers are being asked to support development, improve performance, handle complex conversations and help people grow — all while keeping teams motivated and productive. More than ever, managers need to know how to train people effectively.

Training isn’t just about teaching a topic. It’s about helping people understand what good looks like, building confidence through practice and ensuring learning transfers back into the workplace.

For managers who want to deliver clear, structured and confident training, an ILM-accredited Train the Trainer course provides a simple and effective framework.

Many managers want to train effectively but have never been shown a simple structure for planning and delivering sessions. A practical Train the Trainer course gives managers the tools and confidence they need.

Why Managers Need Training Skills

Good managers don’t just supervise; they develop people. They help team members improve their

Workplace training is essential for any organisation, yet many people still come away feeling confused, overwhelmed or unsure what they are meant to do next. This is not because they are poor learners. It is usually because the session was not delivered in a way that supports real learning. The good news is that when training is delivered properly it can completely transform confidence, performance and results. This article explores why so much workplace training does not work and what you can do to make your sessions far more effective.

This article explores why so much workplace training does not work and what you can do to make your sessions far more effective.

In This Article You Will Learn

• The main reasons workplace training often fails
• The impact this has on learners and organisations
• What you can do to create training that genuinely works

What Do We Mean by Training That Works

Training that works is training that leads to real change. Learners understand what they have been taught,