Selecting and Preparing the Training Site

The  training site  refers to the room where training will be conducted. A good training site offers the following features:4

1. It is comfortable and accessible.

2. It is quiet, private, and free from interruptions.

3. It has sufficient space for trainees to move around easily, offers enough room for trainees to have adequate work space, and has good visibility for trainees to see each other, the trainer, and any visual displays or examples that will be used (e.g., videos, product samples, charts, and slides).

page 209Training sites can be on-site in a training room located at company offices or off-site at a hotel, resort, conference center, or college campus. There is no right answer as to whether training should be held on-site or off-site. Both on-site and off-site training have potential benefits that need to be considered.5 The benefits of on-site training include actual and perceived savings of transportation, food and beverage costs, and space and equipment rental costs; and ease of using local employees to serve as instructors for some or part of the training. The benefits of off-site training include less chance of business-related disruptions, resulting in improved trainee focus; a more memorable training setting and experience; providing a message that the company values training by investing in it; and better opportunities for networking. For example, leaving the office for off-site training provides a mental and physical break from work that can help trainees focus on learning rather than being distracted by interruptions from staff and customers. Regardless of the location, to improve their focus on training content, trainers need to ask learners to turn off their cell phones (unless they are being used for learning purposes).

Details to Be Considered in the Training Room

Table 5.1 presents characteristics of the meeting room that a trainer, program designer, or manager should use to evaluate a training site. Keep in mind that many times, trainers do not have the luxury of choosing the “perfect” training site. Rather, they use their page 210evaluation of the training site to familiarize themselves with the site’s strengths and weaknesses in order to adjust the training program and/or physical arrangements of the site (e.g., re-arrange the trainer’s position so it is closer to electrical outlets needed to run equipment).

TABLE 5.1 Details to Consider When Evaluating a Training Room

Noise. Check for noise from heating and air conditioning systems, adjacent rooms and corridors, and outside the building.

Colors. Pastel hues such as oranges, greens, blues, and yellows are warm colors. Variations of white are cold and sterile. Black and brown shades will close the room in psychologically and become fatiguing.

Room structure. Use rooms that are somewhat square in shape. Are the rooms and seating tiered? Long, narrow rooms make it difficult for trainees to see, hear, and participate in the discussion. Check for the availability and proximity of breakout or case rooms if needed.

Lighting. The main source of lighting should be fluorescent lights. Incandescent lighting should be spread throughout the room and used with dimmers when projection is required.

Wall and floor covering. Carpeting should be placed in the meeting area. Solid colors are preferable because they are not distracting. Only meeting-related materials should be on the walls.

Meeting room chairs. Chairs should have wheels, swivels, and backs that provide support for the lower lumbar region.

Glare. Check and eliminate glare from metal surfaces, TV monitors, and mirrors.

Ceiling. Ten-foot-high ceilings are preferable.

Electrical outlets. Outlets should be available every six feet around the room. A telephone jack should be next to the outlets. Outlets for the trainer should be available as well. Make sure that outlets are available for trainees to plug in their laptops, if necessary.

Acoustics. Check the bounce or absorption of sound from the walls, ceiling, floor, and furniture. Try voice checks with three or four different people, monitoring voice clarity and level.

Technology. Check that the room has permanent screens and a computer with Internet access for the trainer (and for trainees if needed).

Source: Based on M. Weinstein, “Training Spaces,” training (September/October 2010), pp. 34–37. C. L. Finkel, “Meeting Facilities,” in the ASTD Training and Development Handbook, 3d ed., ed. R. L. Craig (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1996), pp. 978–989.

Recognizing that trainee learning can be facilitated though both mental and physical involvement, it is important to consider this when choosing, designing, or deciding how to use a training space. For example, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan has transitioned to classrooms with spaces that can be configured as needed.6Because training classes might involve online learning, teamwork, physical movement, and quiet contemplation, spaces need flexible furniture and equipment that can be moved within the class (or moved out altogether to create more space). The key is to have a classroom that is able to accommodate a wide variety of activities and instructor-learner, learner-learner, and learner-content interactions. For example, in a sales course, learners work with a partner. They physically walk through the sales process using a map on the floor outlining the steps in the process. The physical movement through the steps has helped learners better recall the sales process. When choosing training spaces—whether on-site or off-site at a conference site or hotel—trainers at The Economical Insurance Group (TEIG) consider the size of the room needed for the number of trainees attending and ensure that the physical space is engaging to the learner and promotes a sense of community between the facilitator and the instructor. They make certain that the training space can incorporate a blend of technology-based media (such as graphics, multimedia, flash technology, and immediate feedback tools) and face-to-face training methods (such as roundtable discussions among small groups of trainees). Also, for courses such as leadership training, the environment outside the classroom needs to be comfortable (e.g., quiet areas, gardens, and lounge chairs) to encourage networking, creativity, and innovation.

Sometimes, trainers may find themselves having to work in a training space that is not ideal. At Century 21 Real Estate LLC, trainers make sure that they get a look at the space before the training course to consider its strengths and limitations and how to use it to best maximize learning. For example, at one training session held at a local hotel, trainers had to work around banquet tables. As a result, they decided to get trainees energized and involved by using a team exercise that trainees seated at each table could work on. Trainers at Steelcase modified its classrooms so that content is projected from different sides of the room and not just from the front, so learners look over one another.7 Instructors can be anywhere in the room because they can use a switcher to project content from any student’s or instructor’s laptop to any or all screens in the room. Also, in addition to classrooms, Steelcase has cafés, booths, and small rooms to encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing, as well as areas for quiet, individual work.

Seating Arrangements  Seating arrangements at the training site should be based on an understanding of the desired type of trainee interaction and trainee-trainer interaction.8 Figure 5.2 shows several types of seating arrangements.

FIGURE 5.2 Examples of Seating Arrangements

Source: Based on F. H. Margolis and C. R. Bell, Managing the Learning Process (Minneapolis, MN: Lakewood Publications, 1984).

Fan-type seating is conducive to allowing trainees to see from any point in the room. Trainees can easily switch from listening to a presentation to practicing in groups, and trainees can communicate easily with everyone in the room. Fan-type seating is also effective for training that includes trainees working in groups and teams to analyze problems and synthesize information.

 

If the training primarily involves knowledge acquisition, with lecture and audiovisual presentation being the primary training method, traditional classroom-type seating is appropriate. Traditional classroom instruction allows trainee interaction with the trainer, but it also makes it difficult for trainees to work in teams (particularly if the seats are not movable to other locations in the room).

If training emphasizes total-group discussion with limited presentation and no small-group interaction, a conference-type arrangement may be most effective. If the training requires both presentation and total-group instruction, the horseshoe arrangement is useful