The Training Department #2 (All beans need to be counted)

I once knew a trainer who told me, "I always ignore the bean counters." He doesn't run a training department anymore...I think he sells shoes in Fresno.

The bean counters are your friend...say this seven time...I'll wait.

Years ago I worked for a company that had a repressive system that counted employees time. Every week my trainers had to electronically fill out this form telling the company what they had done for the past week.

The trainers hated the system. They would do ANYTHING to get out of this task. But I backed up the "bean counters" all of my trainers dutifully filled in their tasks for the week. Everyone took this as "trainer hell" and I was their jailor.

Until one day in a meeting a local VP decided that since trainers "didn't do anything" they could spend their time helping out the supervisors on the floor. My boss related this to me in a matter of fact way, when I was done screaming and I got my hair to lay back down I went to see the bean counters.

I asked for a report off of the time managment system. After 30 minutes with a highlighter I was able to show that most of the time the trainers were providing billable hours and at a rate HIGHER that that of supervisors, they were bringing in more money than a sup.

I revelently went to the VP (revently cause in the company VP's were gods on earth) and told him that I would be "more than happy" to put my trainers on the floor helping the supervisors...of course we would lose the billable hours they generated. The VP took the report and scanned the totals. I was told not to do it until he "got back" to me. It's been 9 years. I'm still waiting.

You can't ignore the bean counters. If you do your career won't be worth a hill of....

David