Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2020 - 15

SAM SHRIVER & MARSHALL GOLDSMITH

BUILDING
LEADERS

BEHAVIOR CHANGE
IS A FUNCTION OF PROACTIVE
POSITIONING AND IMMEDIATE
REINFORCEMENT
We are officially throwing caution to the
wind and thinking outside of the box
we usually confine ourselves in when
drafting this column. Ready for "old
school interactive"? Here you go:
1. Take out a piece of paper and a
writing instrument of your choice. Put
the following words across the top of
the page from left to right - before,
during, after.
2. Next, write the following words on the
far left-hand side of the page from
top to bottom in the following order -
manager, trainer, trainee.
3. Finally, draw horizontal and vertical
lines between the terms (four lines
that create nine boxes).
If you followed along, you have in front
of you the framework that researchers
Mary Broad and John Newstrom first
offered in the late 1980s - referred to
as the transfer matrix. Simply stated, it
remains the most useful tool we have
for learning professionals who are
genuinely dedicated to driving targeted
behavior change.
The absence of evidence that connected
learning to behavior change inspired
the impetus for Broad and Newstrom's
research. Even though nearly everyone
in the extended training community
was familiar with Donald Kirkpatrick's
Four Levels of Training Evaluation, there
was only one that received any true
attention - Level 1: Reaction. In theory,
if you did a good job raising a trainee's
level of knowledge and understanding

during training, that newfound insight
could be applied on the job to produce
results. Unfortunately, there were few
indications or outcomes anyone could
identify to confirm that was the case -
Level 3: Behavior.
Broad and Newstrom asked two
questions that remain relevant to this day:
1. What role-time combination (from our
matrix) is currently responsible for
training transfer (outcomes focused
on behavior change)?
2. What role-time combinations should
be responsible for training transfer?

IF YOU ASPIRE TO
CHANGE BEHAVIOR,
YOU NEED TO ELICIT
THE ACTIVE SUPPORT
OF MANAGERS.
The primary answer to the first question
shocked no one but was troubling
nonetheless. The trainer during training
was the big winner. Furthermore, most
of us would suggest we have direct
experience with that reality. You may
have facilitated a learning experience
that went very well. There was active
participation, deep reflection and
the well-intended articulation by
participants of their plans to apply what
they learned back on the job. As you
close out the experience, you do your
best to reinforce all that and encourage
those in attendance to contact you with
post-program comments, questions,

successes or setbacks. From that point,
you get on with your life, and the learners
get on with theirs.
The answers to the second question
were more evenly distributed throughout
all nine role-time combinations, but the
clear winners were the manager before
and after training. A number of thoughtful
studies have confirmed this reality. If
you aspire to change the behavior of
those attending training, you need to
elicit the active support of nontraditional
stakeholders, particularly the manager of
the trainee.
Consider for a moment how much more
motivated and prepared learners would
be if they met with their direct supervisor
before training and:
* Discovered the potential importance of
what they were about to learn.
* Had the supervisor schedule a
post-training discussion to explore
what they learned, how they plan to
implement it and how the learning will
impact productivity.
It simply stands to reason that a welldesigned learning event - proactively
positioned and immediately reinforced
by a legitimate source of on-the-job
influence - has the highest probability of
yielding desirable behavior change.
Marshall Goldsmith is the world authority
in helping successful leaders get even
better. Sam Shriver is the executive vice
president at The Center for Leadership
Studies. Email Marshall and Sam.

T R A I N I N G I N DUSTR Y MAGAZ INE - THE APPLICATION OF LE ARNI NG 2 02 0 I WWW. T RAI NINGINDU S T RY . C OM/ MAGAZ I NE

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Training Industry Magazine - May/June 2020

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