I run short management training courses myself and am convinced of their value. When a manager wants to focus on a specific topic – such as delegation, feedback or conflict management – a day or two can provide very practical tools and help change certain practices. But when a company wants to develop managerial skills over the long term and change its overall approach, it’s a different matter.
It’s something I notice time and again. A manager might come away from a training course with new insights, tools and sometimes even a real “aha” moment. Then they return to their day-to-day routine, with its urgent tasks, meetings, pressures and habits. A few weeks later, what actually remains of what they learnt and, above all, what has changed in the way they manage? It’s not that the training wasn’t good, but rather that there’s a difference between understanding a tool and integrating it into one’s practice over the long term: you need to be able to experiment with it, sometimes make mistakes, take a step back, make adjustments and start again.
A managerial approach is developed over time
Management is not just about mastering techniques. It is also about getting to know yourself, understanding your habitual behaviours, assessing the impact you have on others, finding the right approach for your team, knowing how to empower others, making decisions and adapting your communication style. This kind of development does not happen simply by walking out of a training room.
It is precisely here, in my view, that time comes into its own. A development programme spread over a longer period allows for a balance between learning and real-world experience. Managers can try things out between modules, reflect on what worked and what didn’t, compare their experiences with what they’ve learnt, and gradually embed new practices. It is therefore no longer simply a matter of acquiring skills, but of developing the way they approach their role.
From training to transformation
It is with this belief in mind that I have built the Management Academy at EiviLux: a six-month programme during which participants learn, experiment, take a step back and gradually work on their own approach. The programme culminates in an individual dissertation on a management issue specific to each participant, which is presented to a panel of professionals. The aim is not to add an academic dimension, but to encourage each participant to take a step back and reflect on their development, articulate what has changed and look ahead to what comes next.
A short training course and a long-term development programme do not, in fact, address the same need. The former is ideally suited to developing a specific skill or tackling a targeted issue. The latter comes into its own when the aim is to bring about lasting change in practices, behaviours and managerial approaches.
The real question, therefore, is not how many training courses a manager has attended, but what has actually changed in the way they manage.
For further information, please visit www.eivi-lux.com/management-academy.
A full version of this article is also available in French.
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