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Learning Transfer Made Easy

4 Lessons Learned from Experience

By Michael Leimbach, PhD, Carl Eidson

If you ask a busy learning professional about learning transfer, you’ll likely hear two things: First, it’s very important; second, it’s very hard. So what is it about the process that makes learning transfer so challenging? The issue that comes up the most is the vexing problem of finding enough time.

Busy managers find it difficult to allocate resources to critical reinforcement and support activities, and training professionals also find it takes a great deal of time to design and administer a learning transfer effort.

A related issue is a complexity. Today, a training initiative may involve a global audience and multiple modes of delivery, including webcasts, virtual learning, mobile devices, and social media—and yes, even classroom components. These activities may be taking place at different times, in different time zones, with different levels of participation and diverse audiences. Managing delivery of all these moving parts can be a logistical nightmare. It’s not surprising that many training groups with limited resources find it nearly impossible to carry out the kind of learning transfer needed to ensure lasting results.

96% of participants reported a significant increase in work productivity as a direct result of skills and tools used to enhance the learning.

Michael Leimbach, PhD

“Michael Leimbach, Ph.D. is a globally recognized expert in learning design and provides leadership for solution research and design solutions that turn learning into performance.

Dr. Leimbach has served as editor for multiple professional journals, consulted with numerous global clients, published over 100 professional articles, co-authored six books, and is a frequent speaker at national and global conferences. Michael received his Doctorate from the University of Minnesota and has worked in the learning and development industry for over 35 years.”

Carl Eidson

Carl Eidson, PhD, is Vice President of Business Development for Wilson Learning. Dr. Eidson leads and coaches a virtual team of over 100 independent distributors stretching from Toronto to Bogotá and works extensively with clients. Dr. Eidson has coauthored articles on selecting top talent published in scholarly journals, including Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Performance, International Journal of Selection and Assessment, and Journal of Business and Psychology. He has also authored and coauthored articles on leadership, sales, virtual teams, and employee engagement in industry publications including CIO, Training magazine, and Sales Pro Magazine. Dr. Eidson is a frequent speaker at professional conferences on the topic of learning transfer and human performance improvement research and practices.