What is a training lead?

A training lead is someone who oversees and coordinates training programs within an organization.

As a training lead, my main goal is to make sure that employees get the training, education and info they need to do their jobs effectively.

Instructional Design: A large part of my role is designing and developing training content; this is essentially the work of an instructional designer. But a training lead does much more than instructional design.

Implementation: I also work with different business units across an organization to figure out how training will be implemented, whether it’s for a one-time rollout or if a more sustainable approach is needed. (Often, both). This often means leading a train-the-trainer program, writing training-related communications, and handling all the scheduling and coordination logistics.

Resourcing: Sometimes, I can handle all aspects of training development and implementation, but more often, the scope of work is so large that I need more resources. This means I’m responsible for finding creative ways to manage the training function and get the job done - whether it’s hiring an elearning agency, outsourcing to a subcontractor, drawing on L&D resources in other parts of the organization, or directly supervising training coordinators.

OCM Alignment: Most of the work I’ve done has been related to business process improvement or enterprise technology implementations, which means I’m normally part of a project or program team, as part of the organizational change management function. I work closely with OCM resources to ensure training is aligned and integrated with the change methodology that’s followed. Prosci’s ADKAR change model is an example.

Training Environments: Another big part of the training lead role is making sure a training environment is set up for technology implementations. It’s not enough to design and develop practice scenarios for learners; they also need a safe, controlled environment they can play around in and make mistakes as they develop new skills. I’m responsible for liaising with IT departments to make this happen and helping them understand what’s needed to set learners up for success.

Monitoring & Evaluation: Ultimately, organizations want to know if their training efforts were successful. I’m not only responsible for creating evaluation forms and recording attendance or completions but also for reporting back on how an implementation is going. If something isn’t working well, I’m responsible for resolving training-related issues, documenting lessons learned for future projects, and recommending other non-training interventions that might be needed.