4 Responses

1. Job titles
   Mike
   You are right to be confused as I think we are in a confusing situation at the moment. In days gone by things were clearer but today there is an eclectic mix of job titles reflecting much greater ambiguity in roles, responsibilities, philosophies and practices.
   I guess the big trends have been away from ‘trainer’ or ‘instructor’ and towards ‘consultant’, ‘business partner’ and ‘facilitator’, often preceded by ‘Learning and Development’.
   That said, our own survey of job advertisements confirms that the terms ‘trainer’ and ‘training’ are still very much alive.
   If you are looking for a new job title I would come up with a shortlist that you feel best reflects what you do. Then, from that list, choose the one that would sound the most impressive, modern and credible in your organisation.
   Graham

2. Learning Manager
   I like the term learning manager because it implies that the authority for learning has been delegated to the learners (learner centred) but ultimately the responsibility is shared. But besides the management role, there is an administration role (ensuring everything runs smoothly) and a facilitation role (passively responding to learner requests). More information on http://www.simulations.co.uk/tutor.htm

3. Training Management Delivery Advisor…eh?
   I agree with Graham about the confusing ‘state of the industry’. We’ve had ‘Training and Development Managers’ now we have ‘Learning and Development Managers’…(can someone PLEASE explain to me in what way learning is different from development????)

   I’ve also seen…Course Managers, Course Tutor, Training Consultant, in fact pick a set of words that describe ‘learning’ and another set from business roles and you could create your own buzz phrase generator…!!!

   Personally I am a ‘Training Consultant’, whilst I deliver courses I also provide advice and guidance to organisation of their training needs and help them design appropriate training interventions…but I suppose I could also be a ‘Learning Facilitator’, or a ‘Development Advisor’ or a ‘Learnology Consultant’ (well plenty of other people seem to be able to invent new words!).

   Go with Graham’s advice…if you need a title, give yourself one that describe what you do!

4. Confusion rules…
   Thanks for your comments. I was interested to see what the majority of people identified themselves with as i am in the process of putting together a training programme for ‘trainers’ and wanted to checkout the state of jargon, as I wanted to ensure I hit the mark!

   FYI, A search on trainerbase (the trainers directory) also shows a diluted and fragmented story – not only of job titles within organisations – but from a provider base!
   Regards, Mike