Incorrectly Interpreted

By and

Wed May 18 2016

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The 70:20:10 Model, popularized by Charles Jennings, among others, makes intuitive sense. That is probably why it has been widely embraced even though there is little empirical evidence to support it. Some learning professionals are discouraged by the suggestion that only about 10% of what people need to know to do their jobs is the result of formal training.

The low percentage is incorrectly interpreted to mean that formal training is relatively unimportant. What’s missing from the discussion is the criticality of the learning. For example, learning to read occupied a tiny fraction of the time you spent in school, yet it has been prerequisite to everything else. Without formal training, you would probably not have learned to read and would not have achieved your current level of success. The right training makes a real difference.

About the Authors

Roy Pollock

Roy V. H. Pollock, DVM, PhD, is Chief Learning Officer of The 6Ds Company and co-author of The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning and Getting Your Money’s Worth from Training and Development. Roy has a passion for helping individuals and teams succeed. He is a popular speaker and frequent consultant on improving the value created by training and development.

Andrew Jefferson

Andy Jefferson, JD, is President and Chief Executive Officer for The 6Ds Company. He is co-author of The Six Disciplines of Breakthrough Learning and Getting Your Money’s Worth from Training and Development. Andy is a frequent and popular global presenter who excels in helping companies maximize the value they realize from their investments in learning and development. He is an accomplished executive with deep line-management expertise as well as experience in strategic planning, sales and marketing, productivity, and technology development. Andy views learning as a critical source of competitive advantage in an increasingly knowledge-based economy. He knows the challenges of running a company and making every investment count. Prior to joining The 6Ds Company, Andy served as the Chief Executive Officer of The Fort Hill Company, CEO of Vital Home Services, and Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of AmeriStar Technologies, Inc. Andy is a graduate of the University of Delaware and graduated Phi Kappa Phi with honors from the Widener University School of Law, where he served on the school’s Board of Overseers.