Zurich learns to do it with passion: Program brings new confidence, motivation, enthusiasm and commitment

Abstract

Purpose

Describes how The Training Foundation's Trainer Assessment Programme (TAP) is helping to improve training at UK Personal Lines (UKPL), part of Zurich Financial Services Group's UK General Business division.

Design/methodology/approach

Draws on information from the UKPL learning and development manager and the senior trainer at UKPL's Cardiff centre, who is himself working towards the TAP diploma in learning‐facilitation skills.

Findings

Reveals that the TAP will make a big difference to the way UKPL designs, structures and delivers internal courses to cater for individual learning styles, and that people who have attended a TAP course have come back with higher confidence, motivation, enthusiasm and commitment to improving the quality of training delivery. Trainers have used their skills, the TAP framework and ideas picked up from other businesses to rewrite training programs, with a stronger focus on meeting the needs of the business, the learner and customers.

Practical implications

Demonstrates that the experience made UKPL trainers better able to appreciate the difference between presenting and training: they became more interactive and questioning in their approach.

Originality/value

Highlights the fact that, as well as picking up training skills on the course itself, there were networking benefits from talking to other training specialists from a range of backgrounds, and from benchmarking performance with peers from other industries.

Citation

(2007), "Zurich learns to do it with passion: Program brings new confidence, motivation, enthusiasm and commitment", Human Resource Management International Digest, Vol. 15 No. 2, pp. 36-38. https://doi.org/10.1108/09670730710735762