An interview with Sam Lee, Alan Howard Group
What is your role and what does your company do?
“I’m a Business Development Manager and a sales leader for the Alan Howard Group and we sell the brand Matrix, who we use Wranx for.”
What does Alan Howard Group use learning and development or training for?
“We train new members of the team and any member of the team who’s having challenges. Say if a Business Development Manager is struggling from a sales point of view or an educational point of view, we can point them in the right direction of the company first. Also, I’m a business development manager myself, so I look after 250 salons and I go out and get new business as well so there’s sales training too.”
Do you find that any type of training is more effective than others?
“I honestly believe that, because we’re all different, we respond differently to different types of training. So, some people might just like to hear things, others might like to see things, others might like to touch things. If we’ve got different types of educational materials, it will work for everybody.”
How have you found that Learning and Development at work has changed over the years?
“I think it’s a constant rolling road with education. We always have to keep it fresh and new and vibrant, so different things are important. For me personally, I enjoy Wranx, because first thing in the morning it jogs your memory and gets you back into work mode. But it’s also good for when we’re training new members of the team and they’ve got answers there straight away.”
What impact do you think technology has had on learning and development at work?
“We do a lot of social media courses – for ourselves and for the salons we deal with – so that’s an integral part of the business now. The course helps the salons to get the most out of their social media business and it has a massive impact. The better they do on their social media, the more customers they have, which results in more turnover for us as they order more.”
How do you think e-learning compares to traditional classroom-based learning at work?
“E-learning tools with short, sharp quizzes are lighter, so you can take the information more. They can be quite repetitive, but they tend to go in a little easier, rather than doing a day session and forgetting half of it! By doing it this way, you’re just doing these short, sharp exercises every day and eventually the information goes in. It works better.”