Manager training didn’t stick. A 20-minute follow-up did more.
Charge nurses rated the workshop highly. On the ward, almost nothing changed, until we booked the Monday after.
The Monday after the training was the problem.
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Key takeaways
- High workshop ratings did not predict whether new managers used the feedback method on shift.
- A 20-minute, one-to-one follow-up two weeks later, practising one real upcoming conversation, made the method concrete.
- We cannot separate the follow-up’s effect from the extra attention it provided; that is our next test.
- Role
- L&D Manager
- Organization
- Hospital network
- Region
- Canada
- Timeframe
- Two cohorts
Context
We run a half-day workshop on giving feedback for newly promoted charge nurses. Evaluations were consistently positive. But when I shadowed shifts, I rarely saw the method used. The workshop was fine. The Monday after the workshop was the problem: short staffing, no time, and no one to ask “how would I say this?”
Hypothesis
If each participant had one short, practical follow-up soon after the workshop, focused on a real conversation they were about to have, they would be more likely to use the method at least once.
What we did
- With the second cohort (14 people), we booked a 20-minute one-to-one about two weeks after the workshop, at a time that fitted their roster.
- Each person brought one real upcoming conversation. We practised the opening two sentences only.
- Four weeks later, we asked both cohorts one question: “Have you used the method in a real conversation? Describe it briefly.”
What we observed
In the first cohort, which had no follow-up, a few people described a real use. In the second, most did, and their descriptions were more specific, often quoting the opening they had practised. Several said the follow-up was the first time they felt permission to adapt the method to their own words.
Practising two sentences for a real conversation did more than rehearsing a whole model for an imaginary one.
Limits
These are self-reports from two small cohorts, and the second cohort received more attention overall. We cannot tell whether the method, the practice, or simply being checked on made the difference. Rostering the follow-ups took real coordination time that we have not yet costed properly.
Next iteration
For the next cohort we will offer the follow-up as a small peer pair instead of one-to-one with L&D, to test whether the effect survives without us in the room, and to see if it is cheaper to sustain.
Questions for peers
Leah Goldberg would like to hear how this plays out in your context.
- What happens in your organization in the two weeks after a manager training?
- How do you tell whether a behaviour change came from the method or from the attention?
Respond to Leah
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