COTTER’S INDEPENDENT TRAINER PROSPERITY & FUTURE-FIT BLUEPRINT (ITProFaB): 8 STRATEGIES TO PROSPER AS AN INDEPENDENT TRAINER IN SOUTH AFRICA

1.??????INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXTUALIZATION

Many highly competent and qualified South African trainers are living in professional and economic poverty. Not because they’ve failed as trainers in the training space, but because they’ve failed to create space in training.

On a daily basis, my professional peers request my advice, as to what are the winning strategies to prosper in a cut-throat, ultra-competitive S.A Learning and Development (L&D) industry and as a result, I’ve conceptualized the following 8-level Independent Trainer Prosperity and Future-fit Blueprint (ITProFaB):

2.??????APPLYING COTTER’S (2018) INDEPENDENT TRAINER PROSPERITY AND FUTURE-FIT BLUEPRINT

?????????Refer to Cotter’s 8-level Hierarchy of Deeds:

As the term, “Deeds” suggests, this model is an action-oriented and not a passive approach to professional prosperity and future-fitness. The 8 P's of Professional Prosperity are the graduated process steps of differentiation to keep one step ahead of the independent trainer market competition.

"If you don't differentiate yourself, you'll be traded as a low-end commodity."

The 8 strategies are described below:

2.1????Independent trainers need to continually invest in their professional?development.

This strategy relates to level 1: PROFICIENT of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds and, although, this is a foundational strategy, it’s provides the lowest level of differentiation. Prosperous and future-fit trainers relentlessly commit and subscribe to continuous self-improvement, otherwise the S.A training industry will regard them on professional par with their peers.

"Just like we constantly refresh our social media pages and update our status, so we will have to rigorously reinvent and transform our future professional/career status to sustain upward employment mobility." (Charles Cotter, 2017)

I subscribe to Gladwell's 10 000-hour rule of deliberate and dedicated practice to master your training craft. Independent trainers must foster a growth mindset and practice the life-long learning principle. If independent trainers don't empower themselves and stay on the cutting-edge of the latest developments and trends to retain your strategic relevance, then they will be easily replaced by more career-focused trainers.

"If you do not stay current, you will become redundant.” (Charles Cotter, 2017)

To stay competitive, independent trainers’ knowledge base, skills-set and mindset must be next level. There should be a distinctive shift from (local) qualifications to (international) certifications.?In my 14 years of experience as an independent trainer, I’ve found education to be the most prominent accelerator of my professional development.?

"A brighter tomorrow will dawn, if you empower yourself through education."(Charles Cotter, May 2017)

Refer to the slideshow presentation, The 7 Benefits of a Good Education (E-D-U-C-A-T-E) https://www.slideshare.net/CharlesCotter/the-7-benefits-of-a-good-education-educate

2.2.???Independent trainers need to intensify and enhance their work ethic (before 8.00 and after 16.00) and build their industry resilience threshold

This strategy relates to level 2: PRODUCER of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds.

Mastering their training craft and competency is a given in an ultra-competitive training industry.

Independent trainers need to consistently maintain an exemplary work ethic. This stretches way beyond the window of training (contact) time and typically includes pre-training research; drafting training programme outlines and proposals; learning materials design and development; preparation; brokering new business and post-training communication and reporting; introspection and reflection; social media promotion and quality assurance measures.

However, the emphasis should be on quality and quantity. Independent trainers should constantly strive to exceed the performance expectations of clients; be prepared to go the extra mile and demonstrate inexhaustible levels of energy.???????

The S.A training industry is fraught with setbacks, disappointment and change and, therefore, resilience is one of the core competencies of being an independent trainer. However, this was not taught to them at university and/or when they completed Train-the-Trainer programmes, to start out in this industry. Mediated by experience, they need to develop coping mechanisms and their resolve and expand their resilience reservoir and threshold and tap into their reserves to bounce back in the face of industry-induced adversity.

"Experience is an independent trainer’s best tutor."

Inexhaustible energy is required - complacency is the enemy. The opposite of competency is not incompetency, but rather complacency. Independent trainers who are complacent are committing a professional crime and committing career suicide.

“The work ethic of independent trainers is the first gear of the driving engine of their business success. Like a high-performance engine, in order to stay ultra-competitive, they have to tirelessly work on expanding their capacity and optimizing their sixth gear output.”(Charles Cotter PhD, 18 October 2018)

2.3.???Independent trainers need to position themselves as specialists, aspire to next practice and consistently sustain optimal performance levels

Trainers need to become traders. The currency of the trading floor is performance excellence. Performance excellence is not negotiable. This strategy relates to level 3: PERFORMER of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds.

The key is that independent trainers maintain consistently stellar levels of performance levels over prolonged time periods and across all training programmes. The quickest diluter of professional brand equity is the market perception that an independent trainer is a “flash in the pan” and/or "one trick pony" and/or only excel with certain training programmes.

Success breeds more success and builds confidence – both for the trainer and the market. However, there’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance, so independent trainers should be cautious in not over-selling their achievements and/or over-stating their talents.?????

Clarity regarding the brand identity is a critical success factor. Independent trainers should not confuse the industry regarding their specific areas of subject matter expertise by taking on a diversified portfolio of training work assignments. The S.A L&D industry rewards specialists - not generalists.

"The on-demand workforce will be driven and dominated by expert taskmasters, not multi-taskers.” (Charles Cotter, 2017)

Therefore, brand positioning is vitally important and independent trainers are strongly encouraged to fortify their professional status as a specialist, reinforce their subject matter expertise and aspire to transcend the performance boundaries of best practice to embrace next practice.

"Stop fixating on best practice and rather concentrate on conceptualizing next practice. This is the fundamental differentiation between industry followership and leadership." (Charles Cotter PhD, 2018)

There are exceedingly low barriers to market entry to trade as a trainer in the S.A L&D industry. Therefore, independent trainers must constantly pursue next practice. Alternatively, their work ethic and qualifications may provide resilience in a volatile and turbulent industry.

2.4.???Independent trainers need to adopt an abundance mindset and symbiotically collaborate (instead of competing) with other trainers

This strategy relates to level 4: PROMOTER of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds.

A critical success factor for the prosperity and future-fitness of independent trainers in the S.A market is to apply the Law of Attraction.

“Collaboration is King.”

Independent trainers should create a community of trusted peers and subject matter experts who they can recommend, refer work to, actively seek out collaboration opportunities and in the event of double bookings, farm work out to these business partners. Instead of competing for a larger slice of the cake, independent trainers are advised and encouraged to collaborate to increase the size of the cake, so that all trainers can optimize their portion of the cake.?

This spirit of collaboration will build professional momentum, create synergy, a sense of reciprocity and trainers will be rewarded by magnetically attracting other training gigs. Therefore, independent trainers will be able to capitalize on the multiplier effect.???

“The business calculator function of prosperous and future-fit trainers is not addition, but multiplication.” (Charles Cotter, 2017)

2.5.???Independent trainers need to expand their business network through mining, investing in and nurturing mutually beneficial business relationships

This strategy relates to level 5: PROSPECTOR of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds.

A critical success factor for the prosperity and future-fitness of independent trainers in the S.A market is to apply the Law of Association. Independent trainers must hustle and actively hunt for value-adding business connections and associations and nurture, invest in and build these relationships.

Independent trainers should have an “attitude of gratitude”, in which they stay humble, grounded and constantly express their appreciation for collaboration opportunities and business support. The S.A L&D industry is a ruthless equalizer, especially for those who are arrogant.?

The value of independent trainer’s business network will not be determined by the quantity of their direct connections, but rather by their analytical ability to penetrate, mine and harvest the business relationship potential and exploit mutually-beneficial collaboration opportunities within the scope of your secondary and tertiary connections.

In a disconnected and sometimes polarizing African L&D industry, it's important to establish future-proof and mutually beneficial business networks and to be a professional community builder.

?“As an independent trainer, your network equals your net worth.”

2.6.???Independent trainers need to serve and future-proof the S.A training industry and actively contribute to the L&D body of knowledge?

This strategy relates to level 6: PATRON of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds.

Refer to https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/future-fit-code-10-strategies-future-proof-your-career-charles-cotter/

Independent trainers should apply servant leadership (stewardship) principles and demonstrate a high degree of engagement (emotional connection) to their jobs; their clients; the learners and the S.A industry as a whole.?

"Diligently serve the S.A training industry and the S.A training industry will diligently serve you." (Charles Cotter, 26 May 2017)

Independent trainers should be vocal advocates, exemplary role models and loyal ambassadors of the S.A L&D industry. Furthermore,?they should actively demonstrate a professional sense of duty and maintain the highest levels of ethics and integrity. Their willingness to mentor and coach professional peers and assist and advise start-up trainers trying to break into the S.A training industry, should be an extension and testament of their industry patronage.?

"It's never about who the best trainer is, but rather a more pertinent question is, what is best for the training industry." (Charles Cotter, 18 October 2018)

Independent trainers should be relentless researchers and actively contribute to the L&D body of knowledge, for example, by sharing learning best practices and slideshow presentation resources on platforms like Slideshare. Refer to https://www.slideshare.net/CharlesCotter

Being an authority is a function of sharing knowledge and expanding and extending our learning footprint and -influence.

Trainers should start harnessing the value of SurveyMonkey as a learning and research tool, which can be utilized before (diagnostic); during (benchmarking and gap analysis) and after (research findings and learning intelligence) training programmes. Refer to https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/reality-check-chief-human-resources-officers-africa-hrm-cotter-phd/

2.7.???Independent trainers need to shamelessly showcase the quality of their work and liberally promote and market themselves

This strategy relates to level 7: PLAYER of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds. It’s pointless to be a master trainer if you haven’t mastered the promotional and marketing competencies required to prosper in the S.A training industry. As an independent trainer, a heightened sense of brand awareness is the cornerstone of building professional brand equity.

“Visibility, credibility and reputation are the keys to picking up training gigs.”

Very lucrative training assignments are awarded to independent trainers, based solely on their professional reputation. The digital footprint and social media presence e.g. LinkedIn https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/charlescotter/ and Twitter https://twitter.com/Charles_Cotter of independent trainers are decisional influencers of training work assignments. To be recognized as a respected player in the S.A market, independent trainers are advised to adopt a business mindset and acumen, request performance testimonials (crowd-sourced performance intelligence) and market their professional training service in a targeted and strategic manner.

2.8????Independent trainers need to assertively build their professional brand equity

Prosperous and future-fit trainers aspire to achieve the epitome of Cotter’s Hierarchy of Deeds and the highest level of differentiation, level 8: PATHFINDER status by constantly building and enhancing their professional brand equity and pursuing the pinnacle of their profession. Pathfinders are trendsetting pioneers, who transcend the conventional and who disrupt and transform the industry. They are innovators, and not imitators. They are thought and opinion leaders, and not followers. They are revered as Cream-of-the-Crop trainers, at the top of their industry, who, accordingly, are compensated at a premium (top dollar) rate.

Refer to Cotter’s Types of Independent Trainers (2016) illustrated below:?

Independent trainers should aspire to be Cream of the Crop type of trainer. This requires trainers to demonstrate a high degree of competence and a high degree of commitment (investment) to the S.A training industry. For the S.A L&D industry to be regarded as a legitimate, fully-fledged profession and to flourish, the ratio of Cream-of-the-Crop trainers must significantly exceed the other three configuration types, namely: Wannabees; Moonlighters and especially, the Fly-by-Nights.??

3. TAKING THE TEST: ITProFaB HEALTH CHECK

So, in light of the above ITProFaB strategies, do you believe that you are ready to prosper as a Pathfinding Cream of the Crop type of independent trainer?

To determine your prosperity and future fitness score you are welcome to complete the 2-minute, self-scoring survey. Please refer to the following link:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PV2RTN2

4. CONCLUSION

Given the high degree of disruption and competitivity and the low barriers to market entry to trade as a trainer, those independent trainers who adopt a?"business as usual"?mindset and fixate on training competencies exclusively, will flounder and struggle to improve their professional development and actualize their performance potential, thereby diminishing their prospects of current and future training gigs.

Conversely, those independent trainers who embrace the x8 ITProFaB differentiation strategies, will have a sustainable competitive advantage enabling a future-proofing of their careers and accelerating their employment mobility in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. They are likely to pick up more training gigs, enhance their marketability and prosper as a Pathfinder Cream-of-the-Crop (level 8) independent trainer in a?"business unusual"?S.A L&D landscape. Differentiation is a key driver of creating space in a cluttered training market.?

ABOUT THE WRITER AND CONTACT DETAILS

Dr Charles Cotter is a Learning & Development strategist, training facilitator and highly sought-after conference speaker, who also specializes in professional, career and future-fit coaching for independent trainers.?

He is regarded as an influential, L&D thought leader on social media, with a global, learning footprint and -followership. You are welcome to connect with Dr Charles https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/charlescotter?and/or to follow on Twitter @Charles_Cotter?Please check out and view and/or download Dr Charles' portfolio of 139 SlideShares. At the time of writing, he can proudly claim over 500k views and 30.5k downloads globally.

Interested parties are welcome to contact him at charlescot@polka.co.za or +27 84 562 9446 for a customized consultation, training needs analysis, coaching session and/or schedule a facilitated breakfast workshop.