Development is Not Just Training
September is Workforce Development Month, which makes it a good time to think about what we really mean when we use the word *development. *Because somewhere along the way, we started treating workforce development as if it were synonymous with training.
Send someone to a workshop.
Enroll them in a class.
Give them access to an online course.
Teach them a new skill.
Those things absolutely matter. But they are only one small part of how people actually develop at work. Development also happens when someone gets useful feedback instead of vague reassurance.
It happens when a manager gives someone a stretch opportunity—and enough support to have a reasonable chance of succeeding.
It happens when an experienced colleague takes the time to explain not just what they do, but why they do it.
It happens when expectations are clear enough that people know what good work looks like.
And it happens when people have room to practice something new without being expected to master it immediately.
That last one is especially important.
We sometimes approach professional development as though exposure should equal expertise. We teach people something on Tuesday and get frustrated when they aren’t consistently doing it by Friday.
But think about almost anything you’ve ever learned to do well.
You probably weren’t great at it the first time.
You tried it. You got some things wrong. Someone gave you feedback. You adjusted. You tried again. Eventually, what once required a lot of conscious effort became more natural.
Why would communication, leadership, supervision, collaboration, conflict, or any other workplace skill be different?
I see this all the time in my work with teams.
One leadership team I’ve worked with over an extended period had already learned plenty of useful tools. They knew how to talk about trust, expectations, conflict, and accountability. The bigger challenge was using those tools consistently when real life showed up.
So instead of continuing to pile on more information, we shifted the work.
We would focus on something the team was experiencing in real time, identify one or two small changes they could make, and give them something specific to practice before we met again. In between sessions, there was room to rehearse a hard conversation, talk through something that wasn’t working, or reflect on an old pattern that had resurfaced.
The goal wasn’t perfection.
It was consistent progress.
That, to me, is what development looks like.
I’ve also had the privilege of doing this kind of ongoing work with the staff and leaders in Workforce and Economic Development at Mott Community College. They do remarkable work supporting students, employers, and the broader community, and I appreciate the willingness they’ve shown to invest not only in what they do, but in how they work together while doing it.
Our work hasn’t been a collection of isolated training sessions. We keep coming back to leadership, trust, clarity, communication, and collaboration. People get opportunities to reflect, practice, try something, and return to the conversation.
Because a workshop can introduce an idea. It can create shared language. It can help someone see a situation differently.
But development happens afterward.
It happens in the staff meeting when someone asks a clearer question instead of making an assumption.
It happens when a supervisor handles a difficult conversation differently than they would have six months ago.
It happens when someone gets useful feedback, tries again, and gets a little better.
And it happens when organizations create enough support, clarity, challenge, and room to practice that growth can actually occur.
So during Workforce Development Month, here’s something to try: Pick one person you work with and ask yourself, What would help this person develop right now? Not what training should they attend. What feedback, stretch opportunity, clarity, mentoring, support, or practice might actually help them grow?
And if you’re looking at your team and realizing that you want development to be something more than the occasional workshop, I’d be happy to talk with you about what that could look like. Reach out and let’s chat.
Training matters.
But development is what happens when we give people the opportunity to use what they’re learning—and keep getting better at it.
