Training sets the right tone at the Carphone Warehouse : Program helps to promote sharing good practice

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to explain how a robust training, development and certification framework is helping to improve performance at the Carphone Warehouse. Design/methodology/approach – The paper outlines the importance of training to the company, which operates in a highly dynamic market where innovation and creativity are crucial. Reveals that, with more than 140 trainers spread across Europe, all of whom are under pressure to deliver a huge number of programs to a high standard, sharing good practice was not happening as much as it should. Findings – The paper details how 26 training managers, from across Europe, were enrolled on TAP delivery‐skills refresher course, which sought to remind them how to optimize the structure of a course. It highlights the change that occurred from a presentational style to a more interactive and discussion‐based mode of delivery. Practical implications – The paper argues that, while the people who attended the course were already confident in their skills, they emerged feeling better equipped to measure the performance of their own teams of trainers. Originality/value – The paper describes how, after the course, training materials were rewritten to a new format and there was more collaboration and swapping of materials between business units.