It is not uncommon to find yourself struggling to understand the difference between professional development and training. Often, we find that these terms are interchanged, yet they do represent and mean different things. In this blog, I will reveal the differences that exist and how they are both linked to one another.
I previously wrote explaining the importance of professional development and laid out my own definition describing this process.
Professional Development:
“the process of continuous learning and application of theory into working practice to achieve a desired output.”
Let’s begin with Training
Training by nature is an activity that is generally formally conducted, time-bound and has a concrete target in mind that is required to be achieved on completion. The activity of training is to provide you with a set of specific competencies which you have explicitly signed up to obtain. You are in a frame of mind and understand that by going through a particular training, there are various skills that you will gain throughout and on completion. These skills which you achieve through the training programme can be passed on to your peers or relevant others in the form of training. This process has been outlined for you below.
Where does training fit in with development?
You may be wondering how the process of embarking on a training programme links with your professional development. A good question to ask yourself.
Completing any form of training whether face-to-face, digitally, distanced-learning, practical based, or a combination of these, all have the same end goal. This is to build on your long-term vision and what constitutes professional development. The simple fact that you have gained a set of proficiencies to become competent in a given field does not singlehandedly result in you achieving your overall professional development target. However, it does play a significant contribution as each burst of training you do is positively impacting you in your professional development journey.
Does this mean lots of training will help me achieve my professional development goal?
Reaching your desired professional development goals and objectives takes a collection of training, interprofessional communication experiences, practical application and more. It is the essence of having a holistic and forward-looking approach to your development.
Nevertheless, some may find that simply completing numerous training and obtaining qualifications is the main driving force to their professional development success and that is equally acceptable. The whole process must be tailored to our own circumstances, expectations and objectives so that we can find our own connection between training and professional development.
All things relating to professional development
Identifying that there is a difference between training and professional development must start with understanding what professional development means. In this blog, I explore its meaning and importance. For the purpose of this exercise here is my definition: “the process of continuous learning and application of theory into working practice to achieve a desired output.”
When we consider professional development, it is a long-term process and vision which requires various components and experiences to be encountered to reach the overall goal. This may and most likely will include you completing one or various/numerous training programmes. The whole process of professional development is constantly evolving with time as you are building on your previous experiences and adapting from your learnings.
During the journey of professional development, you are constantly reflecting on a series of accounts and this may be in the form of completing continuing professional development (CPD) forms or informal exercises with your peers. To assist with your own reflection and planning for the future, I have created a Career Road Map template which you can download for FREE.
What is the reward?
You may ask, what is the overall reward of planning and executing a training programme that contributes towards my professional development? This is a simple answer yet unique to you all, which may include obtaining one or more qualifications in the process, building a holistic network, enhancing your competencies and growing as an individual, to say the least. These are all ideal factors for you to be a successful individual in any area of expertise.
Let’s Summarise Professional Development and Training
We have established that there is a clear difference between professional development and training. With this, we have explored how both components work synergistically to ensure that you prosper as a dynamic professional.
| Professional Development | Training |
|---|---|
| Long-term | Short -term |
| Holistic approach | Competency development |
| Personal reflection | Formal process |
| Behavioural change | Dependant on others |
Developing as a professional is a process of constant evolution whereby possible hurdles that you encounter should be looked at in a positive light as it is a learning element. Each obstacle you overcome allows for reflection and implementation of learnings to move forward. We all have the potential to utilise elements of both professional development and training in our respective journeys.
