How to Secure Manager Approval for Training and Development

Investing in training and development can be pivotal for your career growth. Here’s a guide to making a compelling case to your manager.

Ongoing education provides opportunities for career advancement, helping healthcare workers achieve personal and professional goals. Here are some ways to approach your manager to secure support for training and development.  

Research Relevant Training Programs 

Before making a case to your manager, look for training programs that align with your role and organisation’s strategic goals. You may have also identified certain training opportunities that could benefit your team overall, whether they be compliance and legislation training or related to a specific set of skills required for undertaking your role. For example, these can be: 

• Clinical Incident Investigation 

• Open Disclosure 

• Change Management 

• Patient Centred Care 

Research thoroughly into course learning outcomes can help prepare you to put forward a compelling case to your manager.  
 

Identify Appropriate Mode of Delivery 

With the demanding schedules of healthcare professionals, sometimes finding the time for training and development can be challenging. Virtual training or short course options in healthcare have become increasingly popular due to their flexibility and convenience.  

Self-paced e-Learning enables learners to progress at their own pace, fitting education around their own schedules. Meanwhile, face-to-face training can have its own set of advantages, particularly when done with teams that require collective upskilling. There may be specific needs of the team that trainers can focus on, and this allows for teams to improve together.  

Outline how the training will fit into your schedule and how setting aside time for training will enable you to contribute more effectively to the team in the long run.  

Highlight the Benefits 

Ultimately, you want to demonstrate how gaining expertise in that area will allow you to contribute more effectively to the team and improve the way you deliver care to your patients. Highlight how because of the training, you and/or your team will be able to: 

• Increase productivity 

• Enhance collaboration 

• Enable efficient resource utilisation  

• Better meet patient needs 

• Improve compliance  

• Stay on top of industry trends 
   

Show Commitment and Enthusiasm  
Clearly communicate your genuine interest in the training program and how it aligns with your career goals. Highlight specific aspects of the training that excite you and explain why you are eager to participate. 

Be Prepared for Compromise 
When requesting training and development opportunities, demonstrating your commitment and willingness to compromise can significantly increase your chances of gaining your manager’s approval. 

If immediate training is not available, you can keep track of future enrolment dates, schedule check-ins with your manager to discuss progress and revisit training opportunities when feasible.
 

Got a specific training requirement based on your organisation needs? 

If your team does have a specific training requirement in mind based on your unique organisation context, you can also request custom training from our AHCS Improvement Academy experts.  

These sessions run in addition to the scheduled public workshops and can be delivered on-site at a location requested by the organisation, or virtually. 

Presenters were extremely well prepared and provided excellent narratives throughout the course. Course was kept relevant, succinct and interactive.  

- Pari Gurusamy, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist,  
Custom Training Participant 
 

For more information about our custom training, or to request a session please complete our custom training enquiry form here.