Although the settings of speakers/courses and conferences do not generally involve design, managers still have decisions to make. Conferences normally have upfront registration and/or tuition costs, so managers need to be sure to make good choices in terms of how they allocate their training and development budgets. Aside from costs, managers should consider a few key factors when deciding to send an employee to an off-site training or development option. One factor to consider is the content.

Managers should also make sure that there is a large degree of overlap between the content offered and the content identified as part of the needs analysis. Another reason an organization may still send an employee is social capital. Sometimes it isn’t about what an employee learns as much as it is about who that employee meets. If it is sending an employee to a training or development program, the organization wants some assurance that the employee will receive quality instruction and increase the likelihood of training transfer. Although a manager may not know the specific trainer ahead of time, the manager will hopefully have some experience with the organization or know of its reputation.