Learner readiness is a factor in the motivation to transfer category. Learner readiness is the extent to which individuals are prepared and ready to participate in a program. All too often when we're running programs, we have participants who show up to the training program not knowing why they're there. They're not sure what they're going to learn. They have no background information, and don't really have an idea of how the contents fit with their job. Learning is an active not a passive process. And a learner needs to be engaged either mentally or physically in the process. Human beings act to satisfy their needs, as we know from Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Learners will be motivated to engage more in experiences that they perceive will best fulfill their needs. So understanding how the training will support and add value to their work or their personal development prior to the event ensures a higher level of engagement. We consistently find in all of our work, the support from the trainee's direct manager and involvement in the line, early in the process is an important factor. Managers play a crucial role in supporting transfer, as they are the ones that control resources, work projects, assignments. They set performance expectations, can give feedback, coaching, and reinforcement. They can use their fundamental management competencies and apply them to support and improve learning transfer in their organization. So having them work with a learner prior to a program, in preparation of the program, impacts transfer results. So a learner who is well prepared, has thought about challenges, knows how the learning relates to their work, and is clear about their purpose and what impact their training should have on their job post-program, will achieve higher rates of transfer than someone who is ill or not prepared at all. So what are some of the likely causes of problems and barriers that block learner readiness? Managers may not recognize the value of training, or they don't understand how learning transfer and performance are linked. Or managers may not have been involved in the needs assessment nor the design process, so may not consider the program content relevant. Managers may not have been sufficiently involved in decisions about what training is needed or who needs the training. They may not have made their employees accountable for applying their learning. And they themselves may not be held accountable for the performance outcomes of their trainees following their learning events. For learners attending a training program it's important that they see the relevance of what they're learning. And that they have an adequate basic knowledge of the content being presented. They need to be able to link theory to practice and have strategies for translating that content to their context.