Training Fees
Training fees are simply the amount payable for training delivered. The business side of training includes the training fees and the terms and conditions. Some training companies insist their fees are paid well in advance of the training. Others are happy to have their invoice paid following the training, but inside their terms. Some charge an amount per participant. Other charge for the training time. There are lots of ways to do this, but the most important part is that value from the perspective of the client is achieved. Another key part training fees relates to motivation. Money does not motivate everyone, but it can demotivate everyone. If you’re not paid what you feel is fair this can dilute your drive.
This page explores different ways of training fees. It also gives an overview of terms and conditions. For specifics on our training fees please complete the little enquiry form below.
Daily Rates
Daily rates mean that the client pays £x for having training for that day. A day can be anything from 8.00am to 6.00pm or 9.30am – to 4.30 pm. It can also include split days. Typically this means half day training fees. A half day can be 8.00am to 1.00pm or 9.30am to 11.30am. These are usually more than just half the daily rate because it’s not always possible to arrange any other fee work, so there is the opportunity cost to consider. Daily rates are very common in training and in consultancy. They can vary in amount very widely. We’ve met consultants who charge training fees of £300 per day and others who charge £3000 per day. And there are others who charge more. But most charge somewhere in the middle.
Hourly Rates
Hourly rates can be used for coaching, seminars and meeting facilitation work. A coaching session can take one or two hours. A seminar might be taster session or just a demo of what is possible. Facilitating a meeting can be just an hour meeting or an all day meeting. An hourly rate often works well in these situations, to give flexibility on all sides.
Project Fees
We’ve worked on project fees for a number of clients. The project fee is useful when there is a block of work to do. One example is where we were asked to run six half day sessions as a series for the same participants over a 6 month period. We agreed a project fee for the work as this suited the client’s budget system better than invoices for each session.
Varying Fees for Different Work
The same training company or consultant may charge different training fees for different work. Facilitating a management team or company board meeting is expected to attract a higher rate than delivering a more off the shelf session on say, team leadership.
It tends to depend on perceived value, but other factors are the number of participants, seniority of participants, complexity of the session, demands of the training, and the sheer challenge of the session objectives.
Fees linked to ROI
ROI (Return On Investment) is to some the holy grail of training. Can you prove that the training resulted in revenue growth or cost reduction, more than the cost of the training itself.
We have used an ROI training fee structure. It makes things a bit more exciting but the risk must be shared. Less is paid if targets are not met, but then more is paid if there is success.
With one client we agreed a 20:1 ROI, or 5% fee. If we could help them to deliver revenue growth of £x we would receive a fee of 5% of this growth.
They tested this approach in one market, as they saw it the most challenging market. It worked, We delivered and then they gave us three or four other markets.
Whilst this is an interesting way of structuring training fees there needs to be commitment from both sides to work on the details at the outset. It also needs to include ‘what if’ scenarios, and what happens if success is almost achieved or massively over achieved.
Value
Of course training fees are really only an expression of value. What value do you put on training? Does it depend on the outputs? Does it depend on the participants’ feedback. Is it based on how easy we are to work with? Probably all of these elements and more are relevant.
In the end it’s about your perception of value. We have to understand what that is and then at least meet your expectations, and hopefully exceed them.
Terms & Conditions
Our Ts&Cs (Terms & Conditions) are very simple. They include; definition of the parties; training fee structure; expectation of when invoices are paid stated in days from receipt of invoice; overview of expenses including mileage rates, class of travel etc; expectations of receipts to be submitted; intellectual property; confidentiality and signatories.
We ask for a copy of our terms and conditions to be signed by a client representative as a form of contract.
Discounts
Discounts are always possible when there is a good reason. This might be for an opportunity. For some clients we offer an early payment discount. Very often this is useful when a project fee has been arranged. Of course volume discounts are also possible.
Start the conversation
For details of our fees on a specific piece of work just complete the little form below.
Call us on +44 (0)800 804 8086
