Now that we’re fully into 2026 and are starting to shake off the cold, dark months, I wanted to take some time to reflect and share my thoughts on what we’re seeing in the training sector at the moment, and what businesses should be considering as they progress their plans for the year.
Across industries, the conversation around workplace safety is evolving and it’s no longer just about procedures or compliance - it’s increasingly about leadership, behaviours, wellbeing and team culture.
I believe the changes in how we work over the recent years have hugely impacted team dynamics, and in many cases, relationships have really suffered. Remote working, operational pressures, and distributed teams have reduced direct contact between leaders and their people and while in some cases that has meant flexibility has improved in some areas, the downside is often lower trust, less visibility and less communication - all of which are hugely detrimental to any business.
How Workplace Behaviours Are Changing
Trends that we have been observing include:
- Teams continuing to work remotely or in rotation without a strategic plan are continuing to see a reduction in informal learning, communication and accountability.
- Many businesses are now working to bring teams back together to address ongoing challenges, but are finding that rebuilding strong team dynamics is not straightforward
- Leaders are stretched more than ever at the moment – often leading teams across multiple sites and geographical locations, making it harder for them to build relationship, spot risky behaviour or provide immediate guidance.
- Due to tough economic conditions a lot of businesses have reduced headcount but not output which has increased pressure on operations, which unintentionally deprioritises safety conversations and team engagement resulting in a disengaged workforce
Studies show that strong relationships between leaders and teams are one of the most important predictors of safe behaviour and where these relationships weaken, the culture of accountability and responsibility that underpins safety can start to slip.
Insights from the Front Line
On a positive note, while there are certainly challenges facing businesses at the moment, I’ve also spent a lot of time over the past few months speaking with business leaders and owners who have recognised something important: the businesses that move forward successfully are the ones building strong, capable teams around them and a big part of that comes from taking a proactive and strategic approach to training.
Where I think many organisations go wrong is that training plans often become reactive and are built around mandatory requirements or introduced only when a gap appears. A truly effective training strategy should sit shoulder to shoulder with your wider business strategy.
Having supported hundreds of businesses over the years what I see time and time again is that success in business rarely comes from one individual - It comes from having a skilled team working together towards a common goal. That means continually asking yourself: what skills do we need to achieve our objectives? Not who do we need, but what capability do we need within the business?
Once you understand that, you can look at your existing team and ask who already has those strengths, and who has the potential to develop them with the right support and training.
Too often, training is viewed as a tick-box exercise - something organisations feel they must do but when it’s aligned with your strategic goals, it becomes something far more powerful: it’s a genuine investment in the future of your business.
One of the best pieces of advice I ever received as a young leader was: “Recruit for character.” You can train someone to do a job, but you can’t change personality or attitude and I’ve stood by that advice every day (thanks Stevie).
What it did mean, though, was that I always had to stay on the front foot with training. But what I found time and time again was that when you bring the right people into a business - people with a positive, can-do attitude - they embrace training and development. They genuinely want to learn, improve and contribute and that’s where you really start to see the difference.
The Leadership Gap
What we are seeing right now is that many organisations are experiencing a “leadership gap.” and that because in a lot of organisations (I’m guilty of having done this myself) leaders are often promoted for technical expertise rather than people skills and more often than not they have not have had structured development in leadership or safety behaviours.
Some current key trends reflect this challenge:
- Only 23% of employees strongly agree that leaders communicate effectively (Gallup).
- Nearly half of managers receive no formal management training (CIPD).
- Globally, just 21% of employees feel engaged at work, highlighting widespread disconnect between staff and leadership.
The truth is, having the wrong leaders or untrained leaders can be one of the most damaging things in your business. As a training provider we were starting to recognise that a lot of leadership training material no longer worked for the new ways leaders are having to lead and so in a bid to find a solution we have recently designed and brought to market a new Leadership offer:RIZE. RIZE has been meticulously to help people lead in this new fast pace, wide spread, rapidly advancing landscape.
You can read more about the course offering here .
Why Training Matters Across Sectors
In high-risk environments where small errors can have serious consequences the trends above show a growing need for practical development that focuses on behaviours, not just compliance.
At Rizon, our courses focus on both technical competence and leadership behaviours, helping organisations bridge these gaps without losing sight of real-world operational pressures. By providing structured development, organisations can support leaders and employees to make better decisions, work safely, and foster trust in teams - across every sector.
Building a Culture, Not Just Compliance
Creating a culture of safety and leadership doesn’t happen by ticking boxes - It requires continuous development, open dialogue, and consistent leadership behaviour. There is doubt that alongside attitude, training is the foundation for this.
Organisations that prioritise learning and leadership development are better equipped to adapt to changing workplace behaviours, strengthen safety culture, and protect both their people and operations.
Because let’s face it, a strong safety culture isn’t built through rules alone - it’s built through its people.