Emerging Training Leaders Awards FAQ
Q: What is the Emerging Training Leaders Awards program?
A: Training’s Emerging Training Leaders Awards program recognizes training professionals in the industry for 2 to 10 years who have demonstrated exceptional leadership skills, business acumen, and training instincts. Each year, 25 winners are chosen, with an additional 5 Emerging Training Leaders to Watch.
Q: Who can apply for the Emerging Training Leaders Awards?
A: Any company or organization, including vendors, can nominate someone. Each company can nominate up to 2 candidates. Self-nominations are not permitted. Nominations must come from a candidate’s manager, direct report, co-worker, peer/colleague, or client.
Q: When is the next nomination deadline?
A: 2025 Emerging Training Leader nominations are due 11:59 p.m. Eastern on June 16, 2025.
Q: How do I apply?
A: Download the nomination form.
Q: How much does it cost to nominate a candidate?
A: There is no fee to nominate someone.
Q: When is the Emerging Training Leaders Awards Ceremony?
A: The Awards Ceremony where winners receive their crystal awards takes place during the Training Conference & Expo at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Orlando, FL; the ceremony for the 2024 winners will be held held February 18, 2025, and will be followed by a buffet lunch. Each winner can bring a guest to the lunch.
Q: When was content about the 2023 winners published?
A: Training magazine’s March 2024 issue includes the profiles of the 2023 Emerging Training Leader winners. The March 2025 issue will contain the profiles of the 2024 winners.
Q: When will content about the 2024 Emerging Training Leader winners be published?
A: Training magazine’s March 2025 issue will include the profiles of the 2024 Emerging Training Leader winners. The issue will mail after February 19, 2025. Each winner will receive a copy of the issue.
Q: How do you determine the 25 winners?
A: Training judges (members of the Training Hall of Fame and Training’s Editorial Advisory Board and Editor/Publisher Lorri Freifeld) score each nominee on a variety of factors, including:
- Number and scope of new and current responsibilities and their importance to the business (6 points)
- Training initiative (20 points total):
Level of potential business impact (i.e., revenue generation, new product launch, change initiative, new technology launch): 0-3 points
Level of difficulty of challenges faced: 0-2 points
Project scope (companywide, individual functions, global vs. national, etc.): 0-3 points
Business unit goal the program aimed to help achieve: 0-2 points
Instructional design (learning objectives linked to business outcomes; level of leadership involved in design, development, and facilitation; reinforcement): 0-3 points
Innovation of training: 0-3 points
Business outcomes achieved/expectations met: 0-4 points
- Leadership/business skills utilized: (up to 1 point for quality of each example; plus 3 points for Level 3 and 4 results for each section for a total of 14 points)
- Readiness to lead the Training or Learning & Development function (2 points for timing and 3 point for reason(s) why; for a total of 5 points)
Within the skills and training initiative sections, the judges look for training strategically linked to measurable, numerical business/business unit goals; demonstrable Kirkpatrick Level 3 (behavior change) and 4 (business outcomes) results; and innovation.
The 25 nominees who earn the highest total scores are named the winners.
Q: When will I be notified if my nominee has been named an Emerging Training Leader winner?
A: Judging takes place in July. Winners and their nominators are notified by the beginning of September. The Top 5 winners receive a free registration to the following year’s Training 2025 Conference & Expo. The other winners receive a discount to the conference; the nominators of all 25 winners also receive a discount to the conference.
Q: I have other questions. How can I contact you?
A: Send an email to Editor/Publisher Lorri Freifeld at lorri@trainingmag.com. She will be happy to answer any questions you may have throughout the application process.