Training or skills transition plans, a critical component of any integrated learning and development strategy, are often absent from businesses within the food supply chain. Without these plans, food businesses perpetuate compliance-focused training cycles that fail to foster meaningful behavioral change. This leads to substandard food safety practices and costly inefficiencies. Transition plans are frameworks for developing employee knowledge, skills, and behaviors essential for achieving safer food and stronger business performance.

Far too many food businesses rely on low-cost, off-the-shelf, generic training programs that often reflect a "one-size-fits-all" approach and fail to meet the specific needs of a food business. These programs rarely account for the nuances of a business' operations, such as the unique equipment, processes, or products used to ensure safe food production. They also overlook the evolving needs of employees and the business over time.

By neglecting transition plans, these training programs and the food businesses that adopt them miss the opportunity to combine strategic learning design, leadership and employee accountability, and practical application—the missing link between knowledge and true competence, driving better safety standards, employee performance, and business outcomes.

Turning Knowledge into Action

Food safety relies on people and their actions. While software programs like Learning Management Systems (LMSs) offer convenience for content delivery, administration and reporting on training completion rates, an over-reliance on these systems neglects the human aspect of learning. Effective training requires conversations, reflection, and hands-on application to bring food safety principles to life. Transition plans focus on turning knowledge into action and building a culture of competence.

A well-structured transition plan creates employees who:

• Understand the risks associated with the products they handle
• Know why managing these risks is critical
• Effectively manage risks in measurable ways.

Principles of Performance-Focused Learning

Food businesses can create impactful training programs by integrating performance-focused learning design, which includes:

• Targeted content: Tailoring training to address specific skills and knowledge gaps relevant to employees' roles.
• Retrieval practice: Encouraging learners to actively recall and apply information, strengthening memory and practical application.
• Scaffolding: Building understanding incrementally, introducing complex ideas as learners gain confidence.
• Spacing effect: When information is repeatedly learned, it is more effectively remembered when spaced over longer periods than shorter periods. Extended learning programs are far more effective than hastily cramming content for a one-off test. 

These principles enable businesses to design learning experiences that enhance food safety practices and overall performance.

Accountability and Leadership Engagement

Accountability in workplace learning is often overlooked. Success requires shared responsibility across employees, operational managers, and senior leadership.

• Senior leadership: Senior leaders must demonstrate their appreciation for the time and effort invested in training activities. They must actively establish clear training goals, align training programs with business objectives, and lead the shift from compliance to competence.
• Operational managers: Focus on the quality and application of training, supporting employees in the workplace, and ensuring ongoing accountability.
• Employees: Take ownership of their role, actively participate in upskilling training programs and maintain food safety standards.

Key actions include setting clear expectations, investing in continuous learning, and building feedback loops to measure and improve training effectiveness.

Case Study: Transformative Training in Action

Author Andrew Thomson's first introduction to a leadership role was within a multi-site foodservice environment. He encountered a highly industrialized, long-term workforce that was poorly skilled and resistant to change. With employees from 18 nationalities and varying language abilities, the food safety culture was weak, and employee training was nonexistent.

An inclusive, strategic training plan addressed these challenges. A skilled language and literacy trainer co-delivered practical, on-the-job sessions, building employee confidence and competence. The results were transformative:

• Improved understanding of food safety principles
• Reduced error rate and enhanced productivity
• Consistently met regulatory and accreditation standards
• Customer expectations were improved
• Equipment upgrades and new production methods were easier to introduce, leading to performance improvements.

One notable success story was Maria, a middle-aged kitchen worker for whom English was a second language. Maria lacked confidence, struggled to perform her tasks, and relied heavily on others for support. Through tailored training, Maria gained skills, became more independent, and improved her performance. Her transformation extended beyond the workplace—Maria even began learning to drive, a testament to the confidence and empowerment the training provided to her. 

This case study highlights how a thoughtful and well-executed training program with a transition plan can drive both individual and food business growth. It demonstrates the critical role of tailored strategies in fostering competence, improving performance, and meeting both business and employee development goals.

Key Success Factors in Training

Achieving lasting change requires the following actions:

• Behavioral change: Training must influence workplace habits and reinforce best practices
• Organizational commitment: Everyone, from leadership to front-line employees, must value training
• Accountability: Regularly monitor and review training outcomes
• Support and motivation: Managers must actively reinforce training objectives.

Building a Culture of Excellence

Transition plans are not just tools for today; they pave the way for future success. These plans result in:

• Higher performance through better employee skills and fewer errors
• Enhanced engagement by valuing employees' development
• Strengthened resilience to adapt to regulatory changes and market demands.

Call to Action

Food businesses must shift from compliance to competence, embedding transition plans as a core requirement of a learning and development strategy. This will lead to enhanced food safety standards, improve employee performance and business outcomes, and contribute to better public health outcomes. Now is the time to invest in smarter, human-centric training approaches that build capable, confident employees ready to uphold the highest standards.

Reflection Questions: 

1. In your food business, who has responsibility for overseeing training leading to behavioral change? 
2. How does your food business ensure that food handling employees and managers are adequately trained and can demonstrate competency and accountability in their food safety responsibilities?