“Nobody Trained Me That Way” Is a Leadership Problem

When employees perform the same task differently, the problem may not be the employee. Consistent training creates consistent standards.

There are few phrases that make a chef stop faster than:

“Nobody trained me that way.”

Especially when you're standing there thinking:

We've been doing it this way for six months.

Apparently, "we" was doing some heavy lifting in that sentence.

I once watched three people make the same menu item three different ways.

Same kitchen.

Same shift.

Same recipe.

Three interpretations.

It was less of a standardized recipe and more of a culinary choose-your-own-adventure.

Before Blaming the Employee, Look at the Training

We sometimes assume people know things because we know them.

But were they actually trained?

Were they shown the standard?

Did they practice it?

Did anyone follow up?

Or did somebody point toward the station on their first day and say:

“You'll figure it out.”

Because that's not training.

That's a scavenger hunt.

Training Creates the Standard

Good training should answer:

• What does right look like?

• Why do we do it this way?

• How do I know I've done it correctly?

• Who do I ask when I'm unsure?

Then leadership needs to follow up.

Because training without follow-up eventually becomes interpretation.

And interpretation becomes inconsistency.

Final Thought

When three employees do something three different ways, don't immediately ask:

“What's wrong with them?”

Ask:

“How did we train them?”

Consistency starts with the standard.

But it sticks through training.