There are three important things in a training course:
Other good things are decent manuals and how much you learn.
At Perl Training Australia we like to think that we're pretty ace on the first criteria, but largely the second and third have been out of our hands.
We hire our labs and we go with whatever lunch system they provide. If this means organising our own we do that too. If the lunch system is vouchers then we hope that the attendees can find something they like. This has usually worked out okay.
Support staff (ie the people running the training center) make a big difference to the third item. Fortunately, we've been pretty lucky with our training centers. Apparently there are at least 6 in the yellow pages. We were approached by one in our first year and (eventually) went with them. They're big, they're everywhere, they provide uniform service, are clean and professional.
Unfortunately they're big, they provide uniform service and typically they're professional rather than friendly. Oh, and pjf doesn't like coffee that's been keeping warm all day.
We've recently gotten a call from another training facilities organisation and went to visit them today. They're small, they're kooky, they're overwhemingly friendly and possibly honest to the point of disadvantage.
They're also cheaper than their competition and don't charge cancellation fees.
They'll organise catering and provide fruit, cakes, lollies, tim tams and chocolates during morning and afternoon teas (rather than just biscuits).
I'm certain that if we were running late our course attendees would be given extra friendly attention rather than being told to sit around until we arrived.
So, this new place seems to improve options 2 and 3 quite nicely.
We'll probably make the switch.
Gack, the coffee... You know it's bad when you reach for the instant rather than brave the 'freshly brewed' coffee which is supplied.
When you're going to travel interstate or overseas, and you know that the training lab is going to be much the same as the one at home, including the coffee... Well, you start to think about smuggling in your own coffee.
The training facilities we visited today had an espresso machine. For me, that's a a really big win.
Oh yeah, their staff were friendly, and they share an office with Red Hat as well. That certainly helps.
