It was there that we decided that our plan was worth trying out. We could and should challenge the training industry. From the beginning, we knew that we would build a multinational, respected and innovative training company. With large scale and practically applied training initiatives, we wanted to create measurable results with our clients. Simultaneously, we wanted to create the workplace that we always dreamed of.

Early on our journey, one of our mentors told us that it takes a year to see if the idea is solid, 3 years to see if we could all get along as business partners, and 10 years to see if the company could survive all the different turns of the market. After that, we would have a company to run for as long as wanted. We got to experience the ups and downs of the market in 2001-2004, when the training industry had its worst years in a long time.

Mindset came out on the other side even stronger, and we were even more determined to succeed.

In 2008, it had been 10 years and we could exhale for a short while before it was time to shift into a higher gear. Mindset was now an established player in the industry. We were working with large organizations, we had large training initiatives and we had established ourselves on the international level with collaboration and an office in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Now it was time to dive into the question of how to measure the benefits of training. This was the magic question that had eluded our industry.

A large part of our strategy, from the very beginning, was “Using technology as leverage”.  Now we started looking for the answer to how digitalization could advance development of our core business – training. Through establishing partnerships with Professor Robert Brinkerhoff  and Dr. Jim Kirkpatrick, we started researching why only 1 of 6 participants use their new skills after training.

From this, Promote was born in 2011. In 2012, our method of training was transformed, mostly due to the digitalization of our trainings. With Promote, we got the opportunity to create more effective training, which allowed us to become even closer to the client organization.

In 2016, BEI (Brinkerhoff Evaluation Institute) began a study of 7 of our large customers to measure the effect of training initiatives, but also to see if they had led to measurable, factual business results. The study included leadership training in 6 different companies in 7 different industries with 616 participants and 441 coaches – from managers to participants. The study showed that Mindset measured at 81% impact compared to the 16% training industry average.

The impact, or learning transfer, describes how well the participants convert their learning after the course into their daily work. If a training has high impact, then it has a strong effect on both the individual and the organization.

In 2018, we celebrated our 20 year anniversary. And as icing on the cake, we won not one, but two Golds in the Excellence in Leadership Development category at the Brandon Hall Excellence Awards for our leadership programs with Scania and PEAB. This is proof that what we are doing leads to what we want – “continuous success for our customers.”

What started as a company 20 years ago is now a Group. The Mindset group includes Mindset, Promote, PM Ideas, Induction and Avidity. With our engagement measurements, our leadership development, our High Performance Learning Journeys and our continual striving for measurable results, we are ready for the next 10 years.