Why a Low NPS in Corporate Training Is Sometimes the Expected Result

When Training NPS Falls Below Expectations

Recently, I received a low NPS score after a training session. Lower than usual — by half. I analyzed why, and then realized I had known from the very beginning that this would happen.

The client’s goal was clear: they didn’t want employees generating new objectives. They needed the team to accept the existing ones and internalize them. The training was built around exactly that brief.

The Gap Between Client Goals and Employee Experience

The result: the client was satisfied. Everything went as planned. The employees — not so much.

I explained to the client that their objectives had been achieved, but that a real breakthrough was unlikely to follow. This is thin ice. A technical success, but a fragile one.

Setting the Right NPS Expectations Before Training Begins

Two takeaways I’m left with.

First, set the right expectations — before the training starts, not after. If the design is built around compliance rather than genuine engagement, a low NPS is not a failure. It is a predictable outcome. One you should name in advance.

Second, don’t walk on thin ice. It might hold once. It won’t hold over time.