Business guru Peter Drucker once noted that we live in an age characterised by the three Cs: constant change, infinite complexity and intense competition. This was before the current global financial crisis. The question many corporate heads, professionals and entrepreneurs are asking is, "How will we survive and thrive amid these dire economic realities?"

The answer is, now more than ever before, "You have to gain the competitive advantage." You will find that this applies to individuals as much as it does to companies.

Mark McElroy, business innovation expert, explains: "Variously referred to as intellectual capital, intellectual property, knowledge assets, or business intelligence, corporate knowledge is now being viewed as the last and only sustainable untapped source of competitive advantage in business."

compete successfully

In simple terms, only individuals who are constantly learning and upgrading their skills and business competencies can compete successfully in today's treacherous marketplace.

Top companies and professionals know this. That is the reason the top 20 per cent of companies in terms of profitability reinvest about three per cent or more of their revenues into training and developing their people. Through this targeted, ongoing training, these top earners become masters of time management, leadership, communication, sales, customer service and team building. Training, for them, is not an expense, but a high yield investment. Here's why.

Is it time for you to go back to school? Traditionally, companies sent their staff to seminars, or invited the leading specialists inside. They also utilised their human-resource professionals to impart knowledge, and audio and video training programmes and written materials for ongoing study.

Today, however, online training yields the greatest return on investment for companies. For corporate training and personal development, one option is iLearningGlobal at web address http://www.ilearningglobal.biz/wealthycoach. iLearningGlobal offers the world's largest assemblage of business and personal development experts, addressing every subject relevant to your business growth.

how to use a bad economy

Other useful information that you will discover includes how to use a bad economy to get rid of bad employees and hire superstars. There is also the leadership test: in bad times, do you cut or create, hunker down or boldly build?

Training can also focus on specific tax and asset-protection strategies to save big money and ways to leverage your competition's fears and cutbacks. Training also shows step by step how to get rid of poor customers while capturing new, ideal clients. In a world which is rapidly changing, it's time to discover what training can do for you.

Glenford Smith is a motivational speaker and success coach.

glenfordsmith@yahoo.com