How do you build internal capability so we are not dependent on external consultants?
This is the right question and it shapes how a behavioral science engagement should be designed from the start. The goal is not to create a permanent consulting dependency. It is to transfer diagnostic and design capability to the internal team.
The SHIFT methodology is taught through a six-week training program that builds this internal capability. The structure follows the same behavioral principles it teaches: specify what the learner should be able to do, build capability through practice (not just knowledge transfer), and create the conditions for sustained application.
What the training builds:
Participants learn to specify target behaviors (moving from vague change goals to observable, diagnosable behaviors), conduct COM-B diagnosis (classifying barriers using the validated framework), select matched interventions (using the 33 strategy cards and the BCT/ERIC taxonomies), and design implementation plans that account for the behavioral realities of their organization.
The training uses a theory-practice-case study cycle. Each module introduces a concept (SHIFT, COM-B, intervention design, stakeholder engagement), then participants practice applying it to real organizational challenges, then they work through a group case study that integrates the concepts. This builds skill, not just knowledge.
Post-training, the internal team has the diagnostic tools, the strategy cards, the stakeholder decision matrix, and the intervention design framework. They can run behavioral diagnoses for new change initiatives, select and design matched interventions, and measure behavior change rather than just sentiment. The consulting relationship shifts from delivery to advisory: periodic reviews, complex case support, and methodology updates.
The "Enable Peer-to-Peer Teaching" strategy applies here too. The first cohort trained becomes the internal capability that trains the next cohort. That is how the methodology scales beyond the initial engagement.
