Scenario for Assignments 1

Assume that you are a training manager at a hypothetical organization where the Director of Human Resources has asked you to develop a training program for the organization’s 200 employees. (Note: You may create and /or make all necessary assumptions needed for the completion of these assignments. In your original work, you may use aspects of existing training programs from either your current or a former place of employment, or from an organization with which you are familiar. However, in those instances, you must remove any and all identifying information that would enable someone to discern the organization(s) that you have used.). You will need to identify the subject area for your training. You may choose a training program that currently exists but is not meeting the needs of the organization; however, you will need to clearly explain this in your training needs assessment. The training program may focus on the company as a whole or on a specific department. Keep in mind, however, the training is intended to improve the organization’s performance (e.g., bottom line, outcomes)

 

NOTE THAT THE REFERENCES SHOULD NOT BE MORE THAN 5 YEARS OLD

Assignment 1: Training Process Model
Due Week 2 and worth 120 points

Write a page paper in six (6) in which you:

1. Provide an overview of the organization, including its mission, vision, and strategic goals. (1-2 pages)
2. Explain the reasons or need for the training program within the organization and explain its purpose: Why is the training needed? (1-2 pages).
3. Analyze the Training Process Model in Chapter 1 of the textbook and explain how this model would support the training program that you are developing. Does the model need to be changed in order to accommodate your organization’s needs? If so, explain and justify the changes.
4. Explain the tasks that will be performed in each phase of the process.
5. Include at least three (3) relevant peer-reviewed references (no more than five [5] years old) from material outside the textbook.

 

Below is the Readings and Training Model from Chapter 1

Analysis Phase

The analysis phase begins with the identification of the organizational performance gap (AOP is less than EOP). Things such as profitability shortfalls, low levels of customer satisfaction, or excessive scrap are all examples of a current performance gap. Another type of performance gap is future oriented. Here, the company is seen as likely to perform poorly in the future unless changes are made. For example, if an organization wanted to install robotic equipment in six months but employees were not able to program the robots, then there is an expected performance gap in the future. Once a performance gap exists, the cause must then be determined.*

FIGURE 1-3 Training Processes Model

 

Once the cause is determined, and its elimination is believed to be important, the elimination of the cause becomes a “need” of the organization

The analysis phase is often referred to as a training needs analysis (TNA). However, both training and nontraining needs are identified with this process, so it is incorrect to say it only focuses on training needs. The cause of the performance gap might be inadequate knowledge, skills, or attitudes (KSAs) of employees. If so, then training is a possible solution. However, KSA deficiencies are only one of many reasons for performance gaps. Other reasons, such as motivation or faulty equipment, must be separated from KSA deficiencies, as these are nontraining needs and require a different solution. In the analysis phase, the causes of a performance gap are identified, whether due to KSAs or something else. Those performance gaps caused by KSA deficiencies are identified as “training needs” because training is a solution. All other causes are defined as nontraining needs, and require other types of solutions.

The analysis phase also attaches priorities to the training needs that are identified. Not all needs will have the same level of importance for the company. This process of data gathering and causal analysis to determine which performance problems should be addressed by training is the analysis phase of the training process. It will be discussed in great detail in Chapter 4.

Design Phase

The training needs identified in the analysis phase, as well as areas of constraint and support, are the inputs to thedesign phase. An important process in the design phase is the creation of training objectives. These provide direction for what will be trained and how. They specify the employee and organizational outcomes that should be achieved as a result of training and become inputs to the development and evaluation phases of the model. As such they become the evaluation objectives.

*There are often multiple causes of a performance gap, but we are using a single cause here for simplicity.

Another part of the design process is determining how the organizational constraints will be addressed by the training. Finally, identifying the factors needed in the training program to facilitate learning and its transfer back to the job are key outcomes from the design phase. All of these factors are used to create the guidelines for how the training will be developed. The design phase is the topic of Chapter 5. Chapters 6 and 7 provide detailed descriptions of the various methods that can be used to deliver the content of the training.

Development Phase

Development is the process of using the guidelines from the design phase to formulate an instructional strategy that will meet the training objectives. Obtaining or creating all the things that are needed to implement the training program is also a part of this phase. The instructional strategy describes the order, timing, and combination of methods and elements to be used in the training program to meet the objectives. The training objectives provide the focus for program development and the guidelines from the design phase set the parameters for what will and will not work. Outputs from this phase are all of the things needed to implement the training program. These include the specific content for of the training, instructional methods used to deliver the content, materials to be used, equipment and media, manuals, and so forth. These are integrated into a coherent, well-organized training plan focused on achieving the training objectives. These outputs of the development phase serve as inputs to the implementation phase. Both the development phase and the implementation phase are the focus of Chapter 8.

Implementation Phase

All the previous phases of the training process come together during the implementation phase. It is useful to conduct a dry run or even a pilot of the program before actually delivering the training. This dry run, or pilot program, allows for the testing of the training to determine if any modifications are necessary before it is ready to go live.Chapter 8 addresses the key aspects of the dry run and delivery of the training.

Evaluation Phase

Although we discuss this phase of the model last, it actually begins during the development phase. Recall that evaluation objectives are an output of the design phase. In the design phase the training objectives were identified, and these were used in the development phase to create the instruments and measures that will be used to evaluate the training. These become inputs to the evaluation phase. More input comes from the organizational constraints. Time, money, and staff all affect how training is evaluated. Two types of evaluation are useful. First, process evaluation determines how well a particular training process achieved its objectives (i.e., outputs). In other words, did the trainer follow the exact training process suggested? For example, if role-plays were in the design, were they used properly? Collecting and analyzing process data can provide early warning of potential problems in the training program.

Outcome evaluation is the evaluation conducted at the end of training to determine the effects of training on the trainee, the job, and the organization. This type of evaluation uses the training objectives as the standard. Outcome evaluation can also be used to improve training processes. Outcome evaluation data by themselves do not provide enough information for program improvement, but in combination with process evaluation data, they serve as a powerful tool for improving programs. For example, if one or more objectives are not achieved, the training process evaluation data can then be used to identify problems in the process and corrective action can be taken. Chapter 9provides a detailed discussion of the evaluation