Let’s briefly understand what a training process is and how it is planned and developed to meet the requirements of any organization in this blog.
First, we will go through what a training process is and what it entails.
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Training Process and Development
For organizations to consistently have a competitive advantage in the market, they should keep up with the latest technologies and help their employees develop and grow through constant change. Systematic training and development within a company boost the core competencies of its employees. It also includes sharing information and guides on how to optimize employee performance on specific tasks.
Training addresses the current requirements of employees to understand and handle specific processes and operatives, and it is typically led by the management as a short-term process. Development, on the other hand, is meant for executives and is a continuous process to help develop personalities and management skills.
Any organization that wants to achieve a level of excellence should smartly and wisely invest in upskilling its employees. This is where the training and development process comes into the picture.
Objectives of a Training Program
- To ensure that the organization does not go through obsolescence
- To effectively and systematically improve employee skills
- To upskill the employees with the latest updates and technologies and ensure overall improvement in the performance
- To enhance knowledge for carrying out specific jobs
- To equip employees with diverse skills to make them capable of handling different jobs
- To create a positive impression on the employees toward the organization
- To instruct and educate the employees on the efficient handling of equipment, materials, and the plant
- To train employees to conserve resources, avoid wastages, and prevent pollution
- To ensure occupational health and safety in equipment handling
- To introduce management skills in the employees to help them take up higher responsibilities and positions
Learn about the different training methods in our blog on types of training and techniques.
Identifying Training Requirements of an Organization
Organizational Analysis
Organizational analysis is the systematic evaluation of an organization’s objectives, growth potential, resource base, environment, and other external elements. It serves as a determining factor for the type of training that needs to be in place for increased effectiveness.
Task Analysis
Task analysis is the systematic analysis of everything that is related to a task and how to accomplish it. For example, task allocation, task complexity, detailed manual and mental activity descriptions, environmental conditions, task frequency, task durations, required equipment and clothing, etc.
Manpower Analysis
Manpower analysis determines an activity’s manpower requirement after considering both internal and external factors. These factors could be based on the economic, technological, social, and political environments of the organization.
The training requirements for the manpower are based on certain quality standards that need to be met, such as:
- Particular areas where training is required
- The time frame for training
- The capability of the employees to pick up new skills
- Introducing new work methods and technologies for designing and redesigning jobs
Learn about training benefits in our blog on the Importance of Training and Development.
Types of Training Requirements
The need for training can arise due to the changes in tasks, poor performance, or employee changes. The first type of training requirement covers each and every employee of the organization. The second type caters to specific groups of people within the organization. The third addresses the individual needs of an employee who has to take on a new position within the organization.
Training can be a one-time requirement, recurring, or a continuous one, or it can change over a period of time. The scope of training can be short-term or long-term, depending on the requirements. The identification of training requirements is done through appraisal sheets, supervisor’s assessments, self-assessments, peer reviews, systematic investigations, and structured assessments.
Planning the Training and Development Process
For maximum implementation, efficiency, and effectiveness, the training procedure requires planning, organization, and proper conceptualization for both long term and short term periods. The planning process should include operational-level planning and should consider all the participants’ capabilities.
Check out the following steps in the training process:
- Identification of objectives
- Selection of appropriate training strategies, content, materials, and evaluation techniques
- Prior skills and knowledge of trainees
- Training format
- Focus on behavioral aspects
- Instructional procedures and training aids
- Learning curve
Learning Curve
A number of factors affect the learning curve such as the task difficulty and the rate at which an employee can learn.A learning curve has three stages:
Stage 1: The initial rapid learning
Stage 2: The tapering of the learning
Stage 3: The fluctuating learning
A well-planned training process can result in a virtuous learning cycle as shown below.
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Principles of Developing a Training Process
- The trainee must have a motivation to learn.
- The training material must be relevant to the purpose.
- The training should have variety to avoid boredom and fatigue.
- The employees should start practicing everything they learn during the training process.
- The training material has to be well-organized, properly presented, and readily available to the trainees.
- The training should typically be divided into short sessions spread over a long time.
- Feedback from the trainees can help improve the training process.
The Training Cycle
The training cycle involves the development, delivery, and continuous improvement of a training program. It consists of systematic stages that ensure better training results. The training cycle starts long before a training session and lasts beyond the end of the training process. Besides the actual training, it also includes planning, development, and reviewing stages.
The phases/stages of training cycle are listed below:
- Identification and assessment of the training requirements
- Designing of the training program
- Development of the training program
- Delivery of the training
- Application in learning
- Reviewing the training program
The first phase of the training cycle helps determine whether there is even a need for training and, if so, what exactly is the objective. Accurately identifying the requirements saves a lot of time, effort, and money. Once establishing the training requirements, the program can be designed in the second stage, and one can decide on the best form of delivery—instructor-led, blended, on-the-job training, etc.
The third phase entails the actual development of the training program through materials such as PowerPoint presentations, team activities, job aids, assessments, etc. The delivery stage is when the actual training happens as per the plan.
After the completion of the training, the trainees can then apply the knowledge practically on the job tasks they are working on. This gives the employees the chance to evaluate and review whether the training helped them or not and, thus, allowing the organization to improve the training program.
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Conclusion
In simple terms, a good training and development program is designed keeping in mind the requirements of the organization, the kind of employees, the skills of the employees, the end objectives, and the job profile of the employees.