How to conduct a training needs analysis

1. It's a fact

A training need exists when an employee lacks the knowledge or skill to perform an assigned task satisfactorily. To decide if training is the answer, one basic question needs to be asked: ‘Does the employee know how to meet the required performance standards for an accountable task?’ If the answer is ‘No’, then training is needed.

2. Viewpoint

"If your training needs are outsourced, you should expect the training organisation to conduct a needs assess-ment or training audit.

The training agency should distribute surveys, conduct interviews, lead focus groups, or observe the dynamics of the organisation. The more familiar the trainer becomes with the mission, structure, people, and problems in your organ-isation, the more effective the training will be. This pretraining phase may range from a few hours of work to several months of research and analysis. The nature of the needs assessment depends on the organis-ation, the scope of the training program, and the organisation’s budget."

3. Here's an idea

Are you alert to the training needs of your employees? Why not have each of your employees write down a list of skills that other people in your department have that they would like to learn. Arrange for them to be cross-trained in these skills, one at a time. …