Identifying Training Needs for an Organization

Traning may be delivered in many different ways in an organization, and it can cover any relevant subject.The trainingin Arup Consulting seeks to bridge the gap between what the company’s employees can do and what they should be able to do. To develop a training program, an organization must identify the training needs and how they add value to the organization, determine the objectives of the training program, come up with learning activities, and finally evaluate the entire training program. Apart from the training process, an organization must also consider resource allocation and budgeting concerns. An effective training program should, therefore, have a link to business performance and support an existing business goal( Dawe & Nguyen, 2007). Based on the method of approach, training is categorized as either traditional, experimental or performance based. Arup used an experimental and performance–based training approach.The following training plan attempts to provide a training framework to assist in attaining the organizational goal of Arup Consultants to increase efficiency and improve customer relations. The learners are mostly management level employees.

Although training is crucial for an efficient work force, the process is time, effort and resource consuming. Therefore, most organizations will only enforce a training program when a business-specific need arises ( Dawe & Nguyen, 2007). A need may be in terms of performance or skill gaps identified in the organization. Possible waysof identifying a need may include running focus groups, running a needs assessment survey, giving pre-tests to determine the knowledge level or simply asking the target individuals. There exist three levels of need assessment, namely: individual assessment, occupational (task) assessment and organizational assessment. This training plan when used with the occupational assessment to determine the specific skills, knowledge, and performance needs to be required in the organization.

Arup Consulting has been plagued by a declining customer base and low organizational performance. There have been complaints from the clientsregarding the services offered by Arup. To further complicate the already dire situation, the management team is involved in a finger pointing argument whereby none of them is willing to take responsibility for the poor decisions that have led to the current problem. Training on effective communication skills is, therefore, necessary if Arupa is to attain its organizational goal.

There is an inherent lack of proper communication skills in Arup judging from the complaints lodged by clients, towards customers and to the employees themselves.The workers lack basic conversational courtesy. To attain the organizational goal of improving customer relations, Arup needs to launch a training program to sensitize the employees on proper and ethical communication skills. Both the younger employees and more experienced employees should have the relevant communication and managerial skills.Furthermore, conflicts related to subordination and disrespect may be avoided by training the employees on effective vertical and horizontal communication techniques.With improved the communication skills, the managers will be better equipped to delegate duties and consequently help solve disagreements and accusations among the employees. With the right vertical and horizontal communication ethics and a management teamthat is working as a cohesive and well-oiled unit, Arup should see success in attaining its goal.

Problems in Communication at Arup Consulting

The objectives of the program specify the new skills, abilities, and knowledge that the learners should accomplish from the training (Malamed, 2017).These objectives must be based upon the organization’s general training goal. According to Kark Smollan (2006), people respond to changes in their working lives through changes in their cognitive, affective andbehaviorallevels of attitude. The following objectives highlight what the learners will be able to do after the learning activities.

Exhibit required skills in appropriate and courteous communication with clients and peers

The employees must at the end of the training program display the communication skills necessary to communicate with customers and fellow employees. The objective seeks to bring about a cognitive change in attitude towards employees and thus eliminate the perception that employees of Arup are rude.

The training program will help the employees develop effective horizontal and vertical communication skills. This will contribute toward attaining Arup’s organizational goal. The employees, due to thepoor conveyance of information and duties, end up having conflicts with their peers, superiors, and subordinates. The organizationalhierarchy is a crucial structure to any company. This objective aims toenlighten the employees on appropriate methods of organizational communication by effecting a behavioral change in their approach to communication with fellowArupstaff,especially between the younger and older workforce.

After determining the objectives of the training program, the next step is to formulate how to achieve them. To achieve training objectives, it is necessary to apply learning activities and material that are tailored to both the trainingobjectives and the characteristics of the learners. The first thing to consider before developing a training plan is to understand the people to whom the training is intended (Lim & Morris, 2006). This includes but not limited to their educational backgrounds, pre-existing training, age groups, customs, and religions.The training activities and material must also keep adult learning principles in mind. Dirksen (2015) notes that what makes a learning experience great has more to do with the way the content is taughtthan the content itself.

To train the employees of Arup on effective communication skills that they should portrayamongst themselves and as they interact with customers, the training program with make use of games, lecture videos, and communication-related handouts. Field games such as soccer and other team-oriented games will be used to improve the interaction among the employees. Videos, handouts and practical examples with real customers will be used to enlighten the employees of ethical and professional qualities expected when interacting with their clients.

Objectives of the Training Program

To achieve the training objective related to vertical and horizontal communication, the program with conduct learning activities that require the learners to delegate duties tofellow employees for a month. Since Arup Consulting is comprised of a young and old workforce, the older employees will take a supervisory role in the training exercise. This is because they have a lifetime of experience, opinions and existing knowledge. The younger employees will then delegate duties amongst themselves in a practical organizational setting. This will ensure that conflicts arising from feelings of disrespect are avoided. Although the activity is practical and task-oriented, supportive learning materials will be provided through lectures, handout documents, and training videos.It is only by grounding the trainingin a real life setting that the training exercise will have a beneficial impact on the organization (Brookfield, 1986, p. 257).

To determine the impact of the training activities, their outcome, and relevance in achieving the objectives, it necessary for an organization to measure the effectiveness of the program (Kirkpatrick, 2006). Evaluation is often assumed to be the final analysis of outcomes after the training activities to determine whether those activities are successful or not in relation to the training objectives. People however change and develop throughout the learning process and often realize that what they thought were their mainperformance and skill gaps were merely masks for deeper problems(Brookfield, 1986, p. 256).

Kirkpatrick (1977) recommended a four criteria mechanism to evaluate a training program. This method evaluates the effectiveness of a training program based on the how the employees reacted to the program, what they learned, their job behavior after the training and quantifiable results. Taking these four levels into consideration, we should determine whether the management team appreciate the training program and what that they learned in relation to communication skill, problem solving and delegation of responsibility. After theprogram, the employees should be able to perform the tasks under contention and contribute towardsimproving customer relations and increasing the efficiency of Arup Consultants.

Based on assessmentfrequency and time, theformative and summative evaluation methods may be used. Under formative evaluation, useful or relevant information to determine the success of the training program will be collectedas the training goes on. This will be helpful in identifying unintended outcomes and drawbacks. Summative evaluation, on the other hand, will makeageneral assessment at the end of the program.

Information to evaluate the training program may be collected using evaluation sheets or by collaborative assessment. Program evaluation sheets measure the perception of learners concerning theprogram, needs addressed, skills and knowledge gained from the program, training needs raised and future issues. On the other hand, collaboration assessment puts emphasis on public assessment.Here the employees compare notes relating to purpose, accomplishment and future directions.The outcomes of the training must be performance-based, measurable and directly related to the training program’s objectives(Plaza et al., 2007, p. 20).

References

Brookfield, S., 1986. Understanding and facilitating adult learning: A comprehensive analysis of principles and effective practices. McGraw-Hill Education (UK).

Dawe, S. and Nguyen, N., 2007. Education and Training that Meets the Needs of Small Business: A Systematic Review of Research. National Centre for Vocational Education Research Ltd. PO Box 8288, Stational Arcade, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia.

Dirksen, J., 2015. Design for how people learn. New Riders.

Kark Smollan, R., 2006. Minds, hearts and deeds: Cognitive, affective and behavioural responses to change. Journal of Change Management, 6(2), pp.143-158.

Kirkpatrick, D.L., 1977. Evaluating training programs: Evidence vs. proof. Training Dev J.

Kirkpatrick, D.L. and Kirkpatrick, J.D., 2006. Evaluating training programs (ed.). San Francisco: TATAMcgraw Hill. ix-3.

Lim, D.H. and Morris, M.L., 2006. Influence of trainee characteristics, instructional satisfaction, and organizational climate on perceived learning and training transfer. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 17(1), pp.85-115.

Malamed, C. (2017). Learning Objectives. [online] The eLearning Coach. Available at:

https://theelearningcoach.com/category/elearning_design/objectives/ [Accessed 14 Sep. 2017].

McNamara, C., 2007. Complete guidelines to design your training plan.

McNamara, C., 2010. Field guide to leadership and supervision in business.

Open.lib.umn.edu. (2017). 8.4 Designing a Training Program | Human Resource Management. [online] Available at: https://open.lib.umn.edu/humanresourcemanagement/chapter/8-4-designing-a-training-program/ [Accessed 14 Sep. 2017].

Pashler, Harold, Mark McDaniel, Doug Rohrer, and Robert Bjork. “Learning styles: Concepts and evidence.” Psychological science in the public interest9, no. 3 (2008): 105-119.

Plaza, C.M., Draugalis, J.R., Slack, M.K., Skrepnek, G.H. and Sauer, K.A., 2007. Curriculum mapping in program assessment and evaluation. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 71(2), p.20.