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How To Develop a Cost-Effective Training Program
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Business New Haven
11/12/2001
By:
Susan Cornell
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At the U.S. Department of Labor's first 21st Century Workforce Summit, President Bush said, “The great strength of the American economy is our workforce.” He also noted that “We should try to make it easier for people to find good jobs by giving them the education and training they need to succeed.”
One of today's greatest business challenges is the search for a sustainable competitive advantage. Questions concern fundamental issues of how work and learning occur in the workplace, including how leadership is practiced, how work is organized, how training is connected to performance and how a business culture is created. The American Society for Training & Development (ASTD) has found that the most consistent competitive advantage for business, and for individual employees, is the ability to learn faster and perform more efficiently than the competition.
Recent ASTD studies show that technical training is increasingly being brought in-house. Many companies have adopted the philosophy of “Bring us people who are willing to work and have good work habits (e.g., attendance, interpersonal skills, a willingness to learn, the ability to align with the company's mission and vision), and we will provide the technical training just the way we want it.”
The next wave of critical training initiatives will be in the area of what was once called “soft skills.” These proficiencies are now becoming the most important frontier for modern businesses in the service, technology and manufacturing sectors. These interpersonal skills are no longer “soft”; on the contrary, they are now key to rapid response, speed to market for products and services, team-building and optimizing organizational synergy.
These skills are in fact the hard skills of the information age and the key to leveraging massive amounts of information into a competitive advantage. But how does a company adapt, stay abreast or even get ahead of the wave?
The Office of Business and Industry Services provides training and educational services to industry, the workforce and state agencies within Gateway Community College's service area. Customized on-site programs provide a cost-effective way to train employees. The office has access to the resources of the statewide Community College Business & Industry Services Network (www.commnet.edu/bisn/) and has developed a number of key relationships with area companies and service agencies.
The programs are developed only after careful consideration and pre-assessment to determine the client's needs. Each pre-assessment is specific to the particular client and is used not only to determine the source of the issue, but also to decide if training is the solution.
Pre-assessment involves asking a battery of questions; many times the solution emerges because the right questions were asked. All stakeholders - owners, managers, frontline supervisors, operators, operatives, vendors - are involved where possible. The atmosphere is informal and relaxed. The pre-assessment is designed to:
1) Identify the problem;
2.) Identify the optimum preferred outcomes;
3.) Determine what it takes to achieve results; and
4.) Make a recommendation or recommendations that will result in a solution that meets the client's needs exactly.
Desired competencies are then identified. In the area of office skills, these might include typing, clerical and accounting proficiency while in the area of leadership skills, competencies might include written and verbal communications, or the ability to motivate or envision the company's future goals and objectives. Competencies can be refined as needed to reach the individual and group goals and objectives.
Once the desired competencies are identified, the participants deliver competencies to the workplace. The instructors and facilitators design assignments; these usually have tie-ins with the everyday work cycle such as creating a brochure or a mailer or a part of a standard catalogue. The participant's ability to perform can be measured within these exercises. Measurements may include speed to market, accuracy and creativity.
An employer should implement ROI studies to validate his or her investment. Implementing ROI starts with the assessment as that is when the employer should decide on the “measurables.” Frequently, companies do not believe that useful data exists. In truth, the data usually exists but may be difficult to uncover. Many times companies focus on the metrics (measurements) that do not truly represent the issues on which they would like to work.
To develop a cost effective training program, the Office of Business & Industry Services suggests the following steps:
• Be open and honest about your concerns, needs and the optimum results that you expect.
• Be patient. If you have lived with this problem for years it is unlikely that a solution will emerge from the first meeting.
• Allow access to your information (everything is confidential).
• Big problems may need incremental solutions and may take some time. The adage, “Eat the Elephant one bite at a time” may apply.
• Always involve top management.
• Agree upon the measures for success.
• Do it!
On-site programs can provide a cost-effective way to train your employees. With seminars tailored to meet the needs of your group and scheduled at your convenience, you should be well positioned to seek the sustainable competitive advantage.
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