Needs Assessment - Conducting A Training Needs Analysis

Conducting A Training Needs Analysis

Conducting a training needs analysis is usually done to gauge what training is needed for new employees or to identify and find solutions to:

1. Problems with performance
2. New system, task or technology
3. An organizational need to benefit from an opportunity

Organizational training needs

There are many tools to gather information about employee performance, which work best in different circumstances.

• Observation: First hand observation and analysis in a setting in which the observer is not interfering with normal productivity. Used to gather first hand data about an employee's strengths and weaknesses.

• Interviews: Using a series of predetermined questions to gauge opinions and perceptions. This tool allows the employee to comment on their performance,and allows the interviewer to ask in depth questions about performance.

• Questionnaires: Allows for a big picture of the environment by asking respondents identical questions. Allows for more respondents than individual interviews, and takes less time. The data collected can be analyzed in a more quantitative way than with interviews.

• Job Descriptions: Study of all responsibilities of a certain job to define an employees expectations and responsibilities, allowing for more thorough training and supervision.

• The Difficulty Analysis: identification of an employee's duties that cause them the most difficulty, and allowing for more training in those areas.

• Problem Solving Conference: A conference setting that allows employees and other staff to identify a plan for a new task or technology and mold the training to it.

• Appraisal Reviews: Within a performance review, questioning the employee about their duties and training. Allows supervisor to uncover reasons for poor performance.

• Analysis of Organizational Policy: reviewing the organization's policy on training, and the amount and type of training offered to employees.

When using any of these methods, these three things should be kept in mind:

1. These tools should be used in combination, never rely on just one

2. They may be used to identify training needs in different groups or types of employees

3. They should be applied to individual employees because of variation in training between employees.