[RAINDAY INSURANCE ADJUSTERS COMPANY] January 4, 2013

1. What do you see as the major problems at Rainday Insurance Adjusters Company? What are the causes of these problems?
Answer: A well functioning company reputed for the quality of work and quick

turnaround on the claims is suddenly struck by a misfortune. The major problems that the company is currently facing are explained as follows: The investment made in new computer systems meant that the equipment cannot be afforded to be underutilized so as to generate revenue to cover the capital investment. Increased voluntary turnover among the claim processors. There was increased dissatisfaction among the workers which resulted in decreased productivity and increased error. Half the time of employees was used in printing out the forms and then they had to go back and correct the errors on them as well. Friction between the old and new claim processors as the new ones was well trained to handle the new computer system but not the paperwork and on the other hand, old ones were capable of handling paperwork but not the computer system. So these are the major problems at the Rainday Insurance Adjuster Company and these problems are caused by following reasons: The company did not consult with the employees in taking such a big restructuring decision. The employees were not made to participate in the restructuring process which made them resist the change. This resistance resulted in old employees not attending the training sessions which was designed to enable them efficient use of new computer system.

Submitted by: Richa Joshi (12512), Dina Pradhan (12525)

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[RAINDAY INSURANCE ADJUSTERS COMPANY] January 4, 2013 The resistance to attend the training session was also because it was held in a high school and it meant that the employees had to go school for training session and this was not comfortable for them. The inability of the management to address the issue quickly also compounded the problem. The inability to address the problem on time meant that more and more employees left the job and the employees remaining in the company were displeased that their buddies left and were replaced by new employees capable of handling the computer in an effective manner. 2. Why the computer training offered was not successful?
Answer: The computer training offered was not successful because it was not

designed in a proper manner. The training program was held in high school and the old workers did not find it comfortable to take computer classes at the high school. The timing of the class was also not convenient for the employees as they have to attend training classes from 6:30 A.M to 8:00 A.M and then start working from 8:30 A.M onwards, for which they were paid only from 7:30 A.M. Another reason in our view might be because those employees were not properly explained on how such training would help them develop, grow or enhance in future responsibilities and performance or how such job related training would help them improve and enhance in their career development. In our view proper analysis must be performed to understand and identify the needs of the employee before planning on providing the trainings.

3. Draft an action plan for the training program for Rainday.

Submitted by: Richa Joshi (12512), Dina Pradhan (12525)

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[RAINDAY INSURANCE ADJUSTERS COMPANY] January 4, 2013

Answer: The action plan for the training program for Rainday can be drafted as

follows: 1. Objectives: Encourage the old employees to attend the training programs in order to reduce the error and in turn decrease productivity. 2. Action Steps: The action steps for developing a training program for Rainday consists of four broad steps. Diagnosis This is the step where the training needs of the employees are identified. Analysis or organization, job and individual performance can be done to identify the training needs. In this case, training needs has aroused due to the changes in technology, so the need for training should be analyzed in the initial step. Development Once the training needs has been identified, the next step then is to develop the training programs. In this step, the instructional objectives have to derived, learning environment has to be designed and learning materials have to be developed as well. So, the management in this step should decide on the place for administering the training programs and the tools to be used as well. The high school did not turned out to be a good choice so an in house training program should be conducted by hiring a trainer and the time for the training should be fixed as per the convenience of the employees. In addition to this, the training methods and the tools to be used should also be developed in a proper manner. Delivery Development then leads on to delivery of training, which actually means conducting the training programs. The training programs designed should be put in to action in a proper manner which encourages the employees to attend the classes and learn. Submitted by: Richa Joshi (12512), Dina Pradhan (12525) Page 3

[RAINDAY INSURANCE ADJUSTERS COMPANY] January 4, 2013 Evaluation - The final step is then to evaluate the overall process. After all the above mentioned steps have been completed, the final step then should be to evaluate the effectiveness of the overall training programs. The effectiveness can be evaluated in term of employees attending the training programs, change in productivity achieved after training, reduction in the number of turnover etc. 3. Timeframe: The time frame of the training program should be fixed as per the requirement, meaning that the time should be enough to make the employees be able to handle new computer system in an effective and efficient manner. In addition to this, the newly recruited employees should also be trained once they are hired. 4. Expected Results: The expected results of the training programs are: Increase in satisfaction among the workers which in turn will result in increased productivity and reduced error. Reduction in the number of voluntary turnover by the claim processors. Less friction between the old and new claim processors as both the sets of employees will be able to handle the system and at the same time there will also be less number of new employees due to decrease in the voluntary turnover.

Submitted by: Richa Joshi (12512), Dina Pradhan (12525)

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