IdentifyingYourOrganizationsTrainingNeeds

7StepsProcess
CapitalWaveInc.|WhitePaper

September2010


TableofContents:
AssessmentandMeasurementMethods

.3

ExistingTraining

..4

Industry,Job,andTaskRelatedNeeds

......5

CareerDevelopment

.7

Leadership,TalentManagement,andSuccessionPlanningNeeds

.....8

RecurringandRequiredTrainingNeeds

......9

FutureandAnticipatedTrainingNeeds

..10

AssessmentandMeasurementMethods
Anoverallorganizationaltrainingneeds
assessmentshouldbeaverycomprehensive
examinationofwhatiscurrentlybeingtrained,
whatknowledge,skills,andabilitiesshouldbe
addedtotheeducationprogram,andwhatmay
needtobeaddedinthefuture.Areasof
assessmentandassessmentmethodscandiffer
fromsubjecttosubjectwithintheorganization,
andmostcertainlydifferbetweenorganizations
themselves.Beforewebeginadiscussionof
variousassessmentareasofwhichtobeaware,
let'sexplorethedefinitionofneedsaswellas
someofthemethodsusedintrainingneeds
assessment.

Youcaneasilycategorizeyourorganization's
needsintoafewareas.First,afeltorperceived
needisanoveralldesireforimprovementina
certainsubjectarea.Forexample,management
maypointoutthatcustomerservicecomplaints
haverisen.Theremaynotbeadirectlinktothe
trainingprogram,buttheidentificationofarise
incomplaintsisaperceivedneed.Next,
comparativeneedsarethoseneedsthatare
discoveredbycomparingthetrainingaudience
toasetofcriteria,eitherinternalorexternal.
Forexample,hardnumberproductionreports
maytellyouthatacertaintargetaudienceis
notmeetingitsgoals.Third,anidentifiedneed
occursinresponsetoafailureofsometype,
suchasnotmeetingsalesgoalsforasettime
period.Identifiedneedscanalsobesocalled
"criticalincident"needs,whichoccurbecause
ofacatastrophicfailuresuchasafactory
explosion,aregulatoryinfraction,orevena
naturaldisaster.Thefinalneedscategoryis
futureoranticipatedneeds,whichare
obviouslyneedsthatwilloccurbasedon
organizationalchanges,suchasnewproducts,
newservices,ormergersandacquisitions.

Althoughthisisaverysimpleviewoftheneeds
youmayencounter,itservesasastartingpoint
foryouroverallneedsanalysis.

Youmayalsowanttofurtherseparatetheareas
ofneedwithinthecategories.Forexample,
needscanbebasedoncurrenttraining,thatis,
ifcurrenttrainingisnotmeetingthemarkthen
itwillprobablyneedtoberewritten.Needscan
alsoberelatedtotasksorjobs.Forexample,ff
anidentifiedorcriticalincidentneedappears,it
maybebecauseofgapsinjobortask
performance,whichmaypointtotraininggaps.
Keepinmindthatmanyoftheneedswewill
discussinthisseriescanalsoberelatedto
issuesotherthantraining,suchas
management,workenvironment,oreven
marketorindustryforces.Withthatinmind,
yourorganization'sneedsmayberelatedto
developmentinareassuchasleadership,career
progression,management,orhumanresources.
Andifyourorganizationisheavilyregulated,its
needsmayberecurringorrequired,suchas
trainingforregulatorycomplianceandlegal
issues.

Needsassessmentandanalysismethodsvary
widelybasedontheorganization,itsgoals,the
timelinefortheintervention,andevenstaffing
andbudget.Oneofthemostcommonneeds
assessmenttoolsisasurvey,eitherwrittenor
online.Youcanadministersurveysto
employees,managers,customers,and
executives,andthesesurveyscangiveyouan
overallviewoftheneeds(andtypesofneeds)
thatcurrentlyexist.Anothercommon
assessmenttoolisjobortaskanalysis,inwhich
youmayobserveajobbeingperformedand
compareittojobdescriptions,manager
description,andeventheexpectedoutputof
thejobortask.Manytimesajobanalysispoints
directlytoareaswheretheperformerhasalack

ofknowledgeoralowconfidencelevelinthe
task.

Competencyidentificationisanotherwayto
assessneeds,especiallyifyouarestartingfrom
scratch.Forexample,youmaybechargedwith
creatingacomprehensivetrainingprogramfor
anentiredepartmentorfamilyofjobswhere
notrainingcurrentlyexists.Inthissituation,
stakeholders,managers,andthepeoplewho
performtheworkcanbeaskedtoidentify
competencyareasandtheskillsthatfallunder
thosecompetencies.Forexample,customer
servicerepresentativesmayhavecompetency
areasrelatedtoovercomingobjections,closing
thesale,andmakingappropriatereferrals.
Finally,operationalmeasurementsaregreat
toolsforneedsassessment.These
measurementsmaybegoals,reports,orother
datathatpointtoskillsgaps.Manytimes,an
operationalmeasurementmaybethemost
concreteidentificationofatrainingneed.

Nowthatwehaveexploredgeneralneeds
categoriesandmeasurementmethods,wecan
moveontospecificneedsareas.

ExistingTraining
Beforeyoubeginassessingvarious
organizationalareasfortrainingneeds,it'sa
goodideatostartwithtrainingthatalready
exists.Existingtrainingcanbecentralized,that
is,runbythetraininganddevelopment
department.Ontheotherhand,individual
departmentsmayhavetrainingprogramsgoing
onatthoselevels,aswell.Theseprogramscan
bewellknown,orperhapstheymaybe
"covert".Forexample,somedepartmentsmay
haveanonthejobtrainingprogramthatmay
beassimpleasafirstdayorfirstweek
checklist.Theideabehindthedeterminationof
existingtrainingisnottoexposeanykindof

"secret"training,buttodeterminehowtraining
canbemademoreeffective.

Existingtrainingprogramsthatarepartofthe
traininganddevelopmentdepartmentaremost
likelytheeasiestplacetostart.Yourprograms
probablyhaveevaluationsattachedtothem,
suchasleveloneparticipantevaluations.In
addition,youmayalsohaveevaluationsthat
occurfurtherdowntheroadandcoverboth
participantsandtheirmanagers.Whateverthe
situation,gobackatleastthreemonthstolook
attheevaluationsanddeterminethestateof
thecourses.Ifyouhaven'tbeendoingthisona
regularbasis,youmaybesurprisedbywhatyou
find.Ifthingsaren'tgoingaswellasyou
expected,placethecoursesintheoverall
assessmentasneeds.

Whenitcomestodiscoveringtrainingat
departmentallevels,youmayneedtousesome
diplomacy,oratleastyourinternalnetwork.
Findoutwhohastraining,whatkindoftraining
itis,andhowit'sgoing.Whileyou're
conductingthisfactfinding,stressthatthe
motiveisnottoexposeanykindof"skunk
work"training,buttoseeifthetrainingand
developmentorganizationcanhelpmakethe
programseffectiveandpossiblytakethemto
otheraudiences.Afterall,ifsomethingisgoing
on"undertheradar"butisextremelyeffective,
doesn'titstandtobenefittheorganization,
eitherinitscurrentoramodifiedformat?

Next,determinetheframeworkfortheneeds
assessmentinrelationtoexistingprograms.
Whatisthescopeofchangesrequired?For
example,asimpledepartmentalchecklistcould
becomeafullblownonboardingcoursethat
reachesacrossvariouslevelsofthe
organization.Or,itmaybesomethingthatcan
staywithinitsindividualdepartment.Also,look

closelyatthecurrentdeliverymethod.Can
anythingthatcurrentlyexistsinaclassroom
formatbeconvertedtoablendedoronline
format?Considerthisquestionintheopposite
form:areblended,online,orclassroomcourses
wastingtimethatcouldbespentonthejob
withachecklistanddailycoachingsessions?
Anotheraspecttoconsideriswhetherexisting
trainingprogramsshouldbediscontinued
altogetherinordertomakeroomfornewor
improvedprograms?Thesearedifficult
questionstoanswer,butinordertobeginyour
organizationalassessmentonstrongfooting
theyarenecessary.

Afteryou'vedeterminedthestateofexisting
training,thinkaboutthetimelineandstaffing
necessarytocompletethechanges.Insome
cases,youmayhavethestaffinginplaceto
startchangesthataregoingtobeanecessary
partoftheoutcomeoftheoverallassessment.
Ontheotherhand,youmaynothavethetime
orstafftostart.Inthiscase,itmaybeagood
ideatoholdoffonanychangespendingthe
resultsoftheentireassessment.Thisway,you
cangetagoodpictureofthechangesthatneed
tobemade,aswellastheadditionsthatwill
havetobemadeaspartoftheoverall
assessment.

Asyouareexaminingexistingtrainingneeds,
starttothinkabouthowyou'llmeasure
effectivenessofprogramsthatarerewrittenor
redesigned.Levelonesurveysarealwaysa
goodidea,butdon'tstopthere.Youmaywant
toaddevaluationsofbothparticipantsand
managersatintervalsafterthetraininginorder
toexamineeffectiveness.Plus,your
stakeholdersmaybeabletoidentifyconcrete
measurements,suchasoperationalreports,
salesgoals,customercomplaintincidences,and
regulatoryevaluations.Andrememberthatall

oftheseevaluationsuggestionswillworkfor
anyofthetypesofneedswewilldiscussinthe
remainderofthisseries.

Nowthatwehaveexaminedexistingtraining
programs,let'smoveintospecificneedsareas,
startingwithjob,task,andindustryrelated
trainingneeds.

Industry,Job,andTaskRelatedNeeds
Whenyoubeginyourorganizationalneeds
assessment,you'llfindthatmanyoftheneeds
youdiscoverarerelatedtotheoverallindustry
andthejobswithintheorganization.This
informationcancertainlyoverloadyouifyou
arelookingattheorganization'strainingneeds
aswhole.Sothebestwaytotackletheseneeds
istobreakthemdownbasedonindustry,job,
andtask.Let'sdefineeachareaandthenlookat
someofthebestwaystoassessneedsinthose
areas.

First,industryrelatedneedsarefairlysimple
butcanbehardtonarrowdownforyour
trainingprogram.Aretherecertainpiecesof
industryknowledgethatemployeesshould
have,bothasawholeandbydepartment?Ifso,
thistypeofknowledgeissometimesbasedon
thepremisethatpeopleshouldknowhowthey
fitintothebigpicture,bothatthe
organizationalandindustrylevels.Theneedfor
thisknowledgemayalsostemfromtheneedto
understandhowtheorganizationitselffitsinto
theoverallindustry.Forexample,a
manufacturinggroupthatcreatespartsfor
commercialairlinersmayneedtoknowwhere
thosepartsgo,whatairplanestheyendupon,
andhowthoseairplanesandthecompanythat
buildsthemaffecttheindustryitself.Whenyou
arelookingatindustryrelatedknowledge,
remembertokeepittothe"needtoknow"
information,versusthe"nicetoknow".Ifyou
5

haveboth,you'llendupswampingyour
audienceswithknowledgethatdoesnotapply
directlytothem.

Next,jobrelatedneedsareselfexplanatory:
theyrelatedirectlytothejobswithinthe
organization.Oneofthebestwaystolookfor
jobrelatedneedsistodetermineiftraining
existsforcertainjobsorjobfamilies.Ifnot,you
mayhavetocreate"AtoZ"trainingforajob.
Wewilldiscussassessmentmethodsina
moment,butrememberthatthepurposeof
jobrelatedneedsassessmentistodetermine
thefinaloutputsofthejobitself,whetheritisa
completedcallwithacustomerorthe
productionofa100%errorfreecommercial
airlinerpart.Thekeytojobrelatedneedsisto
determinewhatcanbetaughtaspartofa
trainingprogram,whataspectsofthejob
belongtomanagement,andwhataspectsof
thejobmayberelatedtocoachingoronthe
joblearning.

Ataskrelatedneedisusuallyaparticularpart
oroutputwithinajoborjobfamily.Thinkabout
yourjob:therearemanydifferenttasksand
processesthatcometogethertocreateyourjob
onadaily,weekly,monthly,andyearlybasis.
Everyjobissimilarinthataspect.Forexample,
customerservicerepsmaybeperformingat
veryhighlevelsincustomersatisfactionand
sales,buttheyarehavingtroubleinputtingdata
intotheCRMsystem.Thisproblemmaybe
causingissueswithcustomercontact,the
customer'snextlogicalproduct,andeven
recordingclosedsales.Thisparticularpartof
thejob,ortask,shouldbeanalyzedto
determinewherethebreakdownoccurs.Many
timestaskrelatedneedsoccurinsideajobor
jobfamilywheretrainingcurrentlyexistsit
justmaybeoneofthoseareasthatneedtobe
revampedinordertobemoreeffective.

Let'sbrieflyexaminesomeoftheassessment
methodsthatcanhelpyoufindneedsinthese
areasquicklyandeffectively.Tobeginwith,a
stakeholderorexecutivemaysimplyexpressa
perceivedindustryrelatedneed.Forexample,
theaircraftpartsmanufacturingCEOmay
simplydecidethatallemployeesneedtoknow
howtheorganizationfitsintotheoverall
picture.Manytimesthistypeofexpressionmay
beabitstrongerthana"suggestion"andsimply
needstobeincludedinthetrainingprogram.

Whenitcomestojobrelatedneeds,
observationandsurveymaybeveryeffective.
Forexample,ifnotrainingcurrentlyexistsfor
thecustomerservicereps,youmaywantto
observethemdoingtheirjobsforafewdaysto
determinethetaskswithinthosejobs.In
addition,youmaywanttosurveymanagersand
stakeholderstodeterminewhatthefinaloutput
ofthejobsshouldbe,suchasacertainscoreon
thecustomersatisfactionsurvey.Howeveryou
assessforjobrelatedneeds,youmayendupat
thetasklevelanyway.

Atthetasklevel,aprocessknownastask
analysismaybethemosthelpful.Inatask
analysis,youtakeyourobservationsofthe
persondoingthejobandthenbreakthem
downintothetaskareas.Foreacharea,you
candeterminetheindividualtasks,suchasthen
determineitsfrequency.Fromthere,youcan
determinewhichtaskshavemoreimportance
bytheirfrequencyaswellaswhichtaskswill
requiremoredetailedknowledge.Finally,you
candetermineifadequatetrainingexistson
eachtaskandtaskarea.

Next,wewilllookatcareerdevelopment
relatedneeds.

CareerDevelopment
Careerdevelopmenttrainingneedstypicallyfall
outsideoftheblackandwhitespecificsofa
particularjoborjobfamily.Or,theycanbe
relatedtoonejobfamilysuchasmanagersand
supervisors.Careerdevelopmentneedscanbe
softskills,skillsthatareneededtomovetothe
nextlogicaljoborjobfamily,orskillsthatmay
beneededtomovetothenextlogical
horizontaljoborjobfamily.Let'slookateach
skillareaandthendiscusshowyoucanbest
assessthoseneeds.

Softskillscanbelocatedbothwithinajoband
outsideofajob.Forexample,customerservice
skillsmayalmostcertainlyberequiredof
customerservicerepswhofacethecustomer
population.Butwhatabout"backoffice"
employeeswhoneverfacecustomersbuthave
theirowninternalcustomers?Whataboutthe
overallcustomerservicephilosophyofthe
organization?Doesthisknowledgeneedtobe
impartedtoallemployeesatalllevels?The
overallphilosophyalsoleadstoareassuchas
theorganization'smission,values,andoverall
goals.Thesetypesofskillsandknowledgecan
beconsideredtobepartoftheoverallcareer
developmentplanforallemployees.Softskills
canalsoincludehumanresources,suchas
policiesandorganizationalHRphilosophy.
Considerhowallofthesepiecesofknowledge
fittogether:thiscouldbeyourorganization's
newhireorientationprogramthatgoesoutto
allemployees.Nonetheless,itshouldbepartof
thecareerdevelopmentportionofyourneeds
assessment.

Nextlogicaljoborjobfamilyskillscanalsofall
outsideofaparticularjobortask.Forexample,
theorganizationmaywantanadvanced
customerrelationsandnegotiationcoursetobe

requiredforanyonewishingtoprogressfrom
customerservicelevel1tocustomerservice
level2.Nextlogicalcareerlevelskillscanalso
taketheformofmanagementknowledgeto
prepareapersonforasupervisoryposition.
Theseneedscanbeinareassuchas
interviewing,hiring,correctiveaction,payroll,
etc.Theoverallkeyofnextlogicallevel
assessmentisthatyoushouldlookatwhatmay
bemissingfromthejobortaskrelatedleveland
addittothetrainingplan.Thisway,asaperson
plateausinhisorherjoblevel,heorshecan
begintakingcoursesthatapplytothenextjob.

Horizontalmobilitymayalsobeapartofcareer
developmentrelatedneeds.Forexample,your
organizationmayhiremostofitspopulation
intothefirstleveljobs,suchascustomer
service.Aftertimeandproofofability,the
organizationmaybegintolookforcandidates
whoexhibitskillsandinterestinotherareas,
suchasIT,humanresources,oreventraining.If
thereisanestablished"track",i.e.ITlooksfor
itsentryleveltechniciansinthecustomer
servicereppopulation,thentrainingshouldbe
offeredforthosepeople.Thisdoesn'teven
havetobeinhousetrainingtheIT
managementmaypointoutthebasic
certificationstheywantapersontohave,
interviewthatperson,andthenpayforhisor
hercertification.Thepointhereistoinclude
needsassessmentforestablishedorlogical
horizontalmovementthatmakessomeonein
theorganizationmobile.Keepinmindthatthis
possibilityofmobilitymayevenassistin
retention.It'seasiertokeepsomeoneifthey
knowthattheorganizationisconcernedabout
theirfuture.

Assessingfortheseareasmaybealittlemore
complicatedthanjobortaskrelatedneeds
assessment.Oneofthefirstplacestostartisa

simpleconversationwithdepartmentor
programmanagers.Forexample,some
organizationshaveacustomerrelations
programmanager.Thispersoncanbevery
helpfulinidentifyingcareerdevelopmentneeds
thatshouldgotoallassociatesregardlessof
theirpositionwithintheorganization.
Managers,suchastheITdepartmentmanagers,
canhelpyoudeterminewhatneedsexistfor
horizontalmobilitybetweendepartments.In
addition,stakeholderssuchashumanresources
canbevaluableindeterminingcareer
developmentneeds.Andyoumaynoteven
needtocreateelaboratesurveystoconduct
thistypeofassessments.Manytimestheneeds
areclearafteraconversationwithoneofthese
managersorstakeholders.

Next,wewillexploreleadership,talent
management,andsuccessionplanningneeds.

Leadership,TalentManagement,and
SuccessionPlanningNeeds
Asyouareassessingyourorganization'straining
needs,don'tforgetaboutleadership,talent
management,andsuccessionplanning.It'strue
thatyou'veprobablyidentifiedsomeleadership
andmanagementtrainingneedsintheother
areasofassessment.Butrememberthatan
organizationismostlikelygoingtoneed
trainingthatisspecificallyforthepurposeof
retainingtalent,buildingaleadershippool,and
ensuringthatskillsexisttocopewithlossof
leadership,whethersuddenornot.Obviously
thisareaofskillsandknowledgeworkshandin
handwithcareerdevelopmentandjobrelated
trainingtoformafulldevelopment
complementforthepopulation.Let'sexamine
theseareasandthendiscussassessment
methods.

It'simportanttomaintainthedistinction

betweenmanagementandleadershiptraining
whileyouareconductinganoverallneeds
assessment.You'vealreadyidentified
managementneeds,suchashiringprocessesor
correctiveactionprocedures.Buttheseare
functionsandnotattitudesandabilities.Thisis
wheretheleadershipneedsassessmentpicks
upandkeepinmindthatleadershiptraining
anddevelopmentcanoccuratalllevelsofthe
organization,notjustatthemanagementor
supervisorylevel.

Oneofthefirstpartsofaneedsassessmentin
relationtoleadershipistoidentifythe
leadershipcompetenciesthatexistwithinthe
organization.Further,attempttodefinea
leaderintermsofyourorganization.Ofcourse
therearegeneralleadershipcompetenciesand
definitions,butthetaskoftheneeds
assessmentistochoosethosecompetencies
anddefinitionsandmodifythemtofitthe
organization'sculture.After"theleader"is
defined,theneedsassessmentshouldgo
deeperintoidentifyingtheskills,knowledge,
andattitudesthatexistwithineachofthe
chosencompetencies.Thisalsoincludes
defininglevelsofleadershipwithinthe
knowledgebase,thatis,entrylevelversus
managementlevel.

Talentmanagementtrainingneedsarethose
thatcanhelpmanagersandsupervisorsmanage
thetalentthatcomesoutofleadershiptraining.
Forexample,aremanagerscurrentlyprepared
toassesstheirteamsforleadershippotential,
coachthem,andpreparethemforafuture
leadershiprole?Doesthemanagerand
supervisorgrouphavetheabilitytoidentifya
person'sstrengthsandcoachthosewhileatthe
sametimedevelopingopportunities?Istherea
sectionoftheHRISsystemthatisspecifically
developedfortalentmanagement?Again,you

mayhaveidentifiedsomeoftheseneedsasyou
movedthroughmanagementandleadership.
Thequestionis:dotheybelonginthoseareas
orshouldtheybepartofanoveralltalent
management"school"orbroadbased
competencyarea?

Successionplanningneedsborderdirectlyon
talentmanagementandleadership,andmay
evenbeapartofthoseneedsassessment
areas.Whatistheorganization'sphilosophyon
successionplanning?Forexample,doesthe
organizationbelieveinbothhighprofessional
andhighpotentialleadership?Whatisthe
processforcreatingasuccessionplan?Do
managersandsupervisorsneedspecialskillsor
traininginordertocreatethatplan?Theseare
allquestionsthatyoushouldaskduringyour
leadership,talentmanagement,andsuccession
planningneedsassessment.

Butwhataresomegoodwaystoconductthe
needsassessmentforthisarea?Asyouwould
imagine,thisisasomewhatspecialsituation.
Onewaytoassessintheseareasistogather
thecurrentleadershipteamorpoolandlead
themthroughabrainstormingsession.Have
thisgroupidentifytheorganization'sleadership
competenciesandalsoidentify(atahighlevel)
theskills,knowledge,andattitudesthatfall
undereachofthecompetencies.Duringthis
needsassessmentsession,considerusing
whiteboardsorflipchartsaroundtheroom,
whichwillprovideavisualpictureofthe
trainingneedsastheyarebeingbuilt.Infact,
youmayseeatrainingprogrambeginto
emergeduringthebrainstormingsession.In
termsoftalentmanagementandsuccession
planning,oneofthebestwaystoassessis
throughsurvey.Askmanagersiftheyfeel
comfortableidentifyingthetalentintheirareas.
Findoutiftheyfeelabletoidentifystrengths

andcoachopportunitiesforthepotential
talent.Ifthereistheslightestbitofhesitation,
themanagerandsupervisorgroupmaybeable
tohelpyouidentifytheirbiggesttrainingneeds.

Next,wewillexploretheassessmentof
requiredandrecurringtrainingneeds.

RecurringandRequiredTrainingNeeds
Whileyouareconductinganoverallneeds
assessment,youmayfindthatcertaintraining
needsmustberepeated,whilesomeofthem
arerequirementsofajoborajobfamily.In
fact,youmayhavealreadyuncoveredsomeof
theseneedsasyoudelvedintotheareasofjob
andtaskrelatedtraining.Butit'sagoodideato
categorizetheseneedsseparatelysothatthey
canbeintegratedintotheoveralltrainingplan
onaregularorrequiredbasis.Forthepurposes
ofthisdiscussion,let'sworkwithtrainingneeds
inthefollowingcategories:recurring,required,
andbothrecurringandrequired.

First,whatisarecurringtrainingneed?
Typically,arecurringtrainingneedisasetof
knowledge,skills,orabilitiesthatthe
organizationwantsitsassociatestorepeatona
regularbasis,usuallyannually.Thistypeof
trainingcouldbeaproductsandservices
certification,acustomerserviceorcustomer
relationstrainingprogram,orevenanannual
industryupdate.Recurringpiecesusuallyserve
toputeveryoneonthesamefootingintermsof
knowledgeandabilityinthatparticulargroupof
competencies.

Requiredtrainingcanfallunderthesame
category,thatis,agroupofcompetenciesthat
theorganizationrequires.Butrequiredtraining
byitselfisusuallyaonetimeoffering,suchasa
newproductrollout,newservicestandards,or
trainingformergersandacquisitions.Onthe
9

otherhand,aregulatingbodyoragencycan
levytraininginmanydifferentareas,and
requirethattheorganizationcertifyitsresults.
Forexample,financialserviceprovidersmaybe
requiredtoprovideandcertifytrainingrelated
tothelatestoverhaulofthatindustry.Insome
areas,organizationalassociatesmaybe
requiredtotaketrainingwhentheyfirstcome
intoajob.Forexample,newhireflight
attendantsarerequiredbytheFAAtotakeand
passacomprehensivesafetycoursebasedupon
theairline'saircraft,rulesregardingpassenger
safety,andevenfirstaid.Youmayhave
discoveredsomerequiredneedsinyourjoband
taskanalysis,butbesuretomakethe
distinctionbetweenthoseneedsthatare
requiredbyaregulatingagencyandthosethat
arenot.

Recurringandrequiredtrainingisa
combinationofbothtypesofneeds,i.e.
competencyareasthatarerequiredbyeither
theorganizationoraregulatingbodyandare
givenonaregularbasis.Forexample,flight
attendantsarerequiredtotaketrainingandbe
certifiedonsafetyfeaturesonanannualbasis
inordertomaintainemployment.Thisisalsoan
FAArequirement.Infinancialservices,certain
employeesarerequiredtotakeandpass
regulatorytrainingeveryyearandthe
organizationmustcertifyitsresultswithina
giventimeperiod.

Assessingtheseneedscanbedifficult,because
youmayuncoverbitsandpiecesofthemwithin
yourjobandtaskassessments.Forexample,
certainpartsofperson'sjobmayberelatedtoa
particularregulationorgroupofregulations.
Butinregardtotrainingneedsthatarerequired
byaregulatingagencyandmayberecurring,
thebestplacetostartiswiththeorganization's
legalcounselorlegaldepartment.Inmany

cases,youmaynotneedtoconducta"formal"
needsassessmentaseriesofconversations
mayhelpyouuncovertheneed.Andmost
likely,thelegaldepartmenthasalready
organizedalistingofrequiredtraining
components.Ifthatisnotthecase,thereare
usuallylegalexpertswithinthevarious
departmentsofanorganizationandtheyshould
notbeoverlooked.Inregardtoorganizationally
requiredtrainingneeds,setupconversations
withdivisionexecutivesandstakeholdersin
ordertodeterminewhatpiecesofknowledge
theywouldliketoseeasrequirementsor
recurringrequirements.Again,itmaybeas
simpleasaconversationversusaformalneeds
assessment.Anotherwaytoreachforthese
trainingneedsistoincludethisaspectinyour
jobandtaskanalysisthatwe'vealready
discussed.Manytimestheemployees
themselvesaretheoneswhowillbeabletotell
youaboutthemostimportantrecurrentand
requiredfeaturesoftraining.

Ournextarea,futureandanticipatedtraining
needs,isthefinalareaofneedsassessment.

FutureandAnticipatedTrainingNeeds
Itisagivenintraininganddevelopmentthat
yourbestlaidplanstendtochange.Buthaving
anideaoftheorganization'sfutureneedscanat
leastprepareyouforwhatmightbecoming.In
fact,afuturetrainingneedsassessmentis
probablysomethingthatshouldoccurona
regularbasis,evenafteryou'veinitially
assessedtheorganization.Forexample,you
maywanttoassessforfutureoranticipated
needsatthebeginningofeverycalendaror
fiscalyear.Let'sdefinefutureandanticipated
trainingneedsandthenlookatsomewaysto
assessthem.

Obviouslyfutureoranticipatedtrainingneeds
10

arethosethatwillcomewithorganizationalor
departmentalchangesinthefuture.Tofurther
definethesetypesofneeds,youmayneedto
breakthemdownintofunctionalcategories.
Let'sstartwithpolicyandprocedureneeds.The
questionhereis:areanypoliciesand
proceduresslatedforamajorchangeor
overhaulanytimeinyourfutureassessment
period?Forexample,arecustomerservice
policiesgoingtobemade"tighter"ormore
stringent?Perhapsthereisanewcustomer
relationsmodelplannedthatwillchangethe
entirecustomerhandlingprocedure.Are
processesslatedtochangebecauseofamerger
oracquisition?Orareprocessesgoingto
changebecauseofnewrulesandregulations?
Answeringthesequestionscanatleastpoint
youintherightdirectionwhenitcomesto
futurepolicyandproceduretrainingneeds.

Asecondareatolookatissystems.Isthe
organizationoranindividualdepartment
planningtoimplementanewtechnicalsystem?
ThiscouldbeyourownLMS,anHRIS,anew
customerrelationshipmanagementsystem,or
anewoveralloperatingsystemsuchas
Windows.Inrelationtosystemchanges,are
anyexistingsystemsscheduledforchangesor
upgrades?Somesystemchangesaresubtle
enoughtobeaslightupdatetotraining,while
othersystemchangescancauseaprettyheavy
chainreactioninmultipledepartments,atthe
sametimeaffectingvariouspoliciesand
procedures.

Athirdareaofassessmentisorganizationaland
departmentalneeds.We'vealreadydiscussed
thepossibilityofmergersandacquisitions,
whichisalwaysabigtrainingneed.Willthe
mergeroracquisitionsignificantlychangethe
waytheorganizationdoesbusiness?Howwill
newemployeesbe"onboarded"intothe

overallorganization?Asalwayswithmergers
andacquisitions,the"people"aspectshouldbe
somethingthatisconsideredaspartofafuture
trainingneed.Inotherorganizationalareas,will
theoverallmission,goals,ororganizational
objectiveundergoatransformationatanypoint
duringyourassessmentperiod?Ifthesekey
organizationalmeasurementsaregoingto
change,trainingshouldattempttosharethe
changes,preparethepopulationforwhatthe
changemeans,andshowthemhowtomove
forward.

Assessingfutureandanticipatedneedscanbe
tricky.Manytimesthedepartmentsinvolved
arereluctantto"takethelidoff"oftheir
anticipatedchange.But,aswithanytraining
initiative,yourjobistopositionyourselfasa
strategicpartnerandnotawatchdog.Forpolicy
andprocedurechanges,agoodwaytostartis
tosurveythedepartmentthatwritesorcreates
thoseP&P's.Youcanconductthisformally,that
is,throughwrittenoronlinesurvey,or
informallybysimplyschedulingbrainstorming
sessionsattherighttime.Fromthesesurveys
orconversations,youmaygetanideaofthe
changesthatwillrequireneworupgraded
training.Youshouldalsosurveyoveralldivision
headsandstakeholderstodeterminewhattheir
plansareforthefuturetimeperiod.Infact,a
writtensurveycanbeastartingpoint,andthen
whenyoureviewyourresultsschedule
meetingstositdownandtalkwiththosekey
people.Asyouwilldiscover,systemchange
informationcancomefromboththeP&P
groupsandthedepartmentheads.Onceyou
knowaboutasystemchange,considerhavinga
conversationwiththeITdepartmentto
determinehowthosechangesaregoingto
affectexistingorplannedtraining.

Aswithanyofyourneedsassessmentareas,

11

plottheresultsfromafutureandanticipated
needsassessmentintotheoveralldeveloping
trainingplan.You'llfindthatcertainneedscan
beplacedfurtheroutinthetimeline,while
othersmayneedtobepulledclosertothe

presenttime.Onceyouhaveassessedneedsin
alloftheareaswehavediscussedinthisseries,
you'llsoonbeabletodevelopanoverall
trainingplanandfeelcertainthatthemajor
needshavebeenuncoveredandidentified.

Copyright2010CapitalWaveInc.AllRightsReserved.
BryantNielsonStrategicAlliance&AcquisitionsDirectoratFinancialTrainingSolutionsadivision
ofCapitalWaveIncoffers20+yearsoftrainingandtalentmanagementforexecutives,business
owners,andtopperformingsalesexecutivesintakingtheleapfromtheordinarytoextraordinary.
Bryantisatrainer,business&leadershipcoach,andstrategicplannerformanysales
organizations.Bryants27yearbusinesscareerhasbeenbasedonhisresultsorientedstyleof
empowering.

12

Fina
ancial Training Solution
ns (FTS), the
e instructor--led division of CapitalW
Wave Inc,
is a firm made
e of up industry professsionals having a repu
utation for providing
first--rate training
g and conssultancy to banks
b
and other financcial institutio
ons. FTS
offerrs professionals who ha
ave extensivve knowledg
ge, experien
nce and exp
pertise in
the areas
a
of ban
nking and fin
nance.
Blen
nded learning is the philosophy
p
o which th
on
he companyy was found
ded. Our
train
ning methodology, integrating theoryy with practice using ou
ur own very powerful
train
ning tools, creates a uniquely excitiing and effe
ective learnin
ng environm
ment. The
resu
ult pays imm
mediate divid
dends in the retention of newly-learned concepts and
theirr practical ap
pplication in the financia
al marketplacce.

Cap
pitallWavve Inc.
Delivering
g Innovative Training Solutions
S
For further informa
ation, please
e contact:
Finan
ncial Training
g Solutions is a division of CapitalW
Wave Inc.

B
Bryant
Nielson, Direc
ctor
http
p://www.Ca
apitalWave
e.com
http://www
w.FinancialTrainingS
Solutions.c
com
http:///www.YourrTrainingEdge.com
Tele US: +1 (917) 477-3
T
3221
Te
ele UK: + 44
4 (20) 3356 9935
9
bryant.nie
elson@financialtrainingssolutions.com
m

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