Chapter 08 – Training Human Resources
• It enhances interpersonal acceptance by coworkers and builds the new employee’s network of
resources.
• It accelerates socialization and assimilation of the new employee into the organization’s values and
culture.
• It ensures that employee performance and productivity begin more quickly.
Since employers and employees both benefit from a successful onboarding process, it’s important to get it
right.
93. Explain how an organization can be a source for analyzing training needs.
Training needs can be diagnosed by analyzing organizational outcomes and looking at future needs. A part of
planning for training is the identification of the KSAs that will be needed now and in the future as both jobs
and the organization change. Both internal and external forces will influence training and should be considered
when doing organizational analysis. For instance, the problems posed by the technical obsolescence of current
employees and an insufficiently educated labor pool from which to draw new workers should be considered
and incorporated in the training design.
Organizational analysis comes from various measures of organizational performance. Departments or areas
with high turnover, customer complaints, high grievance rates, high absenteeism, low performance, and other
deficiencies can be pinpointed. Following the identification of problems, objectives can be developed if
training is a solution. During organizational analysis, focus groups of managers can be conducted to evaluate
changes and performance that might require training.
94. How can job or task analysis help assess training needs?
One of the levels of analyzing training needs involves reviewing the jobs and tasks performed. Comparing
worker skills in a job category to the skills needed for successful job performance can identify gaps that can be
filled by training. For example, at a manufacturing firm, analysis identified the tasks performed by engineers
who served as technical instructors for other employees. By listing the tasks required of a technical instructor,
HR established a program to teach specific instructional skills, and the engineers were able to become more
successful instructors.
Another way to pinpoint training gaps in the job or task being performed is to survey employees and have
them anonymously evaluate the current skill levels of themselves and their peers. This not only identifies job
needs but also heightens employees’ awareness of their own learning needs. A training needs survey can take
the form of questionnaires or interviews with supervisors and employees individually or in groups. Web-based
surveys, requests, and other inputs from managers and employees can be used to identify training needs for
jobs.
95. What are the characteristics of successful learners?
For training to be successful, learners must be ready and able to learn. Learner readiness means that
individuals have the ability to learn. However, individuals also must have the motivation to learn, have high
confidence, see value in learning, and have a learning style that fits the training.
96. What variables must be considered when selecting training delivery methods?
The common variables that are considered when selecting training delivery methods include the following: