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Is
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A
great way to improve performance and maximize 
training budgets is to
make sure that you're time and money are focused
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existing resources, identify the most critical
workforce weaknesses and apply the necessary
training.
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Competency
Management Q &
A
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In this regular column, readers contact
Avilar for ideas and suggestions about competency
and learning solutions. Have a question you'd like
to see answered? Submit your question
today!
Dear
Avilar,
A group of employees
was recently reassigned to my department. They
have already completed the training I thought they
would need to get up to speed but I'm still seeing
significant performance gaps. What's the
best way to figure out what additional training
they need?
Sincerely,
"Trouble with performance
gaps"
----------------
Dear "Trouble with performance
gaps",
This is a common
challenge that most managers face at some point in
their career and we have some great advice that
has helped others in the past. There is a
straight-forward process you can follow to
identify these new employees' weaknesses and know
exactly what training to provide so you can kiss
those performance gaps "good bye."
The
first thing you'll want to do is survey a group of
top performers in your department to identify the
critical skills required for on-the-job success.
You're likely to end up with a pretty big list
once you compile all the responses but you should
be able to identify some common themes and skills
which we'll refer to as the core competencies.
Narrow this comprehensive list down to the top
15-25 skills that were the most common and that
you feel are the most critical to
success.
Next, write clear and precise
definitions for each skill (see
examples). Each definition may vary in length
(usually between 2-5 sentences) as long as the the
critical parts of the skill are well-defined.
Also, write the definitions so that the top
performers demonstrate the level of proficiency
you're describing.
Now, choose a
proficiency rating scale (3-5 point scales usually
work best ranging from Beginner to Intermediate to
Advanced). Be aware of the fact the the more
options in the scale, the higher the degree of
granularity you'll be able to see in each
employees weaknesses and strengths. Create a list
of the critical skills and their definitions with
a proficiency scale under each definition and...,
Wah-La! You've just created a skills assessment!
Deliver the assessment to the new
employees and make sure to ask them to complete it
honestly. After all, its for their benefit as much
as it is yours. Analyze the responses to identify
the areas that need the most attention and deliver
training that addresses the weakest areas first.
You may find that some employees require
special training that the rest of the group
doesn't need. Rely first on your in-house training
resources to keep costs down and if possible delivering a blended learning mix
which has shown to deliver the best
results.
After training has been
completed, have the new employees retake the
assessment to track their progress. Before long,
you should see the performance gaps diminish. The
new employees may even excel beyond your seasoned
employees. But..., I think that's a better problem
; )
This free white paper provides some
additional details:
6 Steps
to Maximize Training Budgets
Follow this process and you should
see dramatic improvements in your new employees'
performance. Avilar also offers a competency management system,
WebMentor
Skills, which helps by automating some of this
process allowing managers to focus on other tasks,
while employees are focused on making
improvements. Best wishes for a successful program
and I hope you'll keep us posted on how things are
progressing!
Cheers,
Andy
Jaynes (a.k.a. CompetencyMgmt on
Twitter)
LinkedIn / Email
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Improve
Sales Team Performance
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How
do you improve your sales training programs so
they'll produce more
measureable results?
A few months ago we
published a white paper that tackled this question
titled, Sales
Force Tune-Up.
Bottom Line: Your
sales force needs to deliver new sales, quickly.
A
Hint: It's not simply a new training
course; it's a new training approach.
Get the
answers. Read the white paper...
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Join
us at these Upcoming Events!
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Raising
the Bar 2009
Nov. 5-6, 2009
Turf Valley
Resort and Conference Center
Ellicott City,
MD
Provided by the Workforce Investment Network
for Maryland
Visit us at the Avilar
Exhibitor Booth
Workshops: Putting Competency
Management to WORK for your
Organization
Nov. 10, 2009 & Feb. 9,
2010
Avilar Headquarters
Columbia,
MD
Avilar can also provide 1-day &
2-day workshops
at your location and a range of online
workshops (called WebShops) to educate and
consult with organizations on all things
"competency
management."
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Join
the Conversation on Twitter
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Avilar
has been conversing on Twitter
for almost a year now; are you taking
part? Topics have included challenges, best
practices, and thoughts relating to competency
management, workforce planning, talent management,
training and development, and a whole lot more.
Join the conversion today by following Avilar
(CompetencyMgmt). We'll follow you back and we
look forward to sharing ideas!
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