Table of Contents

Conducting a Training Needs Assessment: A Mad Lib

The conversations around the need for training can sometimes seem like they’re taken out of a book of Mad Libs.  Perhaps you’ve heard a version of the following Mad Lib before:

Conducting a Training Needs Assessment - Mad Libs Style

All too often some managers, HR professionals, even some trainers propose training as an automatic response to address performance issues.  Training – in the form of an in-house refresher course, an industry-specific conference, an article, a book, a multi-million dollar eLearning module or anything in between – is certainly one tool.  But it’s just one tool, it’s not the overarching solution.

Questions to Ask when Conducting a Training Needs Assessment

Before training enters a manager’s mind, conducting a training needs assessment focused on an employee’s performance gap(s) can save a lot of time and money:

  1. Is it actually within the employee’s job description and duties?
  2. Is it related to a core competency necessary to be successful in the employee’s position?
  3. Has the employee’s manager identified and shared specific, observable behaviors describing the perceived performance gap?
  4. Have specific actions, goals, and milestones been identified for the employee to illustrate what success in addressing a performance gap would look like?
  5. Has the employee received prior education/training on how to competently address the performance gap?
  6. Has the employee been given time on the job to allow him/her to attempt to apply new knowledge, skills, abilities or behaviors learned in training?
  7. Has the employee been observed and had an opportunity to receive feedback on his/her initial attempts to apply new knowledge, skills, abilities or behaviors in addressing the performance gap?

Addressing performance gaps requires managers to play the role of a detective, asking the right questions and gathering information.  While training can offer enormous dividends if it’s connected to specific learning needs and performance gaps, employee development also requires a manager that is invested in the continuous development of his/her staff.  Ongoing coaching, support, and feedback will trump the idea of “more training” almost every time.

What is your approach to conducting a training needs assessment for your employees? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Articles Similar to Conducting a Training Needs Assessment: A Mad Lib

How to create a training plan in under 10 minutes

Using a lesson plan template (which is the most downloaded resource from this blog) can help give you structure. Using Soapbox can save you all sorts of time (and still give your presentation some structure)!

Does training actually change behavior?

Does training actually change behavior? It’s a question we should be able to answer honestly. (And the answer is: No, not 100%… and yes, but seriously, not 100%)

Hybrid Learning: When to use it

Recently I had an opportunity to talk with the folks at Mimeo about hybrid learning and when to use it. In today’s post, I share a link to that podcast, which is one in a series of podcasts they did with industry leaders on hybrid learning strategies.

L&D Lessons Learned from Being a Parent (Part 5 of 5)

Once we get into a comfortable routine, how easy is it to want to try something new? Erin Clarke shares a few ah-ha’s about what she discovered and how she became better when she decided to leave her comfort zone and try something new.

L&D Lessons Learned from being a Parent (Part 4 of 5)

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. It’s what we’re told from a young age, and sometimes that stick-to-it-iveness can be an important skill for children and working professionals alike. But do we always need to figure everything out on our own?

Subscribe to Get Updates from Endurance Learning

Brian Washburn, Author

Brian Washburn
CEO & Chief Ideas Guy

Enter your information below and we’ll send you the latest updates from our blog. Thanks for following!

activities cookbook

Download the Training Activity Cookbook

Enter your email below and we’ll send you the PDF of the Endurance Learning Activity Cookbook.

Find Your L&D Career Path

Explore the range of careers to understand what role might be a good fit for your L&D career.

Enter your email below and we’ll send you the PDF of the What’s Possible in L&D Worksheet.

What's possible in L&D

Let's Talk Training!

Brian Washburn

Brian Washburn
CEO & Chief Ideas Guy

Enter your information below and we’ll get back to you soon.

Download the Feedback Lesson Plan

Enter your email below and we’ll send you the lesson plan as a PDF.

feedback lesson plan
MS Word Job Aid Template

Download the Microsoft Word Job Aid Template

Enter your email below and we’ll send you the Word version of this template.

Download the Free Lesson Plan Template!

Enter your email below and we’ll send you a Word document that you can start using today!

free lesson plan template
training materials checklist

Download the Training Materials Checklist

Enter your email below and we’ll send you the PDF of the Training Materials Checklist.

Subscribe to Endurance Learning for updates

Get regular updates from the Endurance Learning team.