10 Questions to Consider When Defining a Training Plan

Suppose you have been called on to create training for your organization.  Where do you begin?  Getting the conversation started to establish a training plan with a well-defined curriculum may be a challenge without all of the necessary considerations.  Keeping these 10 questions in mind will help you ensure that you have laid the groundwork for an effective training curriculum:

1.  Who is the target audience?  It is important to first identify who within the organization requires training.  Since your training plan may vary depending on the audience being targeted, performing an audience analysis is helpful to determine which groups or roles within the organization are affected, how many people they include, and where they are located.  In addition, an audience analysis will uncover the current knowledge, skills, and responsibilities of each group so that you will have a baseline upon which to build your training.

2.  What are the training objectives?  Along with identifying the audience, it is also essential to determine what your organization’s goals are in conducting training.  Perhaps there is a new system being implemented or change occurring that is creating a lack of knowledge somewhere in the organization.  Has anyone assessed what it will take to fill that gap?  If clear training objectives have not yet been established, it may be necessary to perform a complete training needs assessment to recognize the gaps between the current- and future-state skills of the groups being impacted.

3.  Who are the stakeholders?  As with any project, identifying the key stakeholders is crucial to delivering a successful solution that meets expectations.  In particular, you will want to be sure to determine who the subject matter experts are who can lend their expertise during development of course content.  Also be sure to recognize others who may have interest in, or influence upon, the training you are planning.

4.  How big is the scope?  Understanding the scope and complexity of material to be covered in the curriculum is necessary to determine the number of courses required and duration for each.  By dividing the content scope into modules and estimating the duration for each individual module, you will get a better idea of how much time is needed to cover the material.  Also be sure to allow sufficient time for group exercises, activities, and breaks before settling on the total duration of the course(s).

5.  What is the timeframe for delivery?  Most likely one of the challenges you will face will be completing your training within a specified timeframe.  Since this will factor into many of the decisions you make for your curriculum, it is important to determine the key milestones driving your delivery schedule as early as possible.  It may make sense to conduct some of the training early if there are certain training modules that can be broken out and delivered separately from others.  For instance, if you are implementing a new system, you may be able to deliver training on the process changes associated to the implementation before conducting the technical training.

6.  What delivery method should be used?  There are many considerations in choosing a delivery method for your training.  Instructor-Led Training (ILT) is useful for encouraging group discussion and demonstrating management support, but may result in trainees being away from their jobs longer as well as inconsistencies among different training sessions.  Alternatively, eLearning or Computer-Based Training (CBT) offers a consistent experience in which trainees can control their own pace and schedule, but requires your audience to be self-motivated without face-to-face interaction.  Depending on your organization’s needs, it may be appropriate to consider an approach that blends multiple delivery methods.

7.  Who will deliver the training?  If you’re opting for Instructor-Led Training, another important decision to make is who will teach the course(s).  It may be necessary to identify instructors with a specific background or credentials, or if the appropriate candidates aren’t readily available, you may need to develop and deliver Train-the-Trainer sessions to prepare your instructors.

8.  What are the pre-requisites?  Also remember to consider the need for pre-requisites for your training, such as other courses, pre-reading, or assignments that trainees should complete in advance of attending a course.  Establishing pre-requisites will ensure that your audience has the appropriate background knowledge on the course topic so that they can begin the course on an equal footing.

9.  What constraints exist?  Identifying other limitations or dependencies you may face early in the game is essential to having a complete curriculum plan.  These may likely include technology considerations, such as gaining access to training environments for the appropriate systems or acquiring software tools for delivering the training.  The constraints may also be operational, such as producing large volumes of hard-copy training materials, or program-driven, such as meeting budget restrictions.

10.  Should an evaluation be included?  In determining the components of your curriculum, do not forget to consider the need for evaluations or exams.  If your organization decides that there is a need to assess the trainees’ understanding of the curriculum content, evaluations will take time to develop and will require a planned approach for delivery and review.

Once you have answered these ten questions, you should be well on your way to implementing a successful training program for your organization.