TRAIN THE TRAINER HANDBOOK

By:
LeRoy H. Graw, EdD, Certified
International Professional Training
Consultant

© American Certification Institute, 2008 1

 TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER TITLE PAGE NUMBER

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 3

CHAPTER II IDENTIFICATION OF TRAINING NEEDS 5

CHAPTER III THE PROVISION OF TRAINING 15

CHAPTER IV ONGOING SUPPORT 21

CHAPTER V MODULAR TRAINING 23

CHAPTER VI SYSTEMATIC TRAINING 28

CHAPTER VII DESIGNING TRAINING SCHEMES 43

CHAPTER VIII PROVISION OF TRAINING FOR TRAINERS 51

CHAPTER IX MEASURING THE IMPACT OF TRAINING AND SUPPORT

70

CHAPTER X SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING (SDL) 81

CHAPTER XI ONLINE (WEB-BASED) TRAINING AND SUPPORT 84

REFERENCES 86

© American Certification Institute, 2008 2

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Every job requires a number of specific knowledges, skills and abilities. Training is therefore
necessary, to enable each employeer to develop those successfully. It is essential that training
should correspond to the needs of an employee and take into account his/her previous
experience. The individual assessment of such needs will lead to the definition of an
individual training program. In this way, the employee will feel recognized and feel that their
contribution is valued This will encourage his/her dynamism and motivation while avoiding
needless repetition.

Employees are expected to feel comfortable with their task, to be efficient and to implement
successfully the activities for which they are responsible. This means that they need to be
listened to, encouraged, guided and supported. In all work teams, the members meet
frequently to report or prepare an activity. However, people also need to be recognized by
other managers than their boss or their direct colleagues, and they often suffer from only
meeting them for special events or when a problem arises.

Through regular meetings, employee team members will strengthen their motivation, improve
their behavior, alter their approach to problems, and overcome their difficulties, by
identifying available training. They should be responsive to their progress which will help
them to recognize their success. This is positive stimulation.

Most people will also need operational support. In other words, those in a different position,
with relevant competencies and knowledge may be resource people capable of orientating and
guiding others.

We will introduce the key areas one by one so that you can understand each of them in detail,
which will then make it possible for you to adapt them to your own training situation.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 3

© American Certification Institute, 2008 4
INTRODUCTION TO THE TASK

During the introduction to the task, the employee can familiarize him/herself with his/her task
and get to know other members of the team; in other words, take his/her place in the system.

It is best if this integration process is carried out according to a procedure established in

advance and not left to chance. Indeed, it is essential that the new employee rapidly feels at
ease, understands the structures and the working methods and procedures, knows where
he/she fits in and if need be, where to find additional information.

As part of the process, an Initial Competency Check for each new potential appointment is
made with and by the Manager, who signs that the required Training Plan has been agreed.

For example your organization might develop an Initial Competency Check as follows:.

The checklist may include the following:

← demonstrate basic organizational skills;

← show commitment to the Mission and Goals of the organization;
← discuss and identify organizational issues;
← demonstrate communication ability
← show self confidence and maturity;
← demonstrate competence in planning and organization of work;

At this stage the new employee should be given the Job Description and the Manager needs to
explain the broad objectives of the position, the tasks, and the necessary requirements of the
role.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 5

CHAPTER II

IDENTIFICATION OF TRAINING NEEDS

INTRODUCTION

Training should be based on both individual and organizational needs. It should contain all
competencies that are required to enable an employee to fulfil his/her role. Sometimes the
requirements, as defined by the organization, do not always coincide with the requirements as
perceived by the employees themselves. Therefore, to increase motivation, employees have
an important job to play in determining the content of their training and trainers must balance
the organizations’ needs with the employees’ perceived needs.

How and when does the trainer identify these needs to make the best use of the limited time
and resources available? Who else has the responsibility to identify training needs and ensure
that they are communicated to those providing training or participating in it?

The responsibility rests on three groups of people: the trainers (who provide the training
experience), the employees (who participate in that training) and the employee’s supervisor.
The role of each in identifying the training needs will vary with the stage of the training. As
training progresses, participants will take increasing responsibility for this, whilst for practical
reasons, the role of the trainer will decrease (at least as far as that group of participants is
concerned).

It would be wrong to think that training needs can only be assessed before or at the start of
training. Training widens horizons and produces new perceptions both of the employee’s role
and of him or herself. The employee is therefore constantly identifying new learning needs
and seeking new opportunities to meet them. Experience and deepened insights permit
employees to participate in training that previously they may not have perceived as relevant,
but which they now see as vital to the improvement of their performance.

Training needs may be identified:

a) Before Training

 by discussion of the employee’s future role with the manager

 by assessing the employee in his or her current situation, e.g. by projects and activities;
 by regular visits to the employee’s department;
 by consulting any existing training curriculum;
 by questionnaires to potential participants.
 by clarifying the employee’s role;

b) During Training

 by defining the technical skills and leadership competencies required to perform a job;
 by assessing participants through simulation games, problem solving exercises, practical

© American Certification Institute, 2008 6

 projects, etc, all of which require him/ her to demonstrate knowledge or skill;
 by using on-course evaluation sessions to test whether objectives have been met.

c) After Training

 by post-course evaluation of objectives;

 by monitoring participants’ performance on returning to their department;
 by identifying what still needs to be done that could not have been done in a course
context;
 by continuing discussion between the participant, the supervisor, and fellow employees.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 7

IDENTIFICATION OF TRAINING NEEDS BEFORE THE COURSE

a) Use of Questionnaires

Questionnaires may be structured, asking for very specific feedback, or open-ended. In an

open-ended questionnaire participants are given the opportunity to list any skill or
information that they would like to have included in the course. This helps the course director
to plan the training content and program to meet the needs of participants.

A better method is to provide a structured checklist for participants, with some of the skills or
information offered in the course. The participant is then asked to tick whether these are
relevant to his or her job, whether he/she already possess the skill or knowledge, or whether
he/she wishes to obtain it. A space can be provided at the bottom of the list so that they can
list additional training needs. The completed questionnaires are then returned to the course
director for his/her follow-up action.

Structured questionnaires have the following advantages:

 They allow the course director to plan a program that will meet the identified needs of
the participants.
 They give the course director an estimated level of the knowledge and experience of
participants. This assists the director to plan the ‘level’ of the input.
 They allow the participants to determine part of the content of the training and thereby
increase his or her ownership.

Questionnaires also have disadvantages, as follows:

 They are ‘cold’ and impersonal and some of the terminology may need to be explained to
new employees.
 The answers given are limited by the participant’s perception of his/her role. This
perception may be narrow unless he or she has discussed the role with someone
knowledgeable.
 A printed checklist makes the assumption that a trainer knows in advance what the
participants’ major needs are going to be. This may not be true.

b) Pre-Course Discussion with the Employee’s supervisor

Assessing training needs may also be done through a discussion with an experienced
supervisor or trainer who knows the potential participant and the situation in which he/she
works.

Such a discussion will consider the role that the employee has to perform; the knowledge and
skills he/she needs for that role and whether or not he/she possesses or requires them.

The person (Training Consultant) conducting the discussion must be familiar with what an
employee can gain from a course or other training experience and which of his/her identified
needs can be met by formal training. To be of assistance he/she should also be able to suggest

© American Certification Institute, 2008 8

where and how additional help or resources can be obtained.

The Supervisor will then inform the course director of the participant’s requirements so that,
together with other participants’ lists, the program may be better designed to meet the needs.

Such a pre-course training interview has several advantages:

 Participants are able to discuss and clarify their role and responsibilities, as well as
expectations at the earliest stage, rather than discover them as the course proceeds.
 The interview relates to the job to be done and the available training opportunities. This
gives the participants greater motivation to undertake training to develop the required
competencies.
 Participants will know what can be achieved through in house formal training and what
can be sought elsewhere. This allows participants to arrive on a course with a realistic
goal.
 Participants can develop a healthy working relationship with the supervisor early in the
process of establishing a support mechanism.

c) Pre-Course Monitoring of Potential Participants

This is a less formal method of establishing an employee’s needs. It requires regular visits by
the supervisor to the employee. Through observation and discussion, the supervisor will be
able to identify the person’s strengths and weaknesses and gives appropriate advice for
personal growth and development.

Again, for this approach to be effective, the supervisor must communicate with the course
director before the course, identifying those areas in which that particular person needs help.

Three methods of identifiying training needs for a course are described below:

a) Job Definition

Participants and trainers can start with a session to identify the employee’s job and the skills
required to perform it. This is best done in tutor groups or as a plenary discussion for, in this
way, participants have the advantage of a wider range of views as to their job and skill
requirements. Such a wider view allows new needs to be identified.

Any analysis of an employee’s job should also take into account:

← the characteristics and needs of the individual;

← the Goals and Objectives of the organization..

This analysis will produce a list of training needs, the knowledge, skills and attitudes required
to enable the employee to do his job. As with the pre-course questionnaire, individuals can
check those skills that they already possess and those, which they need to further acquire or
develop. On the basis of this feedback the rest of the course content and methodology can be
© American Certification Institute, 2008 9
revised and modified.

Job definition has advantages:

 participants are helped by the tutor group to see their job in a wider context, and thereby
identify personal training needs that they may not have realised before;
 participants may reassess the order of priority of their perceived needs as a result of
defining their own job more clearly;
 participants play an active and positive role in defining the content of the course and this
will increase their motivation and involvement;
 the systematic thinking involved in building up a job description and analyzing the needs
resulting from it is a valuable learning experience that can be translated into the
employee’s own planning to meet the needs of his/her organizational members.

If on-course Job Definition is used, it should be remembered that:

 it can be time-consuming (although it is a valuable means of group integration);
 it may seem relatively ‘theoretical’ to some participants, particularly if their perceived
needs are mainly technical.

Once participants have identified their needs, the trainers must try to meet them. This may be
difficult on a continuous course where staff have already been invited and may not possess all
the skills required. With courses held over a period of time, it is easier to assemble specialist
staff when a need is identified early on. The course director should anticipate some of the
most likely needs to plan the program, at least for the early part of the course.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 10

b) Use of Projects and Simulation Games

These are opportunities to see skills and behavior in practice, in which participants, as
individuals or in tutor groups undertake projects or take part in simulation games that require
them to demonstrate a variety of technical, practical, planning or personal skills. These are an
excellent means of integrating participants early in a course, as well as meeting their
expectation for training to be active, relevant and practical. This is particularly effective in
teaching negotiation skills.

The most important part of the exercise is, however, the analysis after the activity, in which
participants identify how well, or badly, they have performed, and what skills they need to
acquire to perform more effectively. As a result of this evaluation, additional needs can be
identified.

If this method of assessing needs is used, it is essential that periods are made available in the
timetable in which such needs can be met, and that the staff members have a wide expertise
and are flexible enough to structure sessions at short notice.

c) During-Course Evaluation

This has been implied above but there is also a wider application. At regular periods during a
course, participants and staff, as individuals, tutor groups or the staff group should have the
opportunity to evaluate what has been learned, whether objectives have been met or whether
objectives need to be altered. Such regular evaluations may modify or create new needs, some
of which could be met within the remaining period of the course. The author uses a “One
Minute Paper” to obtain written feedback periodically throughout the course in order to
adjust, modify, or add learning objectives based on felt needs and wants of the participants.

At the end of the course, there should be both group and individual evaluations from which a
further list of needs may be identified that can only be met in the participant’s organization,
after the course.

This could include:

← information to be obtained and sources from which to obtain it;

← people to be contacted for information or support and their location;
← skills to be acquired outside the organization.

These identified needs could be included in the report sent by the course director to the
participant’s supervisor, for follow-up action.

IDENTIFICATION OF FURTHER TRAINING NEEDS AFTER A COURSE IS

OVER

When the course is over and the participants have returned to the practical realities of their

© American Certification Institute, 2008 11

job, they should try to apply the knowledge and skills acquired or developed. The supervisor
can evaluate the learning that has been achieved and the employee’s ability to apply it
successfully.

It is essential during the immediate post-course period that participants have the continued
support of supervisors and others to help them:

 relate theory to practice;

 apply new skills;
 adapt what they have learned to their own context;
 identify further training needs.
1
It may also be useful for the supervisor to do another evaluation, some time after the course,
to support the employee especially where performance is unsatisfactory. This may suggest
further training, or training of a different type which can take a variety of forms listed below:
 personal study;
 informal discussion groups;
 one to one counseling;
 on the job training;
 further formal training;
 participation in training offered by other organizations.

It is important to be aware that training is an on-going process and that new training needs are
being identified all the time. As an employee becomes more experienced, a better perception
of the context in which he or she works reveals new training needs.

IDENTIFYING TRAINING NEEDS

BEFORE THE DURING THE COURSE AFTER THE

COURSE COURSE
TRAINER'S ROLE Study Organization Define trainee job and Evaluate participants.
Mission and Goals. organization requirements. Report to supervisors.
Set pre-course projects. Set projects and assessments. Adapt future courses.
Send questionnaires. Organize simulations.
Analyze returns. Tutor monitoring.
Receive supervisor input. Evaluate learning.
Assistant learner in
systematic thinking.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 12

SUPERVISOR’S Observe trainees.
ROLE Discuss jobs with trainees.
Analyze trainee needs.
Report to Course Director.
Prepare trainees for course.
Create realistic
expectations.
TRAINEE’S ROLE Identify needs to for new
knowledges, skills, and
abilities to perform better.
Identify needs from pre-
course questionnaire, pre-
course reading, or projects.
Discuss these needs with
supervisor.
Identifying Training Needs
Observe and Monitor class
projects as they relate to the
job.
Support training.
Analyze and clarify his/her
job responsibilities.
Define training needs to
perform that job.
Assess his/her own in-class
performance.
Reasses needs and priorities.
Define Personal Objectives.
Observe trainees at
work.
React to Course
Director’s report and
recommendations.
Identify new training
needs.
Evaluate course and
his/her personal
performance.
Apply his/her new
learning to the job.
Adapt job practices.
Undertake personal
projects.
Identify new training
needs.
Identify resources
available to meet new
training needs.
Investigate further
training opportunities.

The table below can be used to identify the types of skills and knowledge required in
performing certain identified tasks:

TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS FLOW CHART

Steps:

1 List down the specific task to be performed. For example, to conduct a training session
on learning theories, to write minutes of meeting, to source suppliers, to organise a conference
etc.
2 Determine the skills and knowledge required to perform the task, reasonably well.

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3 Set a target date for acquiring the skill and knowledge.
4 Work out a plan on how to achieve the skill and knowledge (see section on learning
commitment plan, to help translating the plan into action.)
5 Finally, identify the resources and support needed to achieve the plan.

Refer to the flow chart provided below. It involves several steps as on how to conduct
Training Needs Analysis (TNA) from an organizational perspective. The steps are as follows:

← TNA starts with what the organization wants to achieve in terms of its mission, goals and
objectives.
← Identify the jobs or tasks, which need to be performed to meet organizational goals and
objectives?
← Determine the skills and knowledge required to perform the task, reasonbly well.
← Assess the essential skills, knowledge and the desired behavior required for the person
doing the job or task? Ask what does he or she need to have versus what he or she already
knows?
← Based on the needs assessment and the desired behaviour and standard, develop a
training plan for the person who is going to do the task or job. In the training plan, identify the
training or courses he or she needs to attend. It could be on the job or off the job training.
← Monitor how the person is doing the job. Obtain feedback on learning (see section on
identification of training needs after the course).
← Review the training plan, based on the feedback and observations.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 14

 Organization’s Mission,
Objectives, and Strategy
Organization’s
Direction

What are the knowledges, skills and

abilities needed to do the job?

Knowledges Abilities

FLOW CHART OF INTEGRATION, TRAINING AND SUPPORT

© American Certification Institute, 2008 15

TRAINING PLAN AND THE ‘BDA’ PROCESS

One of the main purposes of training is to equip individuals with the relevant knowledge and
skills so that they can perform their jobs effectively. The type of training recommended is
based on the individual training needs analysis (see preceding sections).

A plan is then developed to schedule the dates and period when and where they should attend
and complete the training. A sample of the individual training plan is presented below:

Position
Organization

TRAINEE SIGNATURE

Once the training needs have been identified, determine the training courses the individual
has to complete and when the expected training is scheduled to be held. For budget purpose,
calculate and reflect the cost of training.

To acknowledge the training required, the individual and his supervisor would endorse the
plan. A copy of the plan is kept by the individual and with a copy placed in his personal file

© American Certification Institute, 2008 16

for monitoring and record purpose.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 17

However to secure commitment on the part of the individual and the supervisor, it is
necessary to prepare both of them on what to expect and how to get agreement before and
after completion of the training. Known as the ‘BDA process’, the table below provides
guidelines on how to prepare them before, during and after the training event.

Review the individual training plan based on the feedback received after the training and the
follow-up discussion. Make necessary modification, where necessary. For example, a new
need may have been identified and therefore make changes to the training plan, accordingly.

© American Certification Institute, 2008 18