Training and Professional Development

To keep all departments of Open Doors moving in the same direction, particularly during

an expansion phase, it is important to keep the main goals and values of the company at the

forefront. To ensure that the focus is maintained, Open Doors has developed a professional

development plan to assist employees in gaining or sustaining the skills needed to implement

organizational goals throughout the company. This can include relatively short-term goals such

as an employee who needs more training support in their current role to a longer term goal of

preparing new leaders for expansion. In addition to having a well trained staff that is committed

to company ideals, a development plan can make a sizeable difference in retention; up to 94% of

employees claimed that they would remain with a company that provided for their skills

advancement (Chopra-McGowan, 2022). The Insperity Staff (2023) suggests a series of steps for

this process starting with selecting goals, discussing development with employees, determining

where the employee is in their journey, utilizing several types of training, and creating a

comprehensive plan.

Planning

Open Doors is focused on providing a consistent level of service to justice-impacted

women, measured by enrollment percentage and survey scores, as the program expands in the

next 24 months. Communication, relationship building and collaboration, and problem solving

skills are needed to carry out this plan. Whether it is a social services worker assisting a client

with housing, a fundraiser working on an event, a payroll manager explaining payroll deductions,

or a member of the board helping the executive team with a marketing issue, most situations will

build from a strong ability in those three areas. The beginning of the training process was for the

board of governors and executive team to identify and discuss the goals that would be the most
important for the next 18-24 months in addition to any current organizational gaps. They also

took into consideration information from departments about individual needs and requests for

skills training. The desire for a professional development plan and potential approaches were

introduced at a quarterly board meeting, with follow up and decisions completed in the next

quarter’s meeting.

The next phase will take place over the next three months. In the recently instituted

informal review process, employees throughout the company have been meeting with their

managers to discuss development. This is an excellent time to find out more about career goals,

challenges, and any type of training that employees already have in mind for their own

development (Staff, 2023). Additionally, it is often the case that an employee would like more

training or would like to move into a particular position but is unsure about the best type of

training or lacks knowledge about what is available (Salas et al., 2012). Linking individual

development goals with the overall company learning strategy can have a significant impact

(Vroman & Danko, 2022). A benefit to this approach is that employees, if they have not already

detected the importance to the company of learning, education, and development, will start to

realize its prevalence. Compiling and analyzing the feedback gained during this quarter,

throughout the company, will assist in showing where gaps related to implementing company

goals are. Salas et al. (2012) found that using this pretraining review to determine who needs to

be trained, on what type of skills or knowledge, and using which training system will be

foundational to positive outcomes, how to design the training, and how to evaluate its

successfulness.
Design

After establishing the specific areas for training based on the needs analysis in

relationship to the company’s goal, it will be necessary to design and/or obtain the most

appropriate types of learning systems, ascertain methods of delivery, decide on frequency, and

schedule training. A variety of types of training should be used to accommodate both differing

learning styles and multiple venues (group setting at an office or individual, remote setting). This

process should take the next three months as the training staff weighs the specific learning needs

with the best way to convey that information. To really establish the ongoing learning culture

and provide helpful information for specific training going forward, employees will complete an

Individual Learning Styles Assessment (ILSA) (Carpenter & Qualls, 2015). This should take

three weeks to send out, complete, and return. The Head of Workforce Analytics will be able to

assist with evaluating the overall trends in the ILSAs. These assessments assist both employees

and trainers in understanding the ways and situations that will be the most beneficial training

avenues. Company-wide training events can be designed for the most common learning styles

with trainers providing more frequent check-ins for those who may not be as well served by a

particular method. In addition, departments, groups, and individuals can receive more tailored

training for future professional development.

While formal training such as online webinars will be used, training through coaching,

storytelling, group training, problem solving workshops, and peer mentoring can be used with

the benefit of being company specific and cost effective (Training and Development, n.d.). Some

of the training can be sourced or developed during the three months that information gathering

regarding knowledge and process gaps are being assessed. Then, adjusting training to the

identified areas of focus will require another month. Since this particular training for Open Doors
is company-wide, and not tied to a specific individual, group, or event, two main types of

training will be offered: online, computer directed with specific due dates and multiple small

group training offered at various times and venues. This has the benefit of a person being able to

perform more independently and/or from a remote location as well as being able to interact more

with others socially. The employee will be able to choose which type and times they wish to

attend as both forms of training will cover the same content. This fits very well with Open Doors'

flexible scheduling and multiple locations set up as well as allowing for some individual learning

styles.

Implementation

The training can then be scheduled over six weeks in two parts. This will allow for

shorter training sessions as well as a built-in opportunity for follow up in the second session.

Several in-person meetings covering Part I content will be scheduled in at least three locations, at

various time periods such as morning, afternoon, and evening in the first three weeks, and Part II

meetings will follow a similar pattern in the second two weeks. For the online training, Part I

must be completed in the first three weeks, and Part II in the following three weeks. Training

times will need to be scheduled out at least one to two months in advance to provide time to

communicate the schedule and for individuals to plan, choose, and respond with the best times

for their own work plans. The notification of training will be an email with a link to the training

course registration. This will be followed by additional email reminders, newsletters,

informational slides on the screens, and meeting announcements that positively focus on training

benefits and provide examples of what the training will include. This type of communication

should reduce any anxiety about learning, offer opportunities for clarification and questions, and

encourage constructive attitudes toward training (Salas et al., 2015).

 The training will include role playing and similar interaction scenarios for in-person, and

short answer questions or select a response from a written or video scenario for those using the

online option. Drawing content from actual situations that have happened at Open Doors will

make it more relevant and interesting to the participants (“Training and Development,” n.d.). In

addition, real problem-solving tasks that the company expects to be working on will be

introduced to explore ways that a problem can be tackled, and also make the training applicable

to the employee. It is important to select different types of tasks that coordinate with the overall

learning goal (Lejeune, Beausaert, & Raemdonck, 2021). Providing the information, allowing the

participants to practice the task or behaviors, and then expressing feedback that is constructive

should allow the employee to incorporate the tenets more easily into their workday. Since the

content will underscore the company goals and many ways that they can be implemented in

everyday work situations, managers will be expected to continue to reinforce this learning in

daily meetings, communications, and daily interactions. These informal or unexpected events are

especially effective ways to increase the success of learning (Lejeune, Beausaert, & Raemdonck,

2021). The training itself can be used as a stretch assignment for some employees who have

already demonstrated creative ways to integrate company goals into their daily actions. They can

help design the training agenda, co-lead, or present at the session or on video. Other assignments

that are aligned with the work may be used. Information sheets, website addresses, and other

items that will allow employees to review and remember content will be provided (Salas et al.,

2012).

Follow-up and Measurement

During and immediately after the training block, it is important to allow staff to practice

and transfer any new knowledge or skills into their work. This will vary by job type but attention
to the company goals can be expressed in informal meetings, in working with clients, through

employee newsletters, presentations, requests for stretch assignments or job shadowing to

experience how others are incorporating these new skills. Managers should identify and assist in

removing any barriers to transferring the new learning into the employee’s performance.

Participants will also be informed that they will receive a request for a short write up on how

they have demonstrated the knowledge and skills from training at one month and in six months

after they have completed the training. This “self-regulation” to keep a learner focused on the

concepts sustains the learning and will likely result in knowledge that is kept over time (Salas et

al., 2015, p. 87).

To measure training effectiveness, a pre and post training worksheet will be completed to

measure the understanding of the company goal and how it could be incorporated into each

employee’s work. Additionally, determine from the employee writeups and any meeting or

conversations if their knowledge, attitudes and behaviors are expressing the goal of maintaining

client focused service levels. Although this could be attributed to factors other than training, this

anecdotal evidence is another set of data to add to the training evaluation. Managers’ direct

observation of employee work before the training can be compared to after, noting any changes

in behaviors toward the goal that was covered. Turnover rate can also be compared before and

after to see if there has been in change in retention (Carpenter & Qualls, 2015).

As with any company rollout, it is critical to inform the staff. Helping them to understand

the reason for training, the importance of training to the business culture, and getting them

involved through their review process will aid in its success. Studies have found that this type of

communication can positively impact learning motivation (Salas et al., 2012). Emails, notices,

newsletters, and spoken words should all focus on the opportunity to benefit the employee’s
career growth and increase the success of the company and consequently, the individuals who

work for the company. This can also be a way to signal the agency’s commitment to the learning

process as well as any expected outcomes. For instance, including that training sessions will be

accompanied by several opportunities to follow up makes employees more concerned with

putting what they have learned to work (Salas et al., 2012). Further, driving the program with

manager support, feedback, and results can sustain employee engagement. The enthusiasm for

training and willingness to participate in learning themselves must start with the executive

managers and move down through directors, department managers, and on to frontline staff

(Milkway & Saxton, 2011).

 References

Carpenter, H., & Qualls, T. (2015). The talent development platform: Putting people first in

social change organizations. [eBook edition]. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated.

https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119207542

Chopra-McGowan, A. (2022, March 2). Effective employee development starts with managers.

Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/03/effective-employee-development-starts-

with-managers

Insperity Staff. (2023, July 11). 5 steps to creating career development plans for future leaders.

https://www.insperity.com/blog/5-steps-to-creating-employee-development-plans-that-

truly-work/

Lejeune, C., Beausaert, S., & Raemdonck, I. (2021). The impact on employees' job performance

of exercising self-directed learning within personal development plan practice.

International Journal of Human Resource Management, 32(5), 1086-1112.

https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2018.1510848

Milway, K. S., & Saxton, A. (2011). The Challenge of organizational learning. Stanford Social

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and development in organizations: What matters in practice. Psychological Science in

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