Planning for Training? How Do You Assess Training Needs?

A Training needs assessment (TNA) is a systematic method of identifying and analyzing the specific knowledge, skills, and behaviors needed by an organization or workforce in order to improve performance. This assessment is critical to the success of training efforts as it ensures that solutions are based on identified and observable needs, rather than assumptions. The TNA process can vary in length and intensity depending on the complexity of the problem and the available evidence, but it is important to conduct one before implementing any training solutions.

Top Training Needs Assessment Tools: Data Gathering

Companies face challenges every day that require a nimble, creative approach to equipping their employees with the skills and knowledge needed to stay ahead of the game. Knowing that your employees are prepared is invaluable to meeting current and future business objectives. Without following training needs assessment steps or TNA, delays in moving forward can strain employees and management.

Knowing exactly what skills employees have and having a learning plan in place to close knowledge gaps will enable change and smooth transition times considerably. However, using a combination of TNA will provide a more comprehensive picture of the skills and abilities present or lacking and create a clear direction for future training needs.

Top Training Companies: Training Needs Assessment Steps

Today’s workplace is fast-paced and demanding. Not everybody is willing to invest time in a training needs assessment (TNA), which evaluates your workforce’s skills and knowledge gaps. However, this practice is critical for enhancing workplace performance—especially when companies are facing acquisitions, shifting markets, and other changes.

A Training needs assessment can help you more accurately determine your employees’ skills gaps and strengths, as well as who needs training. It also establishes what skills are required for each role and whether existing training is working. This information is necessary to establish an effective action plan and ultimately help you meet your business objectives.

Why a Training Needs Assessment is Important?

Great companies are always evolving. When it comes to growing your business, many changes require the reskilling of your workforce. 

One way to do this is through a training needs assessment (TNA). TNA is the evaluation of training requirements based on a comparison of the current skills and competencies of your staff versus the projected needs of your organization. Here are some specific reasons why a training needs assessment is important.

How to Conduct a Training Needs Assessment

What is a Training Needs Assessment (TNA)?

Today’s workplace is fast-paced and demanding. Not everybody is willing to invest time in conducting a needs assessment; however, the practice is critical for enhancing workplace performance. Many businesses make assumptions of what their training needs are and how to conduct a training needs assessment.

This can have a significant impact on the success of training efforts because actions may address a symptom but not the real problem to be solved.

A workforce TNA is a way to collect information and to analyze the depth and scope of a problem. Assessments of a problem don’t have to belong or be intensive. If the issue is the rollout or change of a system or new job, the TNA can be reasonably quick. If there is evidence of a problem but no defined solution, or previous solutions have not presented satisfactory results, a longer look at other systemic factors may be required.

Components of a Training Needs Assessment

The Importance of a Training Needs Assessment and Learning Strategy

Change is necessary for organizations to succeed and grow. This requires the right technology, processes, and individuals to ensure opportunities available through change can be maximized. If you do not have time or resources to conduct a training needs assessment, you can still complete your project and release training to your employees, but without a corporate Training Needs Assessment, will the training achieve the objectives you wanted it to?

Training Needs Assessments will help you to make decisions about who needs the most impactful training, what that training should be, and how you can measure your success without spending money, time, and productivity you can’t afford.

Reasons to Conduct a Training Needs Analysis

A training needs assessment is done prior to the development of a training program, once a program has been running for a while, or after a change at an organizational or operational level is undertaken. There are three levels of training needs assessment, and it is important to understand why one should do an assessment and what should be done within that assessment to gain value from taking a step back and looking at the overall goals of the training engagement.

Do you know how much your training is costing you both to deliver and in lost opportunity cost?

How To Do a Training Needs Assessment and When Is It Used?

Training needs assessment is conducted in an organization where there are changes seen as significant enough to indicate gaps in performance for individuals (changing roles for example), an area or department (changing process, equipment, or responsibilities), or an organization (merging, acquiring, or divesting). These changes call for more than just communication but do not require an entire change or the development of a whole program. Training needs assessments are also likely necessary when there is a noticeable decline in performance for a group of people or teams without any discernible differences in processes, technologies, or organizational factors.

A good assessment always starts with asking three questions: why you think there is a problem, why are you looking at this now, and what are you expecting to see in terms of performance that you are not seeing. These should be considered before engaging in any formal assessment and should be as objective as possible. It is the objectivity needed that often requires a consultant who will have an outside view of the issues and experience in similar organizations and fields for comparison.