How to Conduct a Simple Training Needs Assessment

People like to work for employers who listen to them. Conduct a simple training needs assessment to see what your employers need to learn to perform their jobs better. Follow through with any training.

Things You'll Need

• Flip chart or whiteboard
• Multicolored, sticky dots or other removable media

Instructions

1. Call a meeting of the employees involved. Appoint one of the employees as the recorder or ask for a volunteer.

2. Present an overview of the training needs assessment activity. Explain that you are looking for specific training needs rather than broad generalities. Ask for suggestions to get everyone's mind on the same track. You also might present possible training topics.

3. Ask everyone at the meeting to list their 10 most important training needs. Write each need on the whiteboard or flip chart. Eliminate any duplicates.

4. Distribute multicolored, sticky dots to the participants. Explain that each different color represents a different weight of importance. Red might indicate the most important need, green the next important and so on.

5. Allow participants to place the sticky dots on the flip chart or whiteboard to rank their training needs.

6. Prepare a list of training needs in the order of importance after everyone's voted. Be sure your recorder takes good notes so you can have them for future reference.

7. Brainstorm with the group on ways to best implement the 3 top training needs. When the meeting adjourns, begin the process to implement those ideas.

Tips & Warnings

• Note any individual training needs that may not fit the general group's priorities. Not all jobs fit into the same needs category. If possible, try to allow for their training as well.