How to Write an Effective Job Training Manual

A job training manual can ease an employee's transition.

Businesses are becoming busier every day. Many are trying to make do with fewer employees despite an increased workload. For this reason, when a business must fill a position, time with a mentor, training with the individual who previously held the job or access to a job trainer may be nominal or simply not possible. This makes having an effectively written job training manual in place for each job an absolute necessity for any well-run businesses.

Things You'll Need

• Company's mission statement, goals and objectives
• Company's organizational structure and/or chain of command
• Company's policies and procedures
• List of duty areas for the job
• List of major tasks required within the job

Instructions

1. Outline the mission statement, goals and objectives of the company and explain its organizational structure so that the employee understands how he fits into the business as well as its chain of command (if one exists).

2. Outline the overall policies and procedures of the company and explain what is expected from all employees. Be specific about points that are non-negotiable, such as a dress or grooming code, being on time, not leaving work early, taking only the allotted amount of time for lunch and any other crucial issues. It is imperative that the employee thoroughly understands what is expected of her, where flexibility may exist and what things are firmly written in stone.

3. Spell out the employee's specific role within the department or section. This is an important part of building a sense of "ownership" in his position within the company.

4. Outline the overall duties of the position. Duties are broad categories of job requirements such as "continue lines of communication between management and labor" or "promote customer relations between the company and those it serves." Underneath each duty area will be more specific tasks that are required to meet the duty requirements.

5. Spell out the major tasks that are required within each duty area. For example, using the duty area "continue lines of communication between management and labor," tasks might include such things as "attend the weekly employee/management meetings" or "provide specific suggestions for improvement of the department or section through the company's suggestion program." While it isn't possible to cover every specific task that an employee will perform within her job, covering those that are most important to the position will provide a realistic expectation for which the employee can aim.

6. Set a standard to which each task must be performed. Using the same duty area "continue lines of communication between management and labor" and the task "attend the weekly employee/management meetings," establish a standard for each task, such as "do not miss more than five meetings per year without prior approval of your supervisor." The standard makes it clear to the employee that he will be evaluated on that task.

7. Organize the manual in a form that addresses each individual duty area and its requisite tasks of the job. Be specific and detailed enough to allow the employee to gain the requisite skills and processes, and outline enough time for her to do so (such as six weeks, three months or one year). This tells the employee how long she will realistically be allowed to develop the skills required to do her job.

8. Make the training manual easy to read and use terms that the employee can realistically be expected to understand. Use active voice in preparing the manual so that it seems personal to each employee. Provide visuals such as tables, charts, pictures and graphs. Because most people are "visual" in nature, that extra touch often speeds the training process and helps with information retention. Provide important backup information such as a table of contents, index, glossary of terms and explain any acronyms or abbreviations.

Tips & Warnings

• Adjust the information given to the specific role of the employee. Those at the management end may require much more detailed information than those at the labor end of the spectrum.

• Break each section into small enough units so the employee feels a sense of accomplishment upon its completion and will be eager to move through the training process.

• If, at some point, the manual will be used in a formal group or for one-on-one training sessions, spell that out in the manual.

• Avoid using technical terms unless they are considered an important part of the job.

• Never speak "down" to an employee. If you have employees with learning disabilities, prepare a separate manual for them written to their level of understanding.