When times are good and cash is flowing, it's easy to live with the “possibility” that the training you’re providing to your staff will work. If it’s “close enough” and your staff enjoys it, it's easy to settle for that consultant who flies in from Boston, drops a few surprises, flies on and never looks back. You are left to decide how, or if, your organization benefited from the experience. Did it make a difference? Is your staff more knowledgeable and effective? Did it make your job easier? Was it worth the money you invested? The really big question is…is “close enough” ever really good enough? I think the answer is no!
In today’s increasingly competitive market, organizations must continually strive to build and enhance the skills and knowledge or their employees. For training to be effective it should be targeted to the competencies required on the job. There are any number of ways to conduct a training needs assessment, each with its strengths and limitations. One of the best approaches is to conduct a functional analysis.
Functional analysis
Functional analysis is a practical tool used to identify what people actually do on the job. Conducting a functional analysis will help you determine the tasks your employees should perform and the knowledge and skills required to perform those tasks. It’s a competency based system that makes it easier to design training that targets specific skills and knowledge. In fact, by analyzing the tasks to be performed and then prioritizing those tasks you can train to the areas of greatest need. Not only are your training efforts targeted to the specific needs of your staff, but you won’t waste money training on things that are “close enough”!
Functional analysis can help your Human Resource staff in other ways too:
Staffing: Understanding the competencies a job requires can help you hire more qualified staff. Assessing potential employees and their abilities against a set of competencies required on the job will help you to predict who will perform well within your organization more accurately.
Performance Management: Listing a job’s competencies can help ensure a common understanding between you and your employee of what a job requires. It helps you identify the “other duties as assigned” that often accounts for about 99% of time spent on the job. A competency based system will also help you communicate what you expect and define satisfactory job performance, it’s right there in black and white, ready for you to use in your performance appraisals.
Development Planning: No matter how well qualified someone is for a job, most employees need additional training. Whether it’s learning new skills or just learning to do things your way requires training. Competency based training systems can help you focus on the skills they need and take the guess work out of your training plans.
Succession Planning: Most businesses like to keep high performing employees. A competency-based system will help you identify career paths for promising employees. Clearly understanding the competencies a job requires will help you to determine promotional opportunities, improve job satisfaction, employee retention and will help you with your on-going progress towards your business goals.
So before investing in your next training event, ask yourself, “is close enough good enough”? If your answer is no, then a competency based training system will help you pinpoint your training needs, and more!