Identifying Training Needs for Employees

Training being an important factor in the growth and development of employees and their performance, it is one of the activities that take a major share in human resources functions. Each and every individual is unique and so are the training needs. It is a big job for an organization to identify different employees’ training needs and fulfill them so that they perform their jobs not just effectively but also with passion and gain satisfaction in the work that they do. Top HR consultants suggest that every organization should have a training and development department that identifies the training needs of its employees and addresses the gap between the current skill sets and the expected skill sets.

Training is a practical approach to improve the skills and knowledge of employees to help them work effectively and efficiently. Training may be required at various levels. New employees may need the training to understand work culture of the organization and existing employees may need training to polish their current skills, to get over their weaknesses and to be groomed for future assignments and responsibilities. Deciding on who requires what kind of training is training needs analysis. The training needs analysis also answers how the training should be provided, training cost and what would be the training’s impact on the organization.

Here, we shall look at different types of training needs an employer has to deal with.

Industry needs: Each employee has to gain certain skills that are industry specific and are very much required to perform well in the job. However, it is on the training and HR management consulting team to decide what industry skills and how much of it is required for each employee. It is not necessary for an entry-level employee to know all the industry knowledge in depth, which will only confuse the employee as to what is necessary and what is not.

Job needs: Certain skills are needed for certain jobs and it’s the responsibility of managers and training team to identify the current skill set of employees and fill the void to bring them to the expected levels. For e.g. some employees may have to speak to many people as a part of their job. For such people, telephone etiquette is an important skill, and people who lack this can be trained to perform better. Employees, who meet people in person, may be trained on body language skills to be able to perform well with greater confidence levels.

Person’s needs:  As we understood before, each employee is unique and every employee’s skill set differs from the others even within a team of people with similar qualifications and experience levels. HR consultants can be roped into analyze the individual training needs of employees based on their knowledge, skills, abilities and aptitude.

Training needs have to be analyzed and worked out in coordination with both organizational needs & goals and employee’s current skills & expected skills. If an organization does not have an independent HR department, then it is to the benefit of the organization to hand over the training responsibilities to a human resources consultancy that has professionals with expertise in evaluating training needs and developing an appropriate training program in line with the organizational goals. Accuprosys is one such trusted human resources consultancy with experts to manage all your human resources functions.

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