Draft
Running head: TRAINING NEEDS ANALYSIS REPORT 0
Training Needs Analysis and Design Document Report
Diana Leek
Argosy University
Part A: Choosing an Organization
The organization
The company, Carl Technologies, is an organization well known for the production of mobile phones and computer software all over the world. In the recent past, the company has witnessed a reduction in its sales revenues for services and products. This reduction in revenues has been attributed to customer experiences in the organization’s stores, according to a survey in the market. The levels of customer service have been low and thus most of the customers have not been satisfied with the service offering and their time at the stores. Thus, it has been difficult for the organization to retain its customers and it has been losing customers to its competitors. The organization has contacted me to conduct a training needs analysis to see whether training and development of the employees will be a viable solution to the current problem. I will then present recommendations to the organization on the approach to be taken to solve the problem, (Own conception).
Part B: Training Needs Analysis Report
Background
Carl Technologies was established in the year 1977 as an electronics solution store. The company started trading on electronics as an intermediary. In this role, the company grew many retail outlets around the country and expanded to other countries. From the year 1998, the company started manufacturing its own electronic gadgets and software and selling them through the established supply chains. Ever since the company has been doing well and t is now a recognized brand all over the world. The company is headquartered in Wes Newberry Massachusetts in the in the US.
In the recent past, the company has witnessed a reduction in its sales revenues for services and products. This reduction in revenues has been attributed to customer experiences in the organization’s stores, according to a survey in the market. The organization has contacted me to conduct a training needs analysis to see whether training and development of the employees will be a viable solution to the current problem. I will then present recommendations to the organization on the approach to be taken to solve the problem.
Source: Own conception, 2016.
Number of Employees
The company has around 40,000 employees in its stores across different countries. These employees are distributed across different departments. For this training program, 500 employees from the US stores will undertake the training program. These will include employees from the marketing department, customer service department, sales department, managers, customer relationship manager and the top management. Employees will be selected randomly for the training program. The selection will focus on employees who have been with the company for a period of more than five years. These are employees with high skills and experience in the specific areas of works.
Locations of Employees
The employees to be trained are located in different outlets in the US. These outlets are located in different states namely, California, Hawaii, Texas, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alaska, Virginia, Michigan, Ohio, Arizona, Illinois, New York, Oklahoma, Nebraska and the headquarters in Massachusetts. There are one or two outlets in every one of these states each with approximately 100 employees. The number of employees to go through the training from every outlet is 20. This is because the departments targeted do not have as many employees. Furthermore, the training program will be such that it does not interfere with the normal operations of the store. The training program will be conducted at the employees’ job stations.
Interview Data
I interviewed one corporate manager at the organization and one customer service employee. I wanted to find out the performance of the organization in relation to customer service and further establish the strategies put in place by the organization to enhance customer experience. From the interviews, I realized that the employee has not appreciated the impact of customer service efforts on the performance of the company. The organization, on the other hand, has not been effective in putting together strategies for managing customer service levels and customer satisfaction. However, from the employee’s responses, she seemed to have an idea that customers should be treated well so that they can come back for future purchases.
Observational Data
I further made observations of sales reps interacting with customers. I was keen to observe how long the sales rep spent with the particular client and whether the client seemed satisfied when leaving the store. I further observed the willingness of the sales reps to provide information to the customers when asked and how prompt they were to respond to queries. I also made an observation of the customer service team dealing with customers. From my observation, the employees observed were doing well to serve the customers but there were shortcomings, which could have been rectified. For instance, the conversations seemed to be directed towards making the customer make the specific purchase rather providing information for the customer to make a choice.
Performance Analysis
Training of employees has been identified as a remedy for the decline in the performance of the organization in terms of its sales revenues. Therefore, there follows the question of whether training is the right intervention for the current problem in the organization. Considering that the organization is concerned that most of its customers are leaving and pricing its competitors, there is an indication that something is wrong. From the interview and the observation, the customer service employees together with the sales reps are not effective in their roles. These are the points where the organization needs to retain its customers at. Therefore, I feel that taking the employees through a training program aimed at improving their skills will have a positive impact on the problem. Training is, therefore, a viable option for addressing the issues. However, training alone might solve the problem. Other interventions will need to be looked at so as to effectively improve the sales of the company. These could include the pricing patterns, a look at the competition in the market, consideration of the current trends, and motivation of employees (Noe, 2010).
Insufficient Knowledge or Skills
Some of the skills that are insufficient in the organization include the knowledge of the products, understanding of the software on sale, communication with customers, courtesy towards customers, delivering the “wow” experience, follow up on customers, keeping contact with customers, and creating demand for the product.
Business Need
With these insufficiencies in skills and knowledge, the business has suffered a lot. First, the company’s sales revenues have gone down in the recent past. This means that it is no longer the preferred choice for many customers in the market. This shows that customers are not getting value for their money from the company. The company needs to improve its sales revenues in order to be profitable and be able to meet its operational needs. There is need therefore for the company to find a way of improving its sales in order to remain operational. Furthermore, there is the concern that the company is losing its customers to its competitors. There a need, therefore, to work on ways of improving customer loyalty.
Cultural or Ethical Considerations
When designing the training program, there is a need to keep in mind the ethical and cultural issues surrounding the activity. For instance, the training program should not encourage employees to give misleading information to customers in order to lure them into making a purchase. The employees should be encouraged to provide true information to the customers. Furthermore, the objectives of the training program should not be achieved at expense of the employees' rights. The rights of the employees should be observed and respected (Saks, Haccoun, & Belcourt, 2010).
Justification for the Training
As mentioned earlier, the declined in the revenues of the company is an indication of an issue in the company. Prior to the decline, the company was doing well. Furthermore, the loss of its rusted customers to its competitors is also an indication that there is a problem in the company. The existence of the issue, therefore, calls for an action plan to take the company to the position it was before the issue was identified. Training is a viable option for addressing the existing issues.
The possible causes of the issue include a deficiency in skills and knowledge of the customer service employees, marketing strategy, and the overall strategies of the company. Not all of these causes can be addressed through training and development of the employees. That is why, as mentioned earlier, there is a need for the company to implement other solutions alongside the training and development intervention (Costen, & Salazar, 2011).
Delivery Dates
The training should start immediately after the approval of the training program by the top management. This is because the company does not want to wait for a longer period without having any intervention in place. I think the program can be offered in a timely manner given its importance to the organization. With the management’s commitment to the program, it will be easy to deliver it in a timely manner.
Training and Development Department
The Training and Development Department of the company has several roles in the organization. The department is responsible for addressing weaknesses of employees, ensuring that workers are satisfied, and seeking to increase their productivity. The department is established within the larger Human Resources Department. It is the role of this department to identify deficient in skills of employees and develop plans to address the deficiencies through training and development. Furthermore, the department is tasked with monitoring the consistency in the performance of employees so that it notes any needs for training. In addition, the department seeks to teach employees on being independent and thus reducing the need for supervision (Costen, & Salazar, 2011).
The Training and Development Department of the company will play an important role in the program. It will be important to consider the existing programs, which the department has planned and coordinated in the past. These programs will inform on the structuring of the current program so that it addresses the shortcomings of the existing training programs. The assumption will be that the existing program was not effective enough and thus this current training program will supplement its shortfalls. Some of the staff in the department will be involved in the training exercise (Costen, & Salazar, 2011).
Part C: Construct a Design Document Report
Course title: Customer Service: Dealing with All Types of Customers and Difficult Situations
Course Description
Employees dealing directly with customers come across different types of customers every day. Some the customers are angry, moody, nuisance, hard to understand, difficult and others are extremely hard to be satisfied. Different approached are needed when dealing with these types of customers and these difficult situations. This course will help employees in the customer service division and sales reps to understand all types and of customers and know how to deal with them. At the end of the day, every customer will feel satisfied and will appreciate the experiences at the store.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of this training program, employees participating in this program will be able to:
Identify the specific needs and want of a customer upon the initial interaction
Assess the type of customer they are dealing with upon the first interaction and choose the best approach to dealing with them
Vividly describe to the customer the offerings at the store that can address their specific needs and concerns
Make angry and moody customers happy and appreciative of the experience
Make the necessary adjustments of skills to keep calm in instances of pressure from customers
Present an image that is respectable and shows knowledge of the products and service well
Summarize information for customers who do not want details
Course Topics
Establishing customer problems and needs
Effective Listening
Asking the right questions
Identifying the problem and possible solutions
Dealing with insufficient information from non-responsive customers
Finding the satisfaction together with the customer
Presenting positive image to customers
Commanding respect through presentation
Using courtesy and conveying courtesy
Creating trust between you and customer
Making a customer comfortable around you
Conveying knowledge of the products and services
Handling nuisances and trouble customers
Importance of these customers
Understanding their frustration
What words to use
How to achieve composure under abuses
Defusing potentially explosive situations
What words to use
The expressions and figures to use
Closing the sale and retaining the customer
Understanding future needs of a customer
How to prepare the customer for future purchases
Getting the customers contact, (Noe, 2010)
Activities
Case studies
Simulations/ Drills
Demonstrations and applications in practical situations
Module Time Frame
Because of the need for demonstrations and directly interaction with the other trainees, these modules will not be offer online for this particular case. This is after further considering the inconveniences for online studying. Therefore, there will be a special arrangement with the organization so that the employees can personally attend the training. Therefore, under these circumstances, the training will take five days in total. The training will take 2 hours per day probably after work. An arrangement will be made such that the employees participating in the training leave their job stations 3 hours before the normal tie to take part in the training.
Course Time Frame
The approximate timeframe within which the participant has to complete the full course is one hour. Within one hour, the instructor will have delivered the complete content on the particular topic. Within the hour, there will be time for reactions from the participants and responses from the instructor. The session could extend by 5 to 10 minutes depending on the number of reactions.
Delivery Approach and Justification
Considering the aforementioned issues, the need for demonstrations and directly interaction with the other trainees, the module will be offered by an instructor rather than online training. This is the most effective delivery approach since the participants are not bothered by any other things in the surrounding. The environment will set well to allow for ample time and space for concentration and understanding.
On-line training will not be an option for this particular organization given the inconveniences that come with it. For instance, the internet problems, power outages, time zones and concentrations problems. The instructor will be well aware of the events building up to this training program so that the delivery is specific towards solving the issues identified. The content will also be tailored for this particular situation. Most training studies recommend instructor-led training over on-line training based on the participation of the trainees (Costen, & Salazar,2011).
Another approach would be to issues the contents to the participants for self-training. However, this is not the most applicable approach since it is not possible to measure its effectiveness. Besides, not all employees will deduce the same concepts from the materials given to them. Therefore, for standardization of outcomes and assurance of the effectiveness of the training program, instructor-led training is the most applicable option.
Risks
There are concerns that might hinder the success of the training program. These include the budget constraints. This exercise will require many resources from the organization. Considering the state of the company, it may be difficult to fully finance the project. Furthermore, there is the risk of time for conducting the training. Time constraints might hinder the success of the projects. Furthermore, the participation of employees in the program might harm the performance of the company due to the hours lost as employees participate in the training program. Lastly, there is a concern of the top management’s full support of the project. All manager will have to be on board with the project (Saks, Haccoun, & Belcourt, 2010).
Follow-Up
The instructor will ask the trainees to email two key points that they took away from the training and how they have implemented them. Furthermore, a brief quiz with be given to all employees who took part in the training to find out whether and how they are incorporating the training takeout. Through these approaches, we will be able to follow-up to ensure that training was transferred.
Evaluation
The results of the study will be measured according to the Kirkpatrick's model. According to this model, the results of a training program can be measured in four levels namely;
Reaction; the response of the employees to the training
Learning; achievement of the training objectives of the program
Behavior; the incorporation of the learned insights in their actions in the jobs
Results; the impact of the training program on the production of the organization, (Tan, & Newman, 2013)
Using the Kirkpatrick's model, we will be able to measure the result of the training programs at different levels of the program. The reaction measure shows how the employees are responding to the training program. For instance, checking whether the employees are interested in the program or not. Learning will consider the objectives that were designed before the study was undertaken. This will be based on whether the employees have achieved these objectives. An evaluation will then be conducted to ascertain whether the behavior and conduct of the employees have changed as a result of the training program (Tan, & Newman, 2013).
References
Beier, M. E., & Kanfer, R. (2010). Motivation in training and development: A phase perspective. Learning, training, and development in organizations, 65-97.
Beier, M. E., & Kanfer, R. (2010). Motivation in training and development: A phase perspective. Learning, training, and development in organizations, 65-97.
Costen, W. M., & Salazar, J. (2011). The impact of training and development on employee job satisfaction, loyalty, and intent to stay in the lodging industry. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 10(3), 273-284.
Costen, W. M., & Salazar, J. (2011). The impact of training and development on employee job satisfaction, loyalty, and intent to stay in the lodging industry. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 10(3), 273-284.
Noe, R. A. (2010). Employee training and development. McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Saks, A. M., Haccoun, R. R., & Belcourt, M. (2010). Managing performance through training and development. Cengage Learning.
Tan, K., & Newman, E. (2013). The evaluation of sales force training in retail organizations: a test of Kirkpatrick's four-level model. International Journal of Management, 30(2), 692.