{"id":8623,"date":"2017-07-03T18:00:37","date_gmt":"2017-07-03T15:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.talentlms.com\/blog\/?p=8623"},"modified":"2021-05-06T12:12:30","modified_gmt":"2021-05-06T09:12:30","slug":"how-create-successful-training-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.talentlms.com\/blog\/how-create-successful-training-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"How to create an employee training plan: A step-by-step guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every business understands the value of a high-quality training program. It\u2019s universally accepted that employee training<\/strong><\/a> can create greater efficiencies, lower costs, and better profit margins. But there\u2019s a big difference between an average staff training and development plan and one that will actually work.<\/p>\n

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Your average training scheme runs employees through the process quickly and churns them out as rapidly as possible. Get \u2018em in, train \u2018em up, and churn \u2018em out.<\/p>\n

But that\u2019s not all that training should be. A good eLearning initiative is more thorough. It is well-thought-out, executed with care, and reviewed for improvements.<\/p>\n

How to build an effective employee training plan<\/h2>\n

Creating effective training<\/strong><\/a> is not easy, but with the right plan, execution, and follow-through, you can build eLearning that truly is a valuable asset to your business.<\/p>\n

1. Identify clear, specific goals<\/h3>\n

Somehow, when managers and HR professionals create a new employee training plan, they often neglect the important task of identifying and communicating the specific goal. They may create broad, vague, or even unstated goals, such as \u201cwe want smarter and better employees<\/em>,\u201d but this doesn\u2019t directly help the company, nor does it identify the purpose of training.<\/p>\n

You can start by identifying the business objectives.<\/strong> Whether it\u2019s to increase productivity, improve sales conversion rates, or reduce expenses<\/strong><\/a>, knowing the business objectives can help you mold the goal of training.<\/p>\n

In the end, you want a goal that looks like this:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe goal of this training is to ensure that 75% of the staff understands how to use SharePoint.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

When you identify the specific goal of your training program, you give your employees better direction and understanding from the very beginning.<\/p>\n

2. Prepare the training materials and make a schedule<\/h3>\n

Now that you and your employees understand where all of these efforts are headed, you can begin formulating the training materials and developing a schedule. For a business training plan, it helps to give yourself at least a couple of days (or more depending on needs) to hash it all out.<\/p>\n

During this step, think about what your training will include<\/strong>, what software you\u2019ll use<\/strong>, and what the schedule will be<\/strong>. Will employees be training for an hour every day, for example, or for two full days?<\/p>\n

It really does help to be thorough and patient when designing a corporate e<\/strong>Learning course<\/strong><\/a>, as proper planning will help make your training as smooth as possible. Besides, employees certainly don\u2019t want to feel like their time is being wasted on ill-prepared, fast-tracked training.<\/p>\n

3. Develop training courses<\/h3>\n

Now that you have the goals and outlines for training materials, you can start to develop your employee training plan. This is the phase where you get to work creating the actual courses and learning paths that will help your learners acquire knowledge and skills<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

If you have trouble creating your online training plan, you could consider hiring an outside partner. There are companies that specialize in creating staff training plan templates and building resources like posters, cards, and even videos<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong>Their assistance can create quality resources that increase employee engagement<\/strong><\/a>. Also, ready-made courses can save you both time and money.<\/p>\n

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As a final step before bringing in the employees, give notice to your team (including supervisors) that there will be new training and certain people will attend. Be sure to send this message well in advance so busy employees have time to coordinate their schedules.<\/p>\n

4. Implement your training program<\/h3>\n

This is the phase when you finally put the employee training plan in action.<\/p>\n

Throughout training, you may need to slightly differentiate the actual implementation.<\/strong> For example, you could introduce gamification features<\/strong><\/a> to motivate learners or add instructor-led training<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and video conferencing sessions<\/strong><\/a> to make sure employees retain new knowledge.<\/p>\n

Likewise, you might notice that employees complete their training faster or more slowly than you had originally planned. This means you should adjust the training schedule based on your learners’ need<\/strong>s.<\/p>\n

At this point, don\u2019t underestimate the importance of break time throughout the day. Numerous studies emphasize that downtime is not just good for morale, it actually helps the brain absorb more information. When you are implementing your corporate training, be sure to allow a few 5 or 10-minute breaks throughout the day to allow team members to maintain effective learning potential.<\/p>\n

5. Revise, rework, and repeat<\/h3>\n

The United States Army has a review system called the AAR, for \u201cAfter-Action Review.\u201d This is a formal procedure used after any operation, project, or event. From Army engineers who built a bridge to elite troops who performed a covert operation, the AAR remains an important part of enhancing the military\u2019s effectiveness.<\/p>\n

No matter who uses it, the point remains the same: to identify what happened, why it happened, and what can be done to improve outcomes.<\/p>\n

You can use the principle of an AAR to improve your training procedures.<\/p>\n

The post-training assessment<\/a> should be done at a few different times,<\/strong> starting immediately after the employee training plan has been completed. During this assessment, you can look at factors like<\/p>\n