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Identify Job Requirements
What must someone know to hold this job?
A job
is a position held by employees in the company, such as Forklift
Operator, Lab Technician or Fire Fighter. Each job has a set
of skills that an employee must master to qualify for that
position. Some of these job requirements may be mandated by
the government, with penalties for non-compliance. Additionally,
some skills require periodic recertification to maintain compliance.
Active Learner defines a job as a combination
of 4 things: Site, Area, Department and Job Title. The Department
and Job Title are required fields, while Site and Area are
optional fields that allow more specific job definitions.
Before you can design a job curriculum,
you must understand what skills and knowledge are necessary
to hold that position. Here are some things to consider when
determining training requirements for a job:
| Equipment
skills |
What
tasks do people in this position perform? Do they operate
forklifts, analyze samples under an electron microscope
or use a computer? |
| Knowledge |
Do
employees need to understand the principles behind the
equipment they use? |
| Certifications |
What
certifications are required for this job and how often
do they expire? For example, does this job require an
Emergency Medical Technician certificate that is renewed
annually? |
| Mandates |
Are
there any government or corporate mandates that affect
this job? For example, employees working with benzene
must comply with certain federal regulations. |
| Soft
skills |
Soft
skills might include good written or verbal communication,
management skills and teamwork. Does this job require
working alone or on a team? Is this a leadership position?
Will employees interact with customers? |
What is the best method of training?
Once you've assembled the list of job requirements,
next identify the best method of training.
| On
the job |
Provides hands-on experience with equipment
Provides one-on-one mentoring with experienced employee
Provides immediate feedback
Best method for teaching equipment operations
|
Requires availability of an experienced employee
Reduces productivity of the mentoring employee
Doesn't assure consistency or quality of training
|
| Classroom |
Allows many people to be trained at once
Encourages learning with group discussions and Q&A
sessions
Provides immediate feedback from teacher
Best method for teaching centrally located groups where
everyone needs the same training at the same time
|
Takes employees out of workplace
Requires special facilities
May incur travel expenses
Forces everyone to learn at the same pace
|
| Workbooks |
Permits self-directed, self-paced learning
Portable
Best method for teaching concepts and theories of operation
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Doesn't allow hands-on training
Doesn't allow learner to ask questions
|
| Videos |
Permits self-paced learning
Narration may benefit poor readers
Good for teaching techniques or processes that need
to be seen to be understood
Best method for teaching visual concepts where hands-on
operation isn't possible
|
Provides a passive learning experience without opportunities
for discussion or feedback
Requires a TV and VCR
|
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Computer-based
|
Permits self-directed, self-paced learning
Provides immediate feedback
Maintains learners' interest by allowing them to interact
with program
Allows selection of best multimedia tool to teach a
topic: text, pictures, videos and sound
Allows training to occur in the workplace
Interfaces with training database to reduce administrative
overhead
Best method for teaching a widespread workforce with
diverse ongoing training needs
|
Requires a
computer and basic computer literacy |
What training is already available to teach
these skills?
Once you know what to teach and how best
to teach it, the next question is whether the training already
exists. You may find that several options are available for
the same subject, such as a class and a workbook. Include
both in your curriculum, identifying one as the preferred
method.
If training for a skill isn't available,
you'll need to consider other options:
-
Enrolling
employees in classes taught outside your company.
-
Purchasing
workbooks, videos or CBTs (Note: RDC provides a series
of workbooks, videos, and e-learning programs approved
by the American Petroleum Institute, International Association
of Continuing Education and Training, and the American
Society for Training and Development.)
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Developing
a new course (Note: The BASYS tool makes it easy for subject
matter experts to create online training courses).
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Using on-the-job
training.
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