| Design and
Develop In this phase, we take what we
have learned to design and develop an integrated training solution to close the
performance gap. The first product of this phase is clear and concise set of performance
objectives. The behaviors and competencies described in the objectives will be observable
and measurable. These objectives will tell you what you can expect your people to do
differently when they leave the training experience.
Next, we provide a program design. This serves as a blueprint
for the program. It describes the content to be covered and the methodology to be used.
Furthermore, it will explains how our six basic beliefs of program design are to be
executed. These tenets of our program methodology are:
1. Relevance: We are prepared to tailor make our programs in
ways that facilitate a bridge from what is presented in the classroom to the application
of the course back on the job. We can custom design case studies, role plays, simulations,
assessment instruments and application exercises to ensure that your participants regard
what is presented as highly relevant to their job responsibilities. We are skilled in
positioning important competencies and practices within the context of the business
environment so that program participants understand the relevance of what is presented and
see how it can be applied to their responsibilities back on the job.
2. A Self-Directed Development Process: We believe that only
those program participants who take primary responsibility for their own development are
likely to acquire the knowledge, skills, and experience they need to increase their
effectiveness and improve the performance of their organizations.
Self-directed development, however, cannot be forced.
Participants must recognize a need to change their practices and must decide for
themselves that they want to change them. It is for these reasons that a hallmark of our
methodology is the use of diagnostic instruments, whether they be self-assessment guides
or survey feedback instruments. These diagnostic tools give participants an opportunity to
assess their effectiveness in the areas related to the program objectives. The assessments
give them the opportunity to discover for themselves the opportunities they have to
increase their effectiveness and improve performance back on the job. As a result of their
own analysis, participants begin to recognize the need for change and take an important
step on the road toward self-directed development.
3. Skill Development/Acquisition: We recognize that in order
to help people behave differently when they return to work it is important to give them
the opportunity to practice the skills they need in the risk free environment of a
seminar. We break the desired behaviors into small, easily learned skill sets that the
participants then practice in structured exercises and role-plays. They then practice all
the skill sets together by applying them to a real life situation that represents an
improvement opportunity for them back on the job. This enables them to then transfer the
desired behaviors from the seminar back to their work place so that important
organizational objectives can be achieved.
4. Top-Down Direction: We believe that our central role is to
design training programs in order to support the achievement of organizational goals for
which senior management is held accountable. This means that the performance objectives,
program activities, and support and reinforcement systems that are prepared around our
training programs must be designed toward this end. With senior management as the ultimate
client of any training initiative, a top-down program design will focus on the objectives
that are critical for them to achieve, thereby effectively positioning training and
development as an important support function and ensuring their commitment and support for
the implementation and follow-up of the training.
5. Application: Our experience has shown that training
programs must help participants identify specific actions to take when they are back
on-the-job, otherwise, little or no real development takes place. All of our programs
assist participants to prepare comprehensive action plans that describe the specific steps
they will take to achieve their business objectives and improve their effectiveness back
on the job.
6. An Integrated Experience: We have found that by training
multiple levels of an organization we are better able to facilitate organizational change
and ensure the successful implementation of action plans back on-the-job. An integrated
approach ensures that multiple levels of the organization understand the concepts
presented and are prepared to provide guidance to their people when they return to work.
An integrated training approach better enables people at various levels of the
organization to carry out important performance improvement plans and achieve their common
objectives. This organizational focus further allows for the tracking and measurement of
performance improvement plans over time.
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