Corporate Training Metrics
Developing a Model to Evaluate Professional Development Initiatives
To begin the process of designing a metrics model for training, look at what problems the training program is solving from a big picture, operational or strategic planning standpoint.
Goals of a Metrics Model
What metrics do you need in order to better align training initiatives with the corporate strategic plan as well as immediate operational targets? Present your metrics model to senior management to not only get their opinions but their buy-in.
For example, is the goal of training to:
- increase staff product knowledge
- improve the understanding of new processes or equipment
- improve compliance with a change in direction or message
- reduce waste, absenteeism or turnover
Next, examine how metrics can help guide training and professional development initiatives and directions i.e. the strategic planning within the training department. Are you collecting training metrics:
- To justify a training budget increase or staying at current levels
- To justify a training department staffing increase or staying at current levels
- To justify an increase in training development i.e. launching new programs or expanding existing programs
- To justify a new delivery model e.g. online learning
- To look at whether those who should be receiving the training are those that are attending the training
What Metrics to Include
The next step is to determine what training metrics to include in your model. There are many possible metrics to collect and evaluate. The goals identified above will help you determine which metrics to collect.
How to Gather Metrics
Measure each program separately to ensure that you can compare metrics to validate the effectiveness of the program. Just because you have great enrollment numbers and have had to add extra classes to accommodate potential participants, it doesn’t mean that the training is solving the performance gaps and meeting organizational objectives. Be careful to not measure training performance based only on volume served. Instead, look at metrics in tandem e.g. how the volume served correlates with the application of the concepts on the job which in turn correlates with an increase in productivity.
Hopefully you have the support of your IT department and have a data base with the necessary fields to create a metrics report (or at least a programmer’s help to create a data base to meet your needs). The metrics report should include the numbers you’ve identified in your metrics model. If the data base is constructed correctly, producing a report based on your metrics model should be simple and easy, ideally at the click of a button or link.
To improve compliance with surveys and other measurement tools, create a communication plan to explain to staff, management and stake holders why you are taking measurements.
One outcome of developing a metrics model for training is that it forces training staff to make sure that the training is connected to operations and strategic corporate planning. It will be important to revisit and revise the metrics model at least once a year to continue to see alignment with corporate objectives and meet the needs of the learners.
