EVALUATION OF TRAINING PROGRAMMES
BACKGROUND:
Success in today’s world is defined by only one word – Performance. Training as a
function has also not remained aloof from this. A study released by the American Society
for Training & Development (ASTD) in 1996 identified the need to measure performance
improvement related to training as the key issue for new millennium. Top management in
all the Corporate houses are interested to know what results the organization is getting
from the hundreds of thousands of rupees spent annually on training. Even the trainers
are interested in knowing what kind of pay off they can expect from taking time away
from productive work to participate in a course.
In short Evaluation of training is the burning issue everywhere.
At Birla Power evaluation of training is an emerging concept too. Theoretically all steps
of training starting from needs analysis are important. Each step requires to be performed
in a specific method to make the evaluation effective. So evaluation occurs at 3 steps:
Before training
During training
After training
Evaluation before training:
This kind of evaluation would help us to gather insight in to things like, effectiveness of
course objectives, improvements on design, delivery, content, length of course, selection
of participants etc. The basic objective is to narrow the gap between the entering
behaviour (the behaviour when they come for training) of a trainee and the terminal
behaviour (the behaviour when they leave from training).
If the above mentioned things are taken care of then the decision on how to make or buy
the training program that will be most successful in closing the entering behavior
1
&terminal behavior. It may also help us to take actions to improve the workplace and
make it more supportive of the desired behavior, since many kinds of performance
problems cannot be corrected by training.
Evaluation during training:
This is the evaluation of comfort level of the participants attending the program,
effectiveness of teachings of the faculty, relevance of teachings and level of participation.
These helps in taking appropriate actions when necessary & not wait until the program is
over & it’s too late.
Evaluation after training:
This is used in most organizations in form of a “smile sheet” that evaluates their reaction
to the course. Some training programs also have a mastery test to measure learning’s of
the participants. But the increased emphasis on performance has led the trainers to
evaluate the impact of training even months after the training imparted. We can get to
know the true measures of how well are our participants dealing with the reinforces&
constraints of the workplace, the fact that helps or hinders employees as they attempt to
apply what they have learnt.
For different type of courses the payback period is different. For e.g. In courses where
innovation & technology are involved the life expectancy & payback period of a course
can be measured in a month’s whereas in courses dealing with skills and competencies
that should last a life time, the payback period will cover years. Such courses include
leadership, team building, and project management, writing skills, interpersonal
communications, problem solving, negotiation& conflict management
2
HAMBLIN’S FIVE LEVEL MODEL OF EVALUATION OF TRAINING
The specification of values forms a basis for evaluation. The basis of evaluation and the
mode of collection of Did they like it?
ACTION
information necessary
for evaluation should
be determined at the Did they learn it?
LEARNING
planning stage.
Evaluation helps in
controlling and
correcting the training BEHAVIOUR Did they use it?
programme.
ORGANISATION
Did they pay it?
RESULTS or ULTIMATE VALUE
3
Hamblin suggested five levels at which evaluation can take place. They are as follow:
1). Reactions: Trainee’s reaction to the overall usefulness of the training program
including the coverage of the topics, the method of presentation,techniques used to clarify
things , often throw light on the effectiveness of the program. Potential questions to the
trainees might include : (a) What were your learning goals for the programme? (b) Did
you achieve them? (c) Did you like this programme? etc ….
2). Learning: Training programme, trainers ability and trainee’s ability are evaluated on
the basis of quantity of content learned and time in which it is learned and learner’sability
to use or apply the content learned.
3). Job Behaviour : This evaluation includes the manner and extent to which the trainee
has applied his learning to his job.
4). Organisation : This evaluation measures the use of training , learning and change in
the job behaviour of the department /organization in the form of increasedproductivity
,quality ,morales ,sales turnover and the like.
5). Ultimate Value or Results : It is the measurement of the ultimate result of the
contribution of the training programme to the company goals like survival,
growth,profitability, etc. and to the individual goals like development of personality and
social goals like maximizing social benefit.
The level 1 & 2 are concerned with the learner’s behaviour in the class or upon
completionof the training. They can be measured by relatively simple paper & pencil
exercises, end of course evaluation sheets for level 1 and mastery test for level 2. Such
instruments are relatively easy to create, to administer & to interpret.
In contrast, levels 3,4& 5 are concerned with the learner’s behaviour after the
training isover - sometimes long after, when the trainee has a chance to apply what was
learned in class.
4
5
Decision points in Planning Training Evaluation
Basically, eight points should be kept in consideration while planning training evaluation.
They are:
1). Should an evaluation be done?
2). What is the purpose of evaluation?
3). What will be measured?
4). How comprehensive will the evaluation be?
5). Who has the authority and responsibility?
6). What are the sources of data?
7). How will the data be collected and compiled?
8). How will the data be analysed and reported?
These decision points are intended to increase awareness of, and interest in, the
evaluation of training, to improve planning skills and to encourage more systematic
evaluation of training
Methods of Evaluation
Various methods can be used to collect data on the outcomes of training. Some of these
are:
Questionnaires:
Tests
Interviews
Studies
Human resource factors
Cost benefit analysis
6
Feedback
