Step 1 – Investigate

All future steps of a training program depend on the Investigation Stage. Companies that train successfully have already made the cultural commitment to training and recognize that training and development is essential to succeed in today’s increasingly competitive global markets. As a company adopts training, management must begin to gain a better understanding of their workforce’s “present state” as well as how they expect to benefit from a more highly educated workforce. During this Investigation Stage, several key activities occur:

1. Manufacturing Training needs analysis

• The manufacturing training needs analysis reveals where the current and future workforce can benefit from training efforts. In addition, the analysis helps determine in which areas the company is stronger, and therefore helps prioritize training activities.

2. Job Shadowing

• Job shadowing entails an individual or team shadowing each job in the company where training is being considered.

3. Interviewing key stakeholders

• All key stakeholders are involved from the beginning when considering workforce training. Both management and the students should be interviewed, and the concerns and questions from both groups are then documented. By engaging management in all phases, the training program gains an identity and visibility throughout the organization. Additionally, by involving the students from the start, the investigation stages help foster a sense of pride in the training program.

4. Identifying and prioritizing areas that could benefit from the training

• During this stage, management must determine what areas need training and which target areas will provide the greatest/quickest value to the company.

5. Analyzing the possible benefit from the training

• During this activity, the company must fully document the benefits that will be realized from workforce training. This must include the benefits to the individual learner as well as to the organization.