Revisiting Our Understanding of Training Needs Analysis

In the experience of contacting HR professionals in the business of training in the Philippines, we often get multiple responses when we ask the question, “What did your TNA tell you in regard to your needs in… (topic)? It appears that some practitioners may not be aware what a TNA is a crucial factor in coming up with an effective program suited for their company. TNA stands for Training Needs Analysis, which is a very important aspect of developing a company’s workforce.

Training Needs Analysis (TNA) is a series of activities designed to identify what kind of training and development program may help remedy or solve a particular issue in an organization. These issues are usually identified by a gap between the expected performance outputs and the current performance and skills of the human resource. TNA is critically, the first step in initiating changes in the company.

Training needs analysis allows you to build a bridge between the traiTraining Needsning procedures you will utilize and how they can be translated to the operations environment. Without a good training needs analysis, your program will have a hit-and-miss chance at success. However, when you start with a good TNA, you can ensure that there will be maximum value for the investments in the training you will implement.

While most HR personnel may understand the value of TNA, some still overlook the process because of the challenge of what kind of TNA must be used. There are no fixed templates or guidelines you can use in preparing a TNA for your company. The kind of TNA you will use should be configured on the basis of factors such as the industry you belong to, the kind of skills required to address the performance gaps, the goals and requirements of your program, the nature of possible causes of performance gaps, and many others.

Easily however, TNA begins with identifying the performance and skill gap you need to address. Once you have identified what you are after, it is easier to take the next steps in chasing it. Once you know your problem, you can start gathering information about the factors affecting it and its impacts to your organization. Many methods can be applied in this step. You may use surveys, questionnaires, interviews, small group discussions, psychometric tests, observations, performance statistics, and others. Your procedure can be formal or informal depending on the scope and potential value of the activity.

When doing a TNA, it may be tempting to always conclude that certain training be implemented. However, if you have been able to complete a thorough TNA, there will be a few times that you will realize that a simple manual or visual job aid may do. This is all right. The most important thing about your TNA is that you identify the root cause of your issue. For most cases, your TNA has to uncover whether you need to address knowledge, skill, or motivation because this is where a good training program can start with.

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If you are looking for a training and development partner who can tailor programs to your specific needs based on your TNA and a reasonable investment, visit us at www.competad.com or you may also call us at (02) 433 3342 or thru (0998) 5624984 to 85.

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