HR Training Class Essay

Justify the use of a needs assessment of your company’s proposed employee customer service training, stressing five (5) ways in which such an assessment would expose any existing performance deficiencies. An employee needs assessment is an asset to have in the retail industry. In this demanding line of work it is imperative that we have employees who are fully capable of doing their job well and quickly. Therefore, the needs assessment is needed to help shine the light on those candidates who best fit our needs. One way that a needs assessment may expose any existing performance deficiencies is by looking at the candidates’ individual needs. A needs assessment would help the company see which candidates need what type of training and save time not training the right person incorrectly. Another way that a needs assessment would expose any existing performance deficiencies is by looking at the organizational performance. This will help figure out the skills, knowledge and abilities that an agency needs from a candidate and help the organization recruit only those individuals that will help them and not hinder them in any way. The other way that a needs assessment can help expose any existing performance deficiencies is through an occupational needs assessment. This assessment examines the skills, knowledge, and abilities required for affected occupational groups. Occupational assessment identifies how and which occupational discrepancies or gaps exist and analyzes how well an employee is doing a job. It then determines the person’s capacity to do new or different work. Another way that a needs assessment can expose any existing performance deficiencies is by conducting a personality test. Not all individuals are capable of working in retail or with other individuals in that capacity so they would not be good candidates. The 5th way that a needs assessment would expose any existing performance deficiencies would be to assess an individuals’ mental  capacity to perform. Retail is a stressful field and if a person is not able to handle the demands they could crack under the pressure. Develop a customer service training implementation plan and determine how the method of training (i.e., presentation, discussion, case study, discovery, role play, simulation, modeling, or on the job training). Training in the retail industry is very important and will be the starting point for every single individual who works for our company to understand how they are representing the company. It will also give new hires a chance to learn more about the company history and what makes the company a unique one to work for. There are several ways that new hires should be trained when working in retail customer service including: presentation, case study, role play, modeling and on the job training. All of these trainings include a way to train individuals who learn differently, such as auditory, visual and kinetic. This is the best way to train new hires if there are a large group of individuals so that everyone is able to learn the information and apply it. This eliminates any way for a new hire in the retail industry to not understand the material. Justify why you selected the training method that you did. I selected the presentation method because I believe that this is one of the best ways to help individuals learn. With a presentation the individual is not only hearing the information but they are also seeing the information and able to follow along visually. This makes sure that the individual has an auditory recall of the information as well as visual. The case study selection was picked because it helps new hires to see the typical day to day activities in the retail industry. By knowing what to expect, the individual is more prepared for the customers and the other duties that a retail employee must be able to handle at all times. Role playing will help enforce the case studies. It is easy for a new hire to read through a case study and read the solution. The role play helps the new hire fully appreciate how things may happen in the retail industry. By role playing kinetic learners are able to get up and apply the information that they have been taught. This is good for all retail new hires because they can see what may or may not happen while at work. This type of exposure will help cut down on confusion when a real world problem presents itself. Modeling is  great for new hires in the retail industry because they are able to see how a situation should play out if handled properly. By modeling the correct behavior and activities in front of a new hire the organization is able to ensure that the employee was taught the proper way by someone in the field who is an expert at what they do. On the job training is beneficial to any new employee, especially in the retail industry. By shadowing other employees who have more experience and learning along the way is the best way to train. All three learning areas; auditory, visual, and kinetic, are being tapped into. The employee is able to pick up more quickly because it is in the moment. Retail organizations should always include on the job training for their new hires so they can make sure that their employees are trained properly and fully aware of how the company should be running. All of these training methods that I selected are helpful and highly recommended in the retail industry. They each offer a different method of training that is intertwined with another method to offer a stair step affect. Propose two (2) ways to motivate an employee who has no interest in attending a training class. Training classes are not the first thing a typical new hire wants to do before they are able to go out into the field and really get a grasp of their duties and how to handle customers. In order to handle employees who have no interest in attending a training class the HR department must look at ways to implement fun activities that enforce the information that they need to learn. The first way that an employee could be motivated who has no interest in attending a training class is to start a professional development course that will help employees advance in the workplace. This course would encourage employees to attend trainings and in return give credits for the course. When an employee reaches a certain level of credits and has accrued a certain amount of credit hours they will be eligible for a promotion. This is a positive way to increase the likelihood of an employee wanting to atte nd a training and help promote the retail organization as one that believes in the whole person and wants to develop their employees. Another way to motivate an employee who does not want to attend a training class is by paying for training and offering that pay on the first paycheck. By paying the employees for their time before they officially start working for the company shows the employee that they are  valued for their time. Employees would also know that initial training is mandatory for employment. It is imperative for employees to know how to do their jobs correctly and efficiently. If an employee is not able to dedicate their time to training they will be asked to leave. This will encourage employees in a positive way and also reinforce the organization’s standing with attendance and expectation of their employees. This may be off putting to some employees but it shows that the organization that they work for is serious about their employees’ futures and their time that they invest into everyone who comes to work for the company. This could also be a good promotion for the retail organization because it sets them apart from competitors. By being more strict and enforcing policies a company could attest that they are interested in developing the whole person and that they are dedicated to providing all of the training and development that an individual needs to be a part of a winning company. Develop a survey to collect feedback from the employees who attend the training. 1. The objectives of the training were clearly defined. 2. Participation and interaction were encouraged. 3. The topics covered were relevant to me. 4. The content was organized and easy to follow. 5. The materials distributed were helpful. 6. The organization understands the services of my store. 7. Overall how satisfied are you with the amount of communication between you/your store and the organization? 8. This training experience will be useful in my work. 9. The trainer was knowledgeable about the training topics. 10. The trainer was well prepared. 11. The training objectives were met 12. The time allotted for the training was sufficient. 13. Customer service representatives are well trained. 14. Customer service representatives adhere to professional standards of conduct. 15. Customer service representatives act in my best interest. 16. Customer service representative are well supervised. 17. The meeting room and facilities were adequate and comfortable. 18.  Overall I am satisfied with the customer service representatives who conducted my training. 19. What did you like most about this training? 20. What aspects of the training could be improved? 21. How do you hope to change your practice as a result of this training? 22. What additional customer service trainings would you like to have in the future? 23. Please share other comments or expand on previous responses here. Developing a training program for customer service individuals in the retail industry takes time and dedication because of the impact that these positions play in the company. In order for an organization to be successful they must understand that all employees are important and that it starts with the entry level position all the way to the CEO for effective customer service as well as experiences shopping. When a company puts thought and emphasis into the new hires in the company they are establishing a culture that promotes all employees from day one. This culture is very powerful and determines how the organization is ran for a long time. It is up to the HR department to make sure the proper needs assessments are being administered so they can find the best candidate possible for the position. The HR department must also understand that having the proper methods to train the new hires is what encourages individ uals to stay with the organization long term. This method is probably the best way for employees to see that they are being taken care of. By conducting a training survey the organization is able to collect data that will tell them how they are doing with their training process and this will help the HR department improve their training methods. This also gives the new hire and other employees the opportunity to give feedback on the process that they went through. If they saw room for improvement or really thought that a particular part of the training was very successful they can voice their opinions there and help improve the process for future trainees or keep parts of the training that worked well. References Customer Service Tips. (n.d.). 21 for Better Customer Relations. Retrieved August 22, 2014, from http://www.businesstrainingworks.com/training-resources/21-customer-service-tips Retail Customer Service Training. (n.d.). Course. Retrieved August 22, 2014, from http://www.businesstrainingworks.com/course-outlines/retail-customer-service-training-course Stewart, G. L., & Brown, K. G. (2012). Human resource management. (2nd ed.). Danvers, MA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.