Types of Training Program

Types of learning can be categorized into three groups:

Cognitive learning.

This means knowledge learning. It not only includes the knowledge per se, but also what to do with it or how to apply it. Thus the investigative process and the principles of problem solving and decision making are part of this group.

Much learning of this nature is imparted by the lecture method, but can be reinforced by a variety of methods such as private study, process reviews, role plays and case studies.

Psychomotor learning.

These are the physical skills that are required in order to complete a task. Examples would be driving a car or giving an oral presentation.

The most effective environment in which to gain these physical skills is in the 'laboratory', in which students actually gain hands-on experience. The lecturer only prepares the student by giving him the knowledge before entering the arena to practice. It is only in the arena that the real learning takes place. This experiential approach is used in the training of airline pilots in simulators.

In no area of learning is the old Chinese proverb more appropriate:

I hear, I forget, I see, I remember, I do, I understand.

Affective learning.

This is related to attitudes, values and interests and is the most difficult training of all, mainly because it is difficult to measure.

Designing a Training Program

1. Area of training content (What type of behavior or material is to be learned?)

a. Cognitive learning

b. Psychomotor learning

c. Affective learning

2. Extent to which the training program incorporates key learning principles

a. Does program provide knowledge of results?

b. Does program reinforce desired behaviors?

c. Does method provide practice opportunities?

d. Does method motivate employee to learn and apply new knowledge and skills to the job ?

e. Does the program facilitate transfer of new behaviors to on-the-job situations ?

3. Trainee characteristics

a. How many employees need training now? In the future ?

b. What level(s) of ability do trainees possess?

c. What individual differences exist in employees who will be receiving training?

4. Cost of the program

a. What is the size of the training and development budget?

b. What does the program cost?

Developing Peak Performers

Extensive research into peak performers in all walks of life shows that they have very similar ways of thinking about themselves and others. They share other similar mindsets, too. Because of this, they operate in similar ways. This article explains what we know about peak performers, whether in business, public service, private life, school, athletics, or team pursuits. People who adopt these four mindsets and approaches to life become peak performers, too.

Peak performers have high self-esteem

As we've seen, high self-esteem leads to positive self-talk and an internal locus of control-the ability to choose our own thoughts, feelings, actions and communications. The body language of people with high self-esteem invites the respect of others, just as they treat others with respect.

High self-esteem allows us to take charge of our behavior and communications and direct them towards achieving the challenging goals we set for ourselves. When we have high self-esteem, we expect the best of and for ourselves. That's why peak performers are positive people with positive outlooks and positive attitudes.

They are optimists who see mistake as learning opportunities and problems as stepping They have the confidence to take responsibility and proactively make things happen.

Peak performers have high standards

Have you ever noticed that peak performers surround themselves with other peak performers? They have high expectations of those around them – the people they work with, their friends and associates, their family members. Not unrealistically high expectations, of course, but they certainly don't settle for 'second best'. Why should they?

When we have high standards, we set challenging goals and work hard to attain them. We expect the best of ourselves and for ourselves. We treat ourselves with respect and expect others to do the same.

Because of their high standards, peak performers constantly pursue improvement—to the way they do things, to the systems they work with—in fact, to everything around them. They continually ask themselves two key questions:

1. How can I do this better?
2. How else can I do this?

Peak performers take responsibility

Peak performers set goals and work towards them. In this way, the future determines their actions in the present. This is accomplished against a backdrop of the past because our values, thoughts and beliefs, all made up of past experiences, will influence the goals we set and how easy or challenging we make them.

Peak performers don't rely on other people or random events to achieve their goals for them. They know they are the ones who need to act and they figure out precisely what they need to do to produce the results they're after. Rather than sitting back passively, waiting for things to happen, peak performers are active participants in fashioning their own future.

Peak performers stay focused on their goals

One of the first things racing car drivers learn is what to do when they lose control of their car and go into a spin. The natural reaction is to look at the wall (or the trees) they are heading towards but, if they do, that's exactly where they'll end up. So they are taught to focus on where they want to end up (or the space between the trees) - their destination.

Ref: Kris Cole

The Rules for Corporate Career Resilience

Rule #1: The company is not in charge of your career—you are. Your people can no longer wait for you to come to them with a new assignment or opportunity; they must seek out such opportunities themselves. Your relationship with them is no longer one of parent-to-child, but adult-to-adult. They share the responsibility for initiating career discussions. Even being designated as a "high potential" or a valued employee may not guarantee they will keep their place in the succession plan, as these plans have become less relevant as the pace of change has picked up. You will meet your employees more than halfway by giving them the tools and counsel they need to take charge of their careers.

Rule #2: Instead of ladders and paths, there are now webs and mazes. Your employees must learn, if they haven't already, to think of a career less as a ladder and more as a web. Webs have a center but no top and a lot of paths that connect. Unlike ladders, webs often dissolve when their purpose is fulfilled. Smart workers will move along the webs, picking up new skills that meet the organization's needs, looking for problems to solve, and working on team projects. And if a web breaks or dissolves, it can always be rewoven in a similar or different pattern.

Rule #3: Every job is now subject to a "make or buy" decision. Because of the flexibility and cost savings involved in using contract employees, vendors, and temporary employees to do the work previously done by downsized employees, your workers must understand that they may now be competing with these outside resources. This means they have to continually prove their value. Their only security lies in their ability to continually retool themselves to remain valuable to their employer. This is why continuous learning is so important to all workers today. All employees should also consider that their next opportunity may lie in becoming an outside resource themselves.

Rule #4: Hidden needs in the organization's internal job market are more promising sources of advancement than the formal job postings. There has always been, and will always be, a "hidden job market" in every company. Only now the inside job market contains more hidden jobs than ever. New needs appear so fast that there is little time to wait for the slow wheels of the formal hiring process to start rolling. These days, about a third of all jobs filled are newly created ones. And, of course, with the loss of rungs on career ladders, there are fewer formal job slots in the first place.

All employees—you included—must be on the lookout for unmet needs, then make proposals to the person who "owns the problem" to help meet the need. Getting your employees to accept this proposition is a part of helping them learn to take more initiative in every aspect of their jobs. Many times, by looking to meet the organization's needs, they will carve out their next career move.

Rule #5. The most "vendor-minded" employees will find or create the most opportunity. The employees who think of themselves as "intrapreneurs" will see the organization as a market for their skills. They will understand the truest, most empowering definition of a job—"a talent that meets a need." With your help, they will come to see themselves as vendors, and they will perceive more opportunity as a result. Vendor-minded employees realize that the purpose of the organization is to provide goods and services that customer value and that, if the organization’s employees do not do that, eventually they may all be out of a job.

Ref: Leigh Branham