So we come now to our final section within this program, which is all about measuring the effectiveness of training. How do you know if it's delivering what you wanted? Or it's actually giving you that return on investment we keep talking about? Well, by far the most common way of looking at this is the Kirkpatrick four levels. Now, there are others out there and some people don't like the Kirkpatrick four levels, but I'm just going to talk about those as a as a real basic foundation, understanding how you can identify whether training has been of benefit. So here they are.

The first type of evaluation really is to identify what the trainee thought about the program. So trainee response. Second level is really what we call validation is whether learning has taken place. Third, is the practical application of the learning and finally, the business return Let's look at these in a bit more detail. So the first one is the training response. Because we asked the trainee, or the attendee for their opinion, how was the training.

And the most common way of doing this is through something that often trainers call happy sheets, not a massive fan myself on that term. But the idea is that there are really feedback forms that we give out. Soon as the courses finished, there is an argument to say that we might give them out afterwards or maybe get them to fill them out a week later, when they've had time to think about it. Take it from me though, if you do that, you'll only get a fraction back, because people just forget and get all the rest of what they've got to do. So generally speaking, I like to get them completed as soon as the course is finished. You ask them to do it then and they're much more likely to do it.

Of course, another way of getting the trainees response is through that post course discussion, largely thing that's much more effective. So by sitting down with the individual after the training, talking to them about the program, you can get some real insights into the quality of the program and whether it was the right fit for them, and indeed for future programs. So this is an example of a feedback form that I use. And again, you can access this on the course afterwards, it actually folds down the middle there horizontally, and doubles up as a name tag. So you can actually use it on a piece of card to work as a name tag. So it's quite a handy little name tag comm feedback form.

So they have it with them throughout the course. And at the end of the program, you say, just like to fill out feedback for me now. You probably won't be able to see that on the screen. But basically, it's split up into the the way that the course was delivered. So that's really around the way that the trainer performed and the material so that's the actual content. Excel, and then some stuff around whether they have a feel like they've achieved their objectives, and some more general stuff around the logistics of the program.

So it's put into different categories. It's quite a long form, but I find it quite useful because it gives me lots of information. I would say that feedback forms are always limited in their benefit. So it's a bit like a survey, you're always only going to get people's attitudes at the time. Not telling you all that much. But it is the first step.

So it's useful to have that information. If you don't want to do it on card or paper, you can do it online. So the survey monkey, which I'm sure you've heard of, is a way that you can put your own surveys online so you could use Survey Monkey in order to do a feedback form. I think these days if you have a survey of 10 or less, you can get it for free once you start having longest Surveys, then you'll need to pay a small subscription. But it may still be worth it if you want to do it online. So the second level is called validation.

And really this means can they now do it? So if it was a skills thing, can they now do that skill? Also, to what degree have they improved in their skill, so it might be that they had no skill to start with, whereas they now can do it. Or it might be that they could do it before, but you've helped them improve in their skills. And in terms of a practical thing, this would be a practical assessment. So a driving test, for instance, the practical part of that is a level two validation, according to the Kirkpatrick model.

Also, you'd want to ask, did I now have the new knowledge and understanding that you needed and of course to make sure that's the case, then you might do a test, or you could call it a quiz, but really, it's a test. So it's really about just identifying whether they know how have the knowledge that they need. So the written test on a driving course, is obviously equivalent to that. So level two validation is really can they do it? Do they know it? Now this is an example of a level two assessment that I've used in the past.

So this is for is when I've done train the trainer courses. So if I'm delivering some training to somebody to be a professional trainer, at the end of the program, I might get them to do a little mini training session. So as they're doing that training session, I will sit there and observe them, then go through this checklist. So I won't read all of those out to you. But you can see that they're around training, delivery, the sorts of techniques you've used, whether you ask questions and all those sorts of things. And you can have whatever scoring system you like.

This is slightly complicated. You could just have a tick box, and then some explanation next to it. It's the sort of thing that instructors or examiners have In driving courses, or I'm sure to become a pilots or to do anything that requires some practical application, mining machine using machine, cleaning a machine. And using computer software, those sorts of things that you maybe want somebody to go through and see whether they can do it, you might use an assessment like this. So again, you can have this as an example. But this one is particularly for a train the trainer type assessment.

So does the person now have the skills and knowledge in order to deliver a training course? So that's a level two assessment. Level Three is considered to be the practical application of what the individual is just learned. So in there, we're asking the question, to what degree are they now applying the learning? To what degree are they using the new techniques that you've just trained them or that somebody just trained them? Are they actually following the procedure back in the workplace?

And if it's a behavioral thing, are they adjusting their behavior? So if they had a problem before we've not been clear in their delivery in a morning meeting, let's say, or perhaps they lack assertiveness or may lose their temper, are they now adjusting that behavior? are they changing that, so that now they're behaving in a way that is most appropriate for that job or that role. So you're really looking to see whether things have changed. So to identify that you might do some observations, you might go and observe the person in their normal working situation. You might do an audit to see whether they're still doing the checks that they were trained in or they're still lifting it the way that you asked them to, or they're still filling out the form that they should fill out.

You might do ongoing coaching. So coaching is itself part of a learning and development package. But through that ongoing coaching, it may also be a way for you To assess how well they're putting that into practice. And of course, you may have those ongoing post course discussions. So we said that it's great if you can keep those going. So we'll talk to you again in a month's time, or let's catch up again in two months time.

Through that process, you're able to get some feedback from the individual to find out how well they're applying what they've learned. And the final level, according to Kirkpatrick is the business benefits or the return on investment? First thing to say about this is it cannot be an afterthought. There's no good identifying some training, putting some training together, sending people on courses, and then afterwards asking the question, has this actually given us any business benefit because you will most likely find that it's too late to identify that so it can't be an afterthought. Business return has to be identified before you start. Again, this is much easier if we're surprised business goals through training.

It's much better if we can identify the changes in skills, knowledge and attitude through a training these analysis, then we can identify that the training has or has not contributed to the changes that we needed in order to deliver our business goals. As far as compliance is concerned, it's really just about making sure that a the training has been done to the standards required and be that people are competent to the level required within the rules. And if that's the case, then then you've measured the business benefit because it has to be done. You're talking about value added trading, which is that middle box if you remember that, that's really about payback for increased efficiency, productivity, or changes in behavior that you needed in order to deliver your business return. At this point, it's worth noting the attribute stability trap. It's not Easy to say.

But basically what that means is that sometimes we get into this difficult situation where we're trying to identify how much of the business return was attributed or can be attributed to the training, and how much can be attributed to the sales team. And how much can be attributed to this other team and this other team. Well, don't fall into that trap. If you've identified that training was required. In order to deliver that project, that business improvement. The training was targeted, to deliver gaps or to fill those gaps in knowledge, skills and attitude.

Training was delivered, and the project was a success. That's all you need to be able to show. So it's very unlikely you're going to be able to give a percentage of how much the training delivered or contributed to that project is all part of the same package. So we've referred to this diagram quite a few times in this program. So again, I'll reference it, it's the poor Kern three box system. And so by all means, have a read, it's a really useful book that helps you to understand how to make sure you get a return on investment.

Three boxes must have this is your compliance stuff, or training that is considered to be a basic company requirement. So everybody who works here needs to have that, make sure that it's planned, make sure that it's delivered effectively, and that people have the knowledge they need to have the skills they need to have in order to deliver compliance. You may also consider how you get people to buy into those compliance requirements. So yes, training needs to be delivered effectively. Don't have to agonize about whether to do it at all because it's a requirement. The second box That added value stuff.

That's the stuff that's, well, that's up to you whether you do it or not, if you don't do it, nobody's going to tell you all. But if you do it and you do it well, it can help deliver your business goals and objectives, potentially really powerful. If you focus your training on that, then training can be linked to real return on investment or business improvement. Your final box, which is where a lot of management, training, a lot of other types of training, unfortunately set, it really wants to try move those from that box into either added value on those tabs. Beware of just plunking all your management, training your team building into must haves and say, well, we must have that so we're going to do them. They need to be justified.

So why are they must haves? Most likely, they're not really must haves, they should be added value. So how are you going to measure that value? What's going to be the difference once people have been on Training and how are they helping you deliver your business objectives?