Assessment of HRD Needs

Prof. Kalagi Shah

Goals of HRDSolving ProblemsPreventing Anticipated ProblemsIncluding as participants those individuals and units that can benefit most

Why Do Needs Assessment?Question:Why is needs assessment information critical to the development and delivery of an effective HRD program?

Definition of Needs AssessmentNeed Assessment is a process by which an organizations HRD needs are identified & articulated.It is the starting point of the HRD & Training process.

Purpose of Needs AssessmentA need assessment can identify:An organizations goals & its effectiveness in reaching these goalsDiscrepancies or gaps between employees skills & the skills required for effective current job performanceDiscrepancies or gaps between employees skills & the skills required for effective job performance in futureThe conditions under which HRD activity will occur

Needs AssessmentFiguring out what is really neededNot always an easy taskNeeds lots of inputTakes a lot of workDo it now or do lots more laterFirst step in both the ISD and HRD process models

Unwillingness to Perform Needs Assessment Can be a difficult time-consuming processAction is valued over researchIncorrect assumptions are made that a needs assessment is unnecessary because available information already specifies organization needs areLack of support

What is a Need?A discrepancy between expectations and performanceNot only performance needs involved

Various Types of NeedsPerformanceDiagnosticFactors that can prevent problems from occurring , rather than emphasizing existing problemsAnalytic Identify new or better ways to do thingsComplianceMandated by law or regulation

Needs AssessmentStrategic/Organizational Analysis: suggests where in the organization training is needed & under what conditions it will occurTask Analysis: Explains what must be done to perform a job or complete a process successfullyPerson Analysis: reveals who need to be trained & what kind of training they need.

Levels of Need Assessment : Strategic/ Organizational AnalysisNeeds assessment at the organizational level is usually conducted by performing an organizational analysisOrganizational Analysis is a process used tobetter understand the characteristics of an organization to determine where training & HRD efforts are needed the conditions under which they should be conducted

Organizational AnalysisComponents of OA:-This type of analysis requires a broader view of an organization & what it is trying to accomplishAn OA should identify:-Organizational goals and strategyOrganizational resources (financial, facilities, resources)Organizational culture/climateEnvironmental constraints

Organizational goals and strategyUnderstanding organizational goals and strategies is the starting point in identifying the effectiveness of an organization. Monitoring to ensure opportunities for improvement and potential problems are identified early.HRD focus in areas where goals are not met using effective areas as models.

Organizational ResourcesAwareness of resource availability in establishing HRD needsresources would be amount of money available, facilities, materials, expertise within organizationresources availability can dictate some options to be considered in designing and implementing HRD programmes.

Organizational climateAn important factor in HRD successUnfavorable climate will hinder design and implementation of HRD programmes resulting in reduced training effectivenessFavorable climate will encourage skill transfer back to the job

Environmental constraintsIncludes Social, Technological, Economic, Political and Legal issues (external environment) faced by an organization.Knowledge of legal issues can ensure that an HRD effort is in compliance & will not itself be a source of problemsE.g. equal employment opportunity goals should be considered when determining how people will be assigned to training program, especially if the program is a perquisite for entry into a particular job

Data Sources for Organizational Analysis Part 1 of 3

Organizational Goals, Objectives and Budget Where training emphasis can and should be placed.To maintain a quality standard of no more than 1 reject per thousand

Data Source RecommendedTraining Need ImplicationsExample

Labor Inventory Where training is needed to fill gaps caused by retirement, turnover, age, etc.Thirty percent of our truck drivers will retire over the next four years

Data Sources for Organizational Analysis Part 2 of 3

Organizational Climate IndicesThese may help focus on problems that have training components

Data Source RecommendedTraining Need ImplicationsExample

Grievances

Items related to productivity are useful in determining performance deficienciesSeventy percent of grievances are related to behaviors of 6 supervisors

AbsenteeismHigh absences in clerical staff

AccidentsAccident rate for line workers increasing

Data Sources for Organizational Analysis Part 3 of 3

Analysis of Efficiency Indices

Cost of laborCan help document difference between actual performance and desired performance

Labor costs have increased 8 percent in the last year

Data Source RecommendedTraining Need ImplicationsExample

Changes in System or Subsystem New or changed equipment may present training problemThe line has been shut down about once per day since the new machinery was installed.Waste has doubled since using the new cutting tool

Why Strategic Assessment is Needed (Advantages)Ties HRD programs to corporate or organizational goalsStrengthens the link between profit and HRD actionsStrengthens corporate support for HRDMakes HRD more of a revenue generatorNot a profit waster

Sources of Strategic InformationMission statementHRM inventorySkills inventoryQuality of Working Life indicatorsSystem changesExit interviewsQuestionnaire surveysDiscussion with training committee on training requirements and priority areas Direct observation

Methods of OABusiness-led approach Focus on those needs that arise from business needs or the business drivers; information about HRD needs to the board; business strategy influenced by HRD strategies; communication of strategic decisions to unit managers

Problem centered approachIdentifying the major present organizational problems that HRD is most relevant to deal; focus of HRD on responding to these problems

Methods of OAComprehensive approach Determination from functional managers of their diagnosis of the needs facing their units/departments; agreement on those needs which HRD can address; focus of HRD on meeting these needs

University of Michigan developed 2 instruments- the survey of organizations & the Michigan organizational Assessment questionnaire- that are supported by substantial reliability & validity data

Task AnalysisIt is a systematic collection of data about a specific job or group of jobs used to determine what employee needs to know to perform a job or jobs to achieve optimal performance.

How to Collect Information For a Task AnalysisJob descriptionsTask analysisPerformance standardsPerform jobObserve jobAsk questionsAnalysis of problems

Task Analysis ProcessDevelop job descriptionIdentify job tasksWhat should be doneWhat is actually doneDescribe KSAOs neededIdentify potential training areasPrioritize potential training areas

Conti1. Develop an overall job descriptionJob description: is a narrative statement of all major activities involved in performing a job & the conditions under which these activities are performedHRD professional should obtain & review the description. Without up-to-date job descriptions it may be necessary to conduct a job analysisA job analysis is a systematic study of a job to identify its major componentsIt generally involves observing a job being performed, asking a job incumbents & supervisors questions about a job, tasks, working conditions & examining its outcomes

Conti2. Task Identification: The major tasks within the job; how each task should be performed (performance standards)the variability of performance (how the tasks are performed on a day-to-day basis).

Some methods of identifying tasks: stimulus-response-feedback; time sampling;critical incident technique; job inventories; job-duty-task

Conti3. Identify what it takes to do the jobInformation on KASOCsKnowledge: An understanding of a body of information that makes for successful performance of a job.Skills: An individuals level of proficiency in performing a specified task, usually expressed in numerical termsAbility: The power to perform a physical or mental functionOther characteristics: Including personality, interests and attitudes

Conti4. Identify the areas that can most benefit from training

5. Prioritize training needs

Task Analysis for HRD PositionSOURCE: From G. E. Mills, R. W. Pace, & B. D. Peterson (1988). Analysis in human resource training and organizational development (p. 57). Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley. Reprinted by permission.

Person AnalysisDetermines training needs for specific individualsPeers, customers and subordinates in addition to supervisors may also be in a position to provide information called 360-degree performance appraisal. Other sources of PA includes direct observation, tests, questionnaire & critical incidentsComponents of PASummary AnalysisDetermine overall success of the individualDiagnostic AnalysisDiscover reasons for performance

Performance AppraisalCan be a valuable tool for collecting person analysis dataRelied on heavily in person analysisDifficult to doVital to company and individualShould be VERY confidentialBased too often on personal opinion

Performance Appraisal ProcessDetermine basis for appraisalJob description, MBO objectives, job standards, etc.Conduct the appraisalDetermine discrepancies between the standard and performanceIdentify source(s) of discrepanciesSelect ways to resolve discrepancies

Prioritizing HRD NeedsA needs assessment reveals multiple needs, management & staff must prioritize these needs.There are never enough resources available for HRD activitiesMust prioritize effortsA central question is to ask in this process, what is the potential gain or return on investment from various options? The projected impact on organizational performance must always be kept in mind while prioritizing HRD needs.

ContiParticipation in prioritization processNeed full organizational involvement in this processThe HRD Advisory CommitteeOne way to continuously reflect the needs of employees & assist in prioritizing needs is to establish an HRD advisory committeeThe role of this committee is meet regularly & review needs assessment & evaluation data & offer advice on the type & content of HRD programs to be offered

Warning!!HRD must respond to corporate needsHRD should be focused on performance improvement, and not just training

Exercise: Conducting a task AnalysisQuestion:You have been asked to perform a task analysis for the job of secretary, cashier or any job familiar to you. Which method(s) of task analysis do you think are most appropriate for analyzing this job? What are the major tasks or responsibilities you have identified for this job? What KSAOs to perform each of these major tasks?

*