Design of Training Project
Through learning the organization will implement a systematic approach in the military evaluations process. Most military personnel have had to write an evaluation for their subordinates at one time or another. This organization has a distinctive way of processing evaluations. The organization process military evaluations electronically through the Army Knowledge (AKO) Forms and verify information using the following systems; Interactive Web Response System (IWRS), the Electronic Military Personnel Office (eMilpo), which manages active, mobilized reserve and, National Guard Soldiers, and the Command Management System (CMS) which analyzes submission data and provides the command a performance and timeliness overview of subordinate elements. Technology has enhanced our organization’s efficiency and processing abilities significantly as we rely in a system of systems to process military evaluations. Our organization is seeking to change behavior with training and development; contemplating new ideas to improve behavior and have employees’ process evaluations based on one standard, using the appropriate sources. Enhanced processing is always welcomed in our organization. After training completion employees are expected to improve. The evaluations section is very hectic because the number of monthly evaluations processed. Ongoing performance improvement will ensure all systemic uses are understood as mentioned above because finding data and sharing data is what this organization is about. The objective is attainable as the training received will enable employees to perform their jobs beyond the basics daily. Training is what their job will consist of to perform, its how this organization processes, analyzes and, gives feedback on evaluations to its customers. There will be no cost associated with this training plan as it will be developed from within by the organization’s evaluations team leader, who’s the subject matter expert. The benefits for this training will bridge the gap created by the retirement of two employees. Training along with hiring of experienced personnel is detrimental to meet objectives and satisfy a strong military customer base.
Needs Assessment
Step 1. Perform a “GAP” Analysis:
The issue in the military evaluations section is the need for qualified personnel to perform the tasks at hand; the evaluations section decreased in size from four to two employees because of retirements. The skills, knowledge, and abilities of past employees were extensive due to the number of years in the positions. They understood exactly what was expected and how to perform their duties efficiently. The evaluations team leader as the subject matter expert will train new employees. Desired or necessary situation: This organization’s goal on all military evaluations is that every Soldier’s evaluation is processed s annually on the anniversary or prior to departing the organization in a timely manner. The tasks required for success are as follows: The organizational analysis should identify: 1. Understanding of the Army Regulation that presides over military evaluations 2. Conduct a quality control checklist on every evaluation processed 3. Understand the timelines of the military evaluations process 4. Utilization of military systems (e.g., AKO Forms, IWRS, CMS, eMilpo) 5. Understand the organization’s rating scheme 6. Understand organization mission

Step 2. Identify Priorities and Importance. Civilian human resources performed the cost-benefit analysis to hire new personnel. Training will be conducted from within. Army Regulation 623-23 (Evaluation Reporting System) covers military evaluations and the guiding principle for military evaluation Army wide. In this organization, the evaluations section enforces adherence to the regulation and will process military evaluations accordingly. The organization’s senior leadership expects junior leaders to develop solutions to enhance customer satisfaction; whatever the problem is supervisors must resolve it. It is one of many leadership responsibilities at different levels. Military personnel are the essence of the organization. Customer service is priority and is what drives the organization. Customer feedback is what the leadership uses to develop training and processes to govern customer satisfaction.
Step 3. Identify causes of performance problems and opportunities.
Although the evaluations team leader has not had issues with past employees performance, potential issues with new employees’ performance can be forecasted, thus the importance of this training project success. Some predictable performance issues are as follows: 1. Organization structure. 2. Understand the organization’s mission. 3. Understand the organization’s goals and objectives 4. Understand organization’s processes for military evaluations 5. Functionality of AKO Forms, IWRS, CMS, and eMilpo

Step 4. Identify Possible Solutions and Growth Opportunities.
Senior leadership and the evaluations team leader for this organization discussed possible solutions to the section’s personnel vacancies. Solutions are as follows: 1. Budget the job to attract qualified applicants. 2. Provide new employees with a training plan. 3. Ensure new employees understand the organization’s structure. 4. Ensure new employees understand the organization’s rating scheme. 5. Ensure new employees understand what is expected of them immediately through proper developmental counseling. 6. As the team leader, absorb some of the stress during the training and transition process.
The needs assessment method was developed through direct observation and discussion with personnel in key positions.
Program Design For learning to occur, the organization’s training program requires meaningful material, clear objectives, opportunities for practice and, feedback. Even with all these conditions in the training program; appropriate equipment and materials must be available during training sessions. Adequate time for practices must be allowed to the trainer before presenting training to new employees. Activities that occur in the training session will relate to learning objectives. Program design refers to the organization and coordination of the training program. The training program will include one or several courses and each course may contain one or more lessons.
Program design will include its purpose and specific lessons within the program. It will also include a design document template, a course or lesson plan, and a course, or lesson plan overview. It is important to show that even though designing the training program may belong to the instructional designer, the human resources professional, or manager, are involved in the program design. In an ideal situation, managers and, employees will be involved in the needs assessment process; their roles may include reviewing prototypes of the program, providing examples and, program content, and participating in the program as instructors. Effective program design is accompanied by an example based on a training program developed by an organization to increase managers’ effectiveness in conducting performance appraisal feedback interviews. Performance appraisal feedback sessions between supervisors and subordinates will address employee’s strengths and weaknesses; improvement goals are agreed upon as well.
Learning Theories
A training design processed may include a number of theories based on the training needs; a few apply to this situation. Based on the social learning theory; new employees will be in close contact with the section’s subject matter expert. If trainees see during and after the training process positive outcomes as the subject matter expert conducts his daily business; new employees are likely to imitate and adopt his behavior themselves. Basically, the new employees will learn a great deal by observing the subject matter expert. If the subject matter expert describes the consequences it can increase effectively appropriate behavior and decrease inappropriate one.
As described in the goal theory; mastery of new tasks learned will increase employees’ intrinsic motivation; thus during the training process specific challenging goals and objectives are provided. The need theory motivates learning; the subject matter expert will identify new employees’ training needs and communicate how the content of the training program relates to fulfilling training needs; trainees’ needs must be met to keep them motivated to learn. Learning is adaptive change in behavior that results from life experiences and independent from the human growth process. The evaluation’s section will support employee’s growth and development through learning; its culture will encourage a learning behavior and work environment. The evaluation’s section will develop a training plan that will maximize new employees’ training. What is learned is a behavior that was observed and is beneficial in some way. It can be a conditioned response to stimuli by way of voluntary or involuntary intent. A learned behavior will be how efficiently a new employee learns how to process an evaluation; a behavior the new trainee decides to learn, unlike “innate” behavior. The behavior will be learned by modeling the behavior of the team leader as the new employees observe his behavior while processing evaluations or handling customers’ issues. Two new employees equal two different ways of learning. Through the team leader employees will learn facts, and sources of information to process military evaluations efficiently. This is specific knowledge that the new employees need for their jobs. The team leader as the trainer must know the functionalities of the different systems used to process evaluations, and anything related to the accurate and timely processing of evaluations. Intellectual skills encompass concepts and rules critical to resolve every day issues with evaluations, serve customers, and process evaluations to conduct an appraisal of the new employees. Attitudes are a combination of beliefs and feelings that prompt employees to behave in a particular manner. Employees’ attitudes include a cognitive component, an effective component, and an intentional component. Important work-related attitudes include job satisfaction, commitment to the organization, and job contributions. An employee’s “positive attitude” toward work means the he likes it because it is challenging and provides the opportunity to meet people: Thus the employee intends to stay with the organization and do his best. This training program will develop or change attitudes as these are related to physical and mental removal from work, turnover, and behaviors that can affect an organization’s well-being. Cognitive strategies control the learning process; a decision regarding what information to pay attention to, how to remember, and how to solve problems requires a different set of conditions for learning to occur. Evidence supports that some mental capacities diminish and the ability to process information decline as we age. Conversely, with age comes experience that compensates for the diminished capacities. Recent research summarizing the findings of studies on the influence of age on performance in training found that self-paced training had the largest influence on training performance of trainees over 40. In addition, training that occurs in small groups is advantageous for older trainees. Employees can learn much from cross-generation interaction. If the new employees include two different generations, the training will include a combined approach to fit both their preferences. The social learning theory proposes that trainees observe learn and, model the behavior of other employees whom they believe are credible and knowledgeable; the evaluations team leader serves this role. The behavior modeled after the team leader will yield reinforcement and rewards. Once the behavior is learned, it may be reinforced or punished by the consequences it produces; thus positive feedback is important in promoting learning and duplicating the behavior. It is easy to apply the reinforcement theory to organizational management. Employees are motivated to behave or act or avoid certain behaviors because of past outcomes that resulted from duplicated behaviors. Reinforcement is described as positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, extinction and punishment: Though the social learning theory identifies reinforced or rewarded behaviors have the propensity to be duplicated; both theories support modeling the behaviors of others. Equally in both theories the behavior itself leads to reinforcement therefore will strengthen the behavior and punishment will weaken a behavior. The intent of the program is for new employees to duplicate the behavior of the team leader, produce satisfying results and support job satisfaction. The reinforcement theory differs from the social learning theory in that learning is influenced by a person’s self-efficacy.

References
Noe, R.A., (2010) Employee training and development. (5th Edition) New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin