27 Ways to Integrate Training and Development with the Needs of Your Organization reviewed

TrainingZone

27 Ways to Integrate Training and Development with the Needs of Your Organization reviewed

By TrainingZone

Title: 27 Ways to Integrate Training and Development with the Needs of Your Organization
Authors: Sharon Bartram and Brenda Gibson
Publisher: Gower Publishing Ltd
Date: June 2001
ISBN: 0566084155
Price: £175.00
Format: Hardback looseleaf / ringbound

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My first impressions on picking up the pack and browsing are that it looks clearly laid out, comprehensive and full of detail (as well as wondering 'why 27 Ways' .. !). The authors make it clear what they wish you to use the materials for, which is to 'convince more people' of the 'value of training, not just to the individuals involved, but to the organisation'. The manual is aimed at training professionals in organisations and encourages 'you the trainer to get out there in your organisation talk to your stakeholders and customers.'

By using the activities in the manual, it is suggested that a real impact can be made on the perception and effectiveness of training within an organisation, for the benefit of all involved. Essentially the activities are organised into a step-by-step approach across five key sections which are Creating an Identity; Getting Closer to Your Customers; Researching and Developing New Products; Managing Your Resources and Making a Difference. The style and approach of the activities is varied, including group based, open ended, participative tasks using flip charts, post its and collages to provide accessible ways of gathering views and perceptions. There are also many checklists, grids and other more formal documents, which can be completed through discussion, individually or with a mentor, and these can provide more detailed data. I liked some of the more interactive activities, which used graphics and simple, open questions, and could see groups and individuals in an organisation responding well to using those. I'm not so sure about some of the others, as they could be very time consuming.

It is not suggested that you should work through all activities, but tailor them to your own situation, and whichever you use, you would be able to collect a substantial amount of information about training processes, practices and impacts across an organisation and its clients or customers.

The second part of the manual provides pro-forma and advice about collating and acting on the results of the data collected from the activities you have selected from the 27 in the first section. You would indeed be able to gather much useful information here, and the authors show their strength in the content on evaluation.

The key strong points of this text are :

The activities are well constructed, based on sound training principles, and sufficiently varied to be used in a wide range of different situations and organisations.

The data and results gained would be thought provoking, and would add value to any other evaluative activity taking place.

Other training professionals could use some of the activities in various training sessions and contexts, particularly for evaluation.

The weak points of the text are :

By being so comprehensive, the contents of the manual could be seen as a daunting prospect to implement. The amount of work in using these activities is substantial, and if the organisation is not already positive about training, gaining agreement for carrying out some of the activities may be problematic.

The cost of £175 probably limits the use of the pack to larger organisations who are already reasonably 'tuned in' to training.

At times the style of the manual is a bit earnest and perhaps excessively serious for me, but that is a personal view.

Overall, a useful tool for training professionals.

Reviewed by Jim Crawley, 13 August 2001.