Manager's role in a competency-based T&D system

The basic principle of any competency-based system focuses on ensuring the organisation has the right people, with the right skills, at the right time, to accomplish their business objectives.

1. Trainees are taught skills they need to solve day-to-day job requirements

2. Trainees are active participants during the training process

3. Training objectives must be clearly defined & understood by trainees

4. Activities should focus on trainee participation because people remember things they do more readily than things they only read about

5. Trainees must be allowed & encouraged to use their newly acquired skills when performing their regular jobs

6. The learning environment must be supportive and positive

Now that we've reviewed the basics of the previous article we will turn our attention to the person who is ultimately responsible for ensuring the success of the day-to-day implementation of a competency-based program - the Manager. That is because the manager's ultimate goal is to ensure their subordinates (and trainees) are competent, productive and can safely, effectively and efficiently perform their jobs.

Line Managers' most important contribution to the competency-based training system focuses on establishing an environment where "on the-job-training" (OJT) efforts can be successfully completed as a normal part of day-to-day operations. Although this statement appears to be simple and straightforward, in reality, it is difficult to accomplish for a number of reasons:

• Few managers receive formal training in how to train their workers

• Conflicts often arise between normal operations and training activities

• Training activities require resources, such as: time, money, personnel and energy that would normally be focused on daily work efforts

• OJT training activities are often considered to be a burden by managers

To overcome the barriers listed above mangers need to take specific actions in order to establish a successful competency-based training program within their section, department or division. These actions would include setting up an OJT program that incorporates the following principles:

• Structure - Structured programs rely on organisational support and include things like policies, procedures, training records and training performance reports.

• Objectives - Training objectives need to be clearly defined and communicated to the trainees, trainers and other folks that may be involved with the training activities.

• Accountability - Developees and their trainers both have responsibilities that must be fulfilled to ensure success. The trainees must also be tested against job-related skills that are outlined in their competency-based development plan.

• Preparation - Trainers must be given adequate time to prepare for OJT and the developees must be briefed on things they must do to prepare for training sessions.

• Consistency - Training outcomes should not vary by trainer, shift or time of year and the developees should have the same set of job-skills when OJT is finished.

A manager can also help ensure the competency-based efforts are successful by providing an initial orientation briefing to new trainees on the training & development process when they arrive and making sure that OJT activities are integrated with the day-to-day operations of the work area. Managers also have to ensure the competency-based training activities support the department's job requirements and then take the time to brief trainees on their OJT assignments, the results expected and then how the trainee's performance will be measured.

Line managers also have the responsibility of helping the training department create a development plan for newly assigned staff by identifying the tasks the new personnel will eventually be responsible for. Managers then establish a training schedule and personally conduct OJT, or they select other qualified personnel to conduct competency-based training with the trainees. Even when the manager does not provide the training, they still have the responsibility for monitoring and overseeing the training process.

Although other individuals may carry out portions of the training the manger has the duty of evaluating and ensuring that timely feedback is provided to the trainees on their progress. When evaluating training activities the manager must ensure all critical tasks are evaluated and that the trainee is competent before they advance to the next phase of their training.

And how should the manager evaluate the competence of the trainees? Unfortunately, there is no "one" best method of evaluating a trainee's competence and the evaluation method needs to match the task itself. The table below provides information on some of the most popular evaluation methods; testing, interview, observation, work samples and written reports.



Finally, the manager should make sure that training activities are documented in the trainee's formal development plan. The records should include comments on the trainee's attitude, motivation, training difficulties and other items affecting the training process in order to ensure the integrity of the competency-based system.