Introduction
Every organization must conduct an effective training program to ensure that new employees in a company are effective and productive (Ohio State University, 2013). An organization must have a well-defined training procedure that forms a basis for the training of new workers. When a company has put a lot of resources into the recruitment of new employees, it is then vital for the company to invest in the training of the recruits to maximize their potential and productivity (Johnson, & Lenius, 2003). A firm can get into big losses by not engaging in the proper training of its new employees. In the case of Keraco, the new employees need to be taken through all the aspects of the company ranging from the history of the company to the technical aspects of what they will engage in; especially in their roles in electric wheelchairs products. The efficacy of this process will go a long way in determining how the employees will perform in their line of duty.
For Keraco to carry out an effective training program, they need to ensure that they put in place the right program that corresponds to the topic to be addressed. For instance, to train the new employees on the history, company policies, and their product line, the trainers should use an oral presentation because the topics to be taught involve theoretical information. The company should employ the use of visual aids such as slide shows in their presentations to help in improving the understanding of the new employees. This will help in enhancing learning by the new employees as what they will be taught will be illustrated by slideshows. For the three topics of history, company policy, and product lines, the trainers need to also make printed copies for the employees to read on their own as they take them through the training. The trainers should also show the new employees the samples of the company’s products so that the recruits have product knowledge of the company. Pictures and audio-visual aids can also be used to enhance learning in this instance. The new employees should also be given time to ask questions and also provide their feedback (Howe, 2013).
Training on the other aspects of the company which involves manufacturing plant safety protocols, electric wheelchair parts, wheelchair housing and primary wheel-base assembly, design and troubleshooting of the wheelchair power-pack and electric wheelchair functions and controls is technical. Training for these topics needs to be split into one-day sessions to ensure that the training is effective. For instance, to train in safety, the trainers should take the new employees on a step by step process on the safety procedures in the company. For electric wheelchair parts and wheelchair assembly, the trainers should train the new employees on the parts by showing them the various parts of the wheelchair and how to assemble the wheelchair. It is important in this instance to let the recruits do the assembly on their own to determine whether they have learned from the training. For the last part of the training which involves troubleshooting the wheelchairs and the functions and controls, the trainers should take the new employees through the process of troubleshooting and controls. The trainers should use videos and practice to enhance their training in this instance (Blanchard & Thacker, 2012).
Reaction from the training
A reaction to what was covered in training is a measure of the level of understanding among the employees. The best way to evaluate workers on the three topics of history, company policy, and product line is through both theory and practical. History and company policies are all theoretical. The trainer can come up with simple questions for the trainees. How the trainees will answer the questions will tell whether they understood or not. The assessment should be random with different questions on a certain topic. Also, the trainer can choose to allow the trainees to make presentations about what they have learned to determine the scope of their understanding. On the product line of the company, this will deal majorly with the practical aspect. The issues to be evaluated here include; knowledge of the various products and the constituents of every product (Howe, 2013). The first part can be handled theoretically through the identification of the products. About the constituent parts, the evaluation should be on how best the trainee can handle the products. The trainees should be allowed time to join the parts together to evaluate their understanding.
To evaluate whether learning took place, the best way is through the actual performance of the workers. Every worker should be given a target at work. The evaluation should be based on three issues; efficiency, time, and quality (Howe, 2013). The worker who works efficiently, fast, and delivers quality work will signify understanding of the training. When the worker is slow at work but produces quality work he should be given time to gain experience. Another aspect to evaluate learning is through observing how the workers conduct themselves within the company. Those who break the company policies show that they did not understand the training on the policies.
The behavior of the workers talks much about the understanding of the training. The conduct of the workers before and after training will display ignorance of understanding the training program. When the workers have been taken through the policies it is expected that they will follow the company policies to the latter. However, the evaluation should not be based on the first mistakes committed by a worker. The basis of evaluation should focus on the second mistake. An assumption is made that the worker might have understood the policy with his interpretation. When this is corrected and the same worker is found to have violated the policy then understanding did not take place. Positive behavior should score high on the evaluation of the individual and such an individual is regarded to have understood the training (Blanchard & Thacker, 2012).
Conclusion
The major aim of the training program is to ensure that each worker understands the company properly to be able to deliver the best results. The training is aimed at results delivery. The evaluation should be based on the current output compared to the initial output (Johnson, & Lenius, 2003). When the current output is better than the initial output after training, then workers properly understood the training. When the output becomes less than the initial output then no understanding took place. The workers should be given piece-rate work for each individual to determine the individual’s performance. The basis for evaluation should be efficiency, time, and quality work. The workers who do not deliver the required target should be taken back for training. This is because they did not understand the training and that is why they have difficulties at work. The evaluation for results should be spread within a certain period because new employees require time to adapt to the new environment to deliver their best (Johnson, & Lenius, 2003).
References
Blanchard, P. B., & Thacker, J. W. (2012). Effective training: Systems, strategies, and practices (5th ed.). New York: Prentice Hall.
Howe, S. (2013). Training as a recruitment tool. Fleet Maintenance, 17(2), 26.
Johnson, K., & Lenius, P. (2003, April 1). Recruitment & training. Supply House Times, p. 46.
Ohio State University. (2013). Orientation and Training of new employees. Web.