Training Program
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ABC Broom Company in Bombay, India needs a training program created for its new salesmen. These salesmen are in their early 20s and are high school graduates. These salesmen are not meeting their sales goals but would like to because of the financial bonus. These salesmen have no prior sales experience before entering the training program.
Based on the feasibility analysis for the training, a plan consisting of lecture, group discussions, role playing, and a mentoring program will be implemented. It is best to use a combination of methods to deliver the training. Each method may help to enhance the other (Hannum & Hansen, 1989). The choice of instructional methods is dependent upon the type of learning objectives, the characteristics of learners, the instructional conditions, and the evidence of instructional effectiveness.
A learning objective makes clear the intended learning outcome or product of instruction, rather than what form the instruction will take. Objectives focus on student performance. The types of learning outcomes that are expected are attitudinal learning, and intellectual learning (problem solving and application).
The employees are from Bombay, India. India has a caste system which each employee is aware. The caste system has supposedly been demolished, but research has shown that it is still present within the culture. Trainees do not need to be briefed on the caste system. The employees were raised in India and are well aware of the differences between castes. Each trainee will bring to the training sessions their own prejudices, experiences, and learning styles. While each learning style cannot be taken into consideration, the trainers will attempt to teach to the mean (Sheppard, 1998).
The Indian culture is unique in that an Indian person will attempt to learn everything about someone on the first visit (Matthew, 1996). This may be a potential problem for the salesmen. It is viewed as a process of establishing a relationship with the person to whom they are speaking. The salesmen may not be able to establish a relationship with the client in enough time as specified by the company to make a sale. This fact will be considered and discussed at the group seminars.
The training program will begin with a lecture to present the information that the employees need to learn. This information will be presented in groups of twenty so that the instructor may answer questions and be aware of all students needs. A listening guide will be provided to the trainees so that they may follow along with the lecture and write down pertinent information. (Ray, 2004) Listening guides are a great way to make the lecture a more active form of learning rather than the traditional passive form.
Because of the attitudinal learning objective, the higher level sales representatives of the company will provide the introduction to the group sessions and lecture. Research about how people learn attitudes suggest that one of the most powerful methods of learning attitudes is to observe a person one highly regards doing something. The visual media recommended for teaching attitudes is television or digital video (Dick and Carey, 2005). However, money is very tight for the proposed budget, and therefore would be too expensive to make. Research suggests that the instructional media does not influence learning under most conditions, but one medium is usually recommended for different objectives over another, usually based on personal preferences of the training designer (Harbour, 1998).
After listening to the lecture, group seminars will be conducted. Group size will be no larger than 7. I chose the seminars as a way to discuss the lecture in smaller groups, and exchange ideas about the information presented. Group discussion is an active form of learning where employees can discuss any questions or misconceptions about the lecture with others. Each participant will have equal opportunities to talk and be heard. “Discussions in pairs or small groups about information presented in a lecture can be a useful method of helping students explore concepts and share their experiences or understanding of the information” (Ray, 2004).
Role play will be conducted at the group seminars as a means of practicing the new behavior. Employees will be able to learn the new behaviors by pretending in a low-risk environment. Employees learn through doing what will be expected of them on the job (Sindell, 2002). Employees can make the new behaviors habitual through practice (Hannum & Hansen, 1989). Media will consist of printed information learned in the lecture and a scenario for a role play.
On-the-job training will be conducted through a mentoring program after