Introduction

Purpose:

To determine if a task should be trained. The first four sections are used to determine if it should be trained. The last two sections will be of aid in selecting the type of training. Depending on the task, not all questions require an answer.

TASK:

1. Required by law, safety factors, and organizational requirements

• Is the training mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Act?
• Is there a chance that someone may be hurt or that damages may occur if it is not trained?
• Is training needed to ensure their behaviour does not compromise the company's legal position, i.e., equal employment opportunity, labour relations laws, or state laws?
• Is training required to meet an organizational vision or mission?
• Is the training required to meet company goals or objectives?

Generally, any yes answers in this section require training or another performance initiative. 

2. Use of another performance initiative

• Is there another solution, such as a job performance aid or self-study packet?
• Can people be hired that have already been trained?
• To what extent can the task be learned on the job?
• Are the demands (perceptual, cognitive, psychomotor or physical) imposed by the task excessive?
• Are other performance interventions required?
• Is there another creative solution that better meets the organization’s needs (brainstorming is required to answer this question correctly)?

Another performance solution is generally recommended if it is cheaper or if it better meets the organization's needs. 

3. Risks and benefits

• What will happen if we do not train for this task?
• What are the benefits if we train this task?
• How critical is the task?
• What is the consequence if the task is performed incorrectly?

Identifying the risks and benefits helps in arriving at the correct solution. 

4. Task complexity

• How difficult or complex is the task?
• How often is the task performed during a specified time frame (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly, yearly)?
• How much time is needed to perform this task?
• What behaviours are used in its performance?
• How critical is the task to the performance of the job?
• What information is needed to perform the task? What is the source of information?

Generally, complex and frequently performed tasks require training, while more straightforward and infrequently performed tasks require other performance solutions (such as job performance aids).

5. Collective (team considerations)

• Does the execution of the task require coordination between other personnel or with other tasks?
• If it is one of a set of collective tasks, what is the relationship between the various tasks?

Although identifying the collective degree of the task plays a small amount in deciding if a task should be trained, it is a determining factor in deciding how it will be trained.

6. Requirements for training

• What are the performance requirements?
• What prerequisite skills, knowledge, and abilities are required to perform the task?
• What behaviours distinguish good performers from poor performers?
• What level of task proficiency would be expected by the department following training?