TRAINING

NEEDS
ASSESSMENT

ABRENICA, L. O.
BADINO, D. A.
OCTAVIO, R. P.
EMBUDO, J.D.
 Module 3
Training Needs Assessment
By: Lialyn O. Abrenica, Derilyn A. Badino
Renan P. Octavio, Jemima D. Embudo

I. Overview

Training needs assessment is an important activity in

conducting agricultural extension. Before organizing training
program, it is necessary to determine correctly the training needs
of the group of farmers. In order to achieve it, the collection of the
solid baseline information and data on social and economic
features, local natural resource endowment, data on social and
economic losses and impacts of natural disasters on farmer’s
livelihood and agricultural production must be conducted and
analyzed efficiently.

II. Intended Learning Outcomes

At the end of the session, the students should be able to:

1. Determine the importance of training needs assessment;
2. Identify the right time to conduct TNA;
3. Analyze solutions if your “client” doesn’t want to spend the
time and money to do assessment; and;
4. Evaluate the need of training needs assessment.

III. Take off

Consider yourself as a famer and try to fill-in the table (sample portion
of the baseline survey questioner) below!
INDICATOR 1: Agricultural Production (crops/animals and their
importance to the farm household)
Question 1: In the left-hand column, list the main crops and livestock you have
produced on your farm in the last 12 months. List up to five only.

Question 2: In the right-hand column, rate each of the crops and livestock you
produced in order of their importance to your farm household (a rating for 1 for
most important ; 2 for next most important and so on)

List of main crops and livestock produced in last Rating of importance to

12 months (up to five only) farm household (1 = most
important; 2 = next most important
and so on)

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 Source: Livelihood Improvement through Facilitated Extension (LIFE)
IV. Learning Focus

What is Training Needs Assessment?

“Training Needs Assessment” (TNA) is the method of determining if a

training need exists and, if it does, what training is required to fill the gap. TNA
seeks to identify accurately the levels of the present situation in the target
surveys, interview, observation, secondary data and/or workshop. The gap
between the present status and desired status may indicate problems that in
turn can be translated into a training need.

A need is defined as a gap between “what currently is” and “what should
be” (Altschuld & Watkins, 2014). Needs assessment is a process to identify
what people need where they live, work or play. The purpose is to use the
information gained to make plans to meet those needs. What are the needs of
people you serve?

It was observed that the term “need” connotes deficiency or an unmet

problem. It was believe that an effective community needs assessment would
not only identify the needs of the community, but also underutilized resources,
as in, “We need to utilize our lake and abundant natural beauty to promote
tourism which will produce substantial economic benefits.” Therefore, we have
chosen to use the term “needs assessment” as a synonym for situational
analyses, and the term “assets” may be used in place of needs. The Asset-
Based Community Development (ABCD) is a strategy that starts with a
recognition of the assets of communities for sustainable community-driven
development.

Guiding Principles of ABCD

- Communities have different kinds of assets. Everyone has something to
offer.

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 - People are at the center (actors not recipients).
- People care about something.
- Institutions are meant to serve citizens.
- Relationships build community.
- Communities can and should direct their development.
- In keeping with participatory approaches to development: active
participation and empowerment.

Emphasis of ABCD: Social Capital

If physical capital is wholly tangible, being embodied in observable

material form, and human capital is less tangible, being embodied in the skills
and knowledge acquired by an individual, social capital is less tangible yet, for
it exists in the relations among persons. Just as physical capital and human
capital facilitate productive activity, social capital does as well. (Coleman,
2000).

Social can be bonding, bridging

Networks or linking

Social at what level: national,

Trust community, family?
Capital

Social are a function of the

particular network being
Norms investigated

Figure 1: Key Elements of Social Capital

Why are needs assessments important?

Needs assessments are important for a number of reasons. Our world

faces unlimited needs, but limited resources. Needs assessments help to
identify areas that will do the most good for the most people over time. We live
in a complex society, and it is not always clear which initiatives should be
conducted or emphasized by public service organizations. Needs assessments
clarify the work of public service agencies and promote effective program
planning by engaging advisory leaders, elected officials, volunteers and other
stakeholders in learning and talking about important community issues. Needs
assessments are a democratic principle! Needs change over time, and a
periodic assessment is necessary to understand changing needs and new
situations that people face in daily life.

The training need assessment is also the process of collecting information

about an expressed or implied organizational need that could be met by
conducting training. The need can be a performance that does not meet the

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current standard. It means that there is a prescribed or best way of doing a task
and that variance from it is creating a problem. The TNA process helps the
trainer and the person requesting training to specify the training need or
performance deficiency. Assessments can be formal (using survey and
interview techniques) or informal (asking some questions of those involved).

When is the right time to conduct a needs assessment?

An effective needs assessment allows you to construct a more objective

picture of needs than you would receive from observation or public discussion.
The checklist will help you pinpoint when needs assessments are a good idea.
Because needs assessments take time, energy, money and other resources, it
is critical to decide if a needs assessment is warranted for your program.

Table 1. Understanding When to Conduct a Needs Assessment

Reasons to Conduct a Needs Reasons Not to Conduct a Needs
Assessment Assessment
- Your project or program is brand - The audience or community
new. would view the assessment as
- You are brand new to the “redundant or wasteful.”
community or your job. - The issue is urgent and requires
- You want to learn more about quick action.
what the audience or community - A recent needs assessment has
needs related to a specific already been conducted, and the
condition. results are still timely.
- You need to document needs for
grant applications and other
funding proposals.
- You need additional information
and perspectives to
communicate with donors,
advisory groups, elected officials
and other stakeholders.
- You want to focus the evaluation
of a given program on how well

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 it meets the needs of its intended
audience.

Why do we need training?

Because training is a means to ensure that government officials have the

knowledge and right skills to be able to do their work effectively and
competently. Training may be needed when there is a gap between the desired
performance, and the current performance, and the reason for that gap is lack
of skill or knowledge. Training may only be able to resolve part of the problem.
Thus we need to analyze the problem and find out whether training will be able
to resolve it. If training is necessary, we also need to define the objective of the
training and how it will help the staff member(s) become more effective. This
process is called a Training Needs Assessment shown above or Training
Needs Analysis.

It is important to note that, despite many reasons to conduct training

shown above, training may sometimes not be the only solution to a problem.
There are many other means that impact on someone’s ability to do their work,
as pointed out in the “Report on Training Needs Assessment” by PILAC. The
following are other examples.
- Lack of skills or knowledge, or experience
- Not having the right equipment or resource
- Not being encouraged by managers and colleagues to do the right thing
- There are no standards or expectations that are set and communicated
- Bad workplace morale or conditions

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Why do we need a Training Needs Assessment?

First, identify dissatisfaction with the current situation and desire for
change as similarities among the requests. Each request implies that a gap or
discrepancy exists between what is and what could be or should be. A learning
or performance gap between the current and desired condition is called a need.
TNA aims at the following situations.
- Solving a current problem
- Avoiding a past or current problem
- Creating or taking advantage of a future opportunity
- Providing learning, development or growth

The purpose of TNA is to answer some familiar questions: why, who, how,
what, and when. The following are descriptions of the questions and what
analysis can be done to answer them.

Table 2: The Purpose of TNA

Why Conduct the training: to tie the performance deficiency to a working
need and be sure the benefits of conducting the training are greater
than the problems being caused by the performance deficiency.
Conduct two types of analysis to answer this question: (1) needs
versus wants analysis and (2) feasibility analysis.
Who Is involved in the training: involve appropriate parties to solve the
deficiency. Conduct a target population analysis to learn as much
as possible about those involved in the deficiency and how to
customize a training program to capture their interest.
How Can the performance deficiency be fixed: training can fix the
performance deficiency or suggest other remediation if training is
not appropriate? Conduct a performance analysis to identify what
skill deficiency is to be fixed by a training remedy.
What Is the best way to perform: there is a better or preferred way to do
a task to get the best results. Are job performance standards set by
the organization? Are there governmental regulations to consider
when completing the task in a required manner? Conduct a task
analysis to identify the best way to perform.

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 When Will training take place: the best timing to deliver training because
attendance at training can be impacted by work cycles, holidays,
and so forth? Conduct a contextual analysis to answer logistics
questions.

If trainers already know the answers to these five questions, then they
know whether or not training would be appropriate. Sometimes trainers
mistakenly assume that the person requesting the training has already
determined the answers to these five issues and proceed to conduct training
without raising these questions. A training plan that reports the conclusions
from a needs assessment provides a road map that describes a business issue,
problems and deficiencies that training can address, and how that will be
accomplished.

How Are Training Needs Assessments Done?

A training needs assessment is a three-phase process. Decide how to complete

each type of analysis using these three phases (Barbazette, 2006).

1. Gather information: Any analysis involves gathering information to help

make appropriate decisions. Gathering information can be the process of
collecting existing information or developing new information. The process
can be formal or informal and involves one or more types of needs analysis.
2. Analyze information: After gathering information, analyze it, interpret it, and
draw conclusions from the information. It is rarely appropriate or helpful if
the trainer who gathers needs analysis information independently analyzes
and interprets information and suggests conclusions. This phase of the
needs assessment is most effective as a collaborative process that includes
all stakeholders.
3. Create a training plan: After analyzing and interpreting information and
offering conclusions, the information becomes the basis for a training plan
which proposes how to resolve the performance deficiency

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Who Decides Which People Are Involved and What Measures Are
Assessed?

The trainer who conducts the needs assessment may suggest or identify
stakeholders to involve in the assessment and what measures to assess. It is
usually the client who makes the decision proposed by the trainer. However,
this is only one model for decision making. Different organizations have
different decision making processes. Some organizations prefer a cross-
functional task force to make decisions about the three phases of a needs
assessment. To avoid raising additional issues or barriers, be sensitive to who
makes decisions and to how decisions are made in your organization.

How Can You Convince Your Client to Invest in a Needs Assessment

Effort?

Sometimes trainers are asked to conduct training without “bothering” to

conduct a needs assessment. The client who requests training may be
convinced that the course they request is exactly what the target population
who will attend the training “needs.” The client might contend that conducting a
needs assessment is a waste of time and resources. It is appropriate to respect
the opinions of the client. However, trainers have to trust their judgment by
presenting appropriate training. This might mean asking several informal
questions to identify whether the requested training is the right solution to a
performance problem.

Think of conducting a needs assessment as investing a bit of time in

coming up with the right solution and a greater return on the time invested.
Begin by asking the person requesting the training (the client) questions about
the five purposes (why, who, how, what, and when). This assures the client that

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the training program will be more successful when course content is customized
for the specific target population. If the person you are asking doesn’t know the
answers to your questions, maybe this person is not the actual client and is a
messenger for the client. A client is the decision maker and the person who
must ultimately be pleased with the results of the training. If possible, speak
directly to the client, rather than through an intermediary, who may not have the
same facts and opinions as the client.

Although the client may think a needs assessment is not required, ask
questions (why, who, how, what, and when) to confirm your understanding of
the training request and make suggestions about how to customize and tailor
the existing training and best meet the needs of the client. When you begin
asking questions of the client, you are already conducting an informal needs
assessment. Not asking these five types of questions before conducting training
is irresponsible, since the client may end up with an inappropriate solution.

Some clients can be convinced by examples or testimonials from other

clients about the importance of conducting a needs assessment. Others may
agree to a needs assessment when the benefits to the bottom line are
demonstrated.

VII. References

Altschuld, J. W., & Watkins, R. (2014). A primer on needs assessment: More

than 40 years of research and practice. In J. W. Altschuld & R. Watkins
(Eds.), Needs assessment: Trends and a view toward the future (pp. 5-
18). New Directions for Evaluation, no. 144.

Barbazette, Jean. 2006. Training Needs Assessment: Methods, Tools and

Techniques. Published by Pfeiffer. (pp. 3-11)

Donaldson, J.L. and Frank, K.L. 2016. Needs assessment guidebook for
Extension professionals. UT Extension Publication PB 1839

Ministry of Interior and Japan International Cooperation Agency. Project on

Improvement of Local Administration in Cambodia (PILAC). Manual on
Training Needs Assessment. Retrieved from:
https://www.jica.go.jp/project/cambodia/0601331/pdf/english/3_TNA_01.pdf

Vock, N., Johnson, M., Menz, K., Carusos, E. 2018. The Life Model: Livelihood
improvement through facilitated extension.