WHAT IS A LEARNING NEEDS ASSESSMENT (LNA)?
It’s an understanding of what GN4.3 participants need to work efficiently and effectively within the project. Learning Needs Assessment is a conversation with WPL/TL when Learning and Development team builds a holistic picture of the context of work delivered and discusses possible training solutions.
It is important to look into the future through the LNA lens, and think What is it that we need to be able to do in one- or two-year’s time? It is essential for the training to be forward looking to deliver skills in time when they actually will be required. With the speed of change today and in the future, it is important that we select and prioritise training activities carefully to make sure we stay ahead of the game.
WHICH ARE THE TRAINING ACTIVITIES PEOPLE CAN ATTEND?
All training activities are open to all GN4.3 project members on a first come, served basis, following the GN4.3 Approval process. The training activities will be published on the geant.learning.org website. The participation in courses is an entirely voluntary process, we do not ‘send’ people on a course. One must also remember that there are many ways to help people learn, some do not need to wait for the annual Learning Programme to be published.
WHAT ARE THE ROLES OF WORK PACKAGE AND TASK LEADERS VERSUS THOSE OF GLAD in TRAINING?
As a team leader you have the most detailed picture of your team and their training needs. Most importantly, you also have access to the daily work of any activity. GLAD is there to build on this experience of the work context and help guide the professional development of your team in the way that is most helpful. GLAD is also there to ensure that training is not disruptive but rather organic and fits well with what is happening on the shop floor. When collecting Learning Needs from the whole project, GLAD is also able to obtain economies of scale and to organise learning solutions in a comprehensive manner.
HOW DO I KNOW WHAT TRAINING IS NEEDED?
All starts with good communication and good dialogue with your team members. It goes into observations of what how the work happens, taking special note of bottlenecks and problems that arise. In the learning world, bottleneck can be indicative of the lack of knowledge, skill or awareness, and thus creating a pathway to the learning opportunities. However, one must remember that not all problems can be resolved through a learning solution.
It is also important to think of industry trends and what is happening around us. This is often an indicator of what we might want to start doing or learn how to do better.
HOW WILL TRAINING REQUESTS BE PRIORITISED?
Based on the outcomes of the LNA, GLAD will determine if all of the training requests can be completed. There are two categories: Must Have and Nice to haves. ‘Must haves’ are those that are outlines in the Technical Annex and they will be executed. The ‘Nice to haves’ will be executed only if there is the support of learners and resources.
Things we consider include: which training investments will provide the most benefit to the project; take a more strategic look at longer term needs; economies of scale. If time and budget will not permit us to do everything training may be phased over the GN4.3 project years or we refer to often free online solutions.
WHICH LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE?
Many training needs can be met continuously using local resources at little cost. for example:
- In-house developed resources
- Externally available (low cost) resources
- Freely available: webinars, blogs and knowledge centres