PSY 3630 Module 5 Training Paper: Design, Practice and Transfer to the Branch Example

From Classroom to Teller Window: Designing Training That Transfers

Student Name

B.S.B.A. in Human Resources/Organizational Management, Thomas Edison State University

PSY-3630: Industrial Psychology

Mentor Name

Month Day, Year

From Classroom to Teller Window: Designing Training That Transfers

Introduction

New member service representatives at the credit union attend three weeks of classroom training at headquarters before starting in a branch. Trainees rate the program highly, but branch managers report that new hires forget much of the core banking system, struggle with upset members and make errors on loan paperwork in their first months. The job analysis found that knowledge of the core system and loan rules can be trained, while emotional control and listening are selected for and then strengthened. This paper redesigns training using research.

Does Training Work

Arthur et al. (2003) meta-analyzed 162 studies of organizational training. Effects were medium to large at each of the four outcome levels associated with Kirkpatrick: what trainees thought, what they learned, how they behaved at work and what the organization gained. Effects varied with design: training that matched the method to the skill being taught, such as practice for interpersonal skills and lectures combined with practice for knowledge, was more effective. The authors noted that organizations rarely evaluated behavior and results, relying instead on reactions, which do not show whether training changed work.

What Matters Before, During and After

Salas et al. (2012) reviewed the science of training and organized it by timing. Before training, a training needs analysis should pin down which skills are missing and which employees need them, and organizations should prepare a climate that supports learning, for example by having supervisors explain why the training matters. During training, the most effective programs present information, demonstrate it and then provide practice with feedback, using realistic scenarios and letting trainees make and learn from errors. After training, transfer depends on opportunities to use the skills, supervisor support and follow-up, and evaluation should measure behavior and results, not only reactions.

Transfer of Training

Blume et al. (2010) meta-analyzed 89 studies of transfer, the extent to which trained skills are used and maintained on the job. Transfer was more likely when trainees were able, conscientious and motivated, and when the workplace backed them, above all through encouragement from managers and coworkers and a climate that welcomes new skills. Transfer was stronger for closed skills, which are performed the same way each time, such as following a procedure, than for open skills, which must be adapted to situations, such as handling an upset customer. Open skills need more practice in varied situations and more support afterward.

Needs Analysis

Following Salas and colleagues, the redesign began with a training needs analysis. The job analysis supplied the task and KSAO lists. Paperwork audits from the past year showed that most errors involved three loan forms and one account type, so those received extra practice time. A short survey of branch managers identified the system tasks new hires most often asked for help with. Trainees already selected for emotional control and listening still needed practice applying those traits to credit union situations, such as explaining a fee or declining a loan.

Learning From Errors

Traditional classroom training tries to prevent mistakes. Research on error management training suggests that letting trainees make errors in a safe setting, and teaching them to expect and recover from errors, improves performance on complex and novel tasks. In the training version of the banking system, trainees are encouraged to explore and make mistakes, and instructors ask them to explain what went wrong and how to fix it.

The Redesigned Program

The program keeps three weeks but changes their structure. Week one at headquarters covers the core banking system and loan rules using short demonstrations followed by practice in a training version of the system, with immediate feedback. Errors are allowed and discussed, since error management helps people learn complex systems. Week two moves to a training branch, where trainees handle simulated members played by experienced staff, including upset members with different complaints, giving varied practice for the open skill of emotional control. Week three places each trainee in their home branch with a peer coach, working real transactions with supervision.

Supporting Transfer

Following Blume and colleagues, branch managers receive a one-page guide on what new hires have learned and how to support it. Each new hire meets their manager weekly for the first eight weeks to set one skill goal and review progress. Peer coaches check loan paperwork for the first month. Quick reference cards for the most common system tasks sit at each workstation.

Evaluation

Following Arthur and colleagues and Salas and colleagues, evaluation will go beyond reactions. Learning will be measured with a system skills test at the end of week one and a scored simulation at the end of week two. Behavior will be measured by audits of loan paperwork errors and mystery member visits at 60 and 120 days. Results will be measured by first-year turnover and member satisfaction scores in branches with new hires, compared with the previous year.

Cost and Time

The redesign keeps the program at three weeks, so cost is similar. The main new expenses are a training version of the banking system, already licensed by the vendor, and peer coaches' time, which the credit union will recognize with a small stipend.

Limits

Meta-analytic averages may not hold for every setting. The credit union and its program are invented. Measuring results such as turnover involves many factors besides training.

Conclusion

Arthur and colleagues showed that well-designed training works, Salas and colleagues showed what to do before, during and after and Blume and colleagues showed that support on the job decides whether skills transfer. The redesigned program trades lectures for practice, varies scenarios for the open skill of handling upset members and builds manager and peer support into the first months, with evaluation that measures behavior and results.

References

Arthur, W., Bennett, W., Edens, P. S., & Bell, S. T. (2003). Effectiveness of training in organizations: A meta-analysis of design and evaluation features. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(2), 234-245. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.2.234

Blume, B. D., Ford, J. K., Baldwin, T. T., & Huang, J. L. (2010). Transfer of training: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Management, 36(4), 1065-1105. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206309352880

Salas, E., Tannenbaum, S. I., Kraiger, K., & Smith-Jentsch, K. A. (2012). The science of training and development in organizations: What matters in practice. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 13(2), 74-101. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100612436661