Training Needs
Analysis Template
Purpose of a Training Needs Analysis
The purpose of a training needs assessment is to understand
performance gaps within the organization and determine if
training is the appropriate solution to help plug those gaps.
When assessing new training programs or learning strategies, a
needs assessment can enable you to determine whether the
investment will pay off for your learners and your business.
A needs analysis can include:
Overall organizational training needs
Training needs at the individual level
A skills gap analysis to determine the correct training
solutions
Your training needs analysis can be as high level or as in-depth as
you need it to be. Conducting a full training needs analysis can
take some time, but it’s a project well worth investing in to
ensure your learning solutions are aligned with organizational
performance.
This training needs analysis pack includes templates for a:
Survey for stakeholders and management
Survey for individual employees
Gap analysis
Stakeholder Survey Template
The survey can be used digitally or it can be conducted in an interview
format. Distributing the survey digital makes it quicker and easier to collect
a large number of responses, which may be preferable in a large
organization. However, an interview-based approach allows you to dive
deeper into certain questions and ensure you’re getting a thorough
response and understanding.
The goal of interviewing your stakeholders and senior management is to
determine what performance issues they are facing and why they think
training is a viable solution to those issues.
Name Position/Title Department Email address
Which performance issues are you currently trying to address?
How do you think training will help to solve the issue?
What steps have you taken previously to correct the problem?
How would you describe performance currently? Please include any relevant metrics
and/or data.
What is the performance goal? What changes would you like to see once training has
been implemented?
What new skills are needed on your team? What skills need to be improved?
Which of these skills would you consider a top priority?
What is the critical gap between current performance and desired performance -
knowledge, skills, or attitude?
Download the Word document version here.
Employee Survey Template
Stakeholders and employees may have different perspectives on what
training is really needed to close performance gaps. Talking to employees
gives you a more in-depth understanding of what is going on day-to-day
and invaluable insight into how best to help improve performance through
training.
Like the stakeholder survey, this survey can be distributed digitally through
an online form or you can choose to use focus groups of employees to
conduct interviews.
Name Position/Title Department Email address
What skills or knowledge are needed to perform your role?
Do you need support to develop any of these skills? If so, which ones?
What are the most challenging aspects of your role?
Do you think training is the best way to help you develop these skills? Is there any
other type of support that would help?
What training have you received in the past? Please list specific courses you have
completed (including eLearning and external workshops)
Are there any factors (such as processes or technology) that are preventing you from
achieving maximum performance in your role?
Download the Word document version here.
Gap Analysis
Your gap analysis can be structured in whatever way makes the most sense
for your organization. You may choose to create an analysis like the one
below for separate departments. You can also choose to create separate
analyses for specific business performance metrics (e.g. low customer
satisfaction ratings, poor sales performance, etc.).
Once you have identified the gap between current and desired performance,
you’ll be able to focus on training solutions that have the most immediate and
valuable impact on the business.
Focus Area Skill, business unit, or performance metric
Current State Describe the current performance/skill level.
Desired State Describe the desired performance/skill level.
Clearly identify the gaps in skill or knowledge
Gap Analysis
between current and desired state.
Prescribe a recommended training solution to
Recommendation
close the gap.
Outline the business impact of closing this gap
Business Impact
through training.
Software Built
for L&D Teams
Double your capacity by streamlining
training intake, project planning and content design
in a centralized platform.
Watch a Demo
