Six steps to an effective training program.

Wheland Foundry's director of training and development shares specific aspects of the firm's ground-breaking training and education program.

Wheland Foundry employs more than 1900 people and manufactures parts that can be found in more than 60% of all cars and trucks sold in America. To ensure a future as bright as its history, the company has taken aggressive steps to improve processes, modernize equipment and develop its most important asset - the employees.

Although Wheland's history dates back to the 1860s, it was not until seven years ago that a fully integrated training and development program was initiated. The Wheland leadership decided that being a competitor was not enough. We wanted to be the winner in the industry. To reach this goal, the company needed a commitment to the training and education of all employees.

Seven years later, that commitment has brought strong results. Employees are now more knowledgable in both technical areas and interpersonal skills. Training and education programs have had positive impacts on safety, production, efficiency, morale and new employee retention. Although many factors contribute to this record, our training program has certainly been integral to Wheland's success.

If your training and educational efforts are not where you would like them to be, or if you have yet to initiate a program, the following steps can help you build a solid training department.

1 Starting From the Top

The most important step is receiving full commitment and support from the top management. Gordon Street, CEO, provided the vision for our training program, and Ron Reese, vice president, the leadership during implementation. Both showed their support by attending relevant classes, and Ron is one of the permanent instructors for our annual new supervisors training classes. Without the support of top management, the best planned training program will flounder. A second key signal that training was to be a high-profile pursuit was the decision to pay employees for class attendance. We either train on-shift or pay overtime if training occurs off-shift.

Initially, I was hired, with the help of a part-time secretary, to be in charge of all training functions, including coordination, assessments and curriculum development. I taught the general classes in areas such as communication, leadership and diversity, and hired consultants from the Cast Metals Institute to conduct the technical classes. As our program has grown, we have added three part-time trainers and two full-time technical trainers who work with production employees. The renovation of a storage area into a spacious multi-use training facility was a visible, concrete indication of the emphasis Wheland intended to place on training.

2 The Bonus of Buy-in

In addition to support from the top, it is important to get widespread buy-in from those who will be taking the classes. Before any training begins, it is essential to gather input from your employees about what they feel is the most needed type of training. When the training actually starts, you can point out that you are giving them what they asked. The two methods we used to gather information were face-to-face interviews and anonymous surveys.

The face-to-face interview is a good technique to use if you can depend on honest and thorough responses. A good survey will include both multiple choice and open-ended questions. The multiple choice questions may help an employee recognize training issues and topics, while open-ended questions let an employee comment on areas of concern not covered in the survey.

It is also important to explain the goals of your training program to your employees. The first courses we offered were those requested by the employees. Giving everyone a voice in designing the curriculum will give employees a valuable sense of ownership in your training program. I always try to remember that it is not "my" training program, but every Wheland employee's training program.

3 Analysis and Assessments

Before the actual training process begins, two steps are vital and will save you time and trouble as you proceed. Conduct a job analysis to determine what it takes to succeed in a particular job and assess your employee's present knowledge levels.

In conducting formal job analysis, three major criteria must be considered:

* the safest way to do a job;

* the quality concerns;

* the correct steps or procedure.

After these factors have been considered, you can develop a curriculum to satisfy all of these requirements. This process provides another opportunity to get buy-in from your employees. In addition to obtaining information from your industrial engineers, you can elicit feedback from both supervisors and production employees who have worked a particular job before. We do not initiate any training plan until we have sign-off from all these parties.

It is a mistake to design any training program before you have an understanding of your employee's knowledge level. When you begin the assessment process, be prepared for high anxiety from a number of your employees. Those with limited reading or computation skills will need reassurance as to how the assessment information will be used. You will need to help employees view assessment as an opportunity for self-improvement rather than as a management tool to hold them back. Efforts should be made to handle all testing in a confidential and professional fashion. (For a detailed look at assessment, see p. 32.)

4 Designing Curriculum

What type of curriculum will produce superior performance in a given area of responsibility? This question brings up three related questions.

* Does the training support help meet the overall goals of the company?

* Will the training satisfy the needs of management, supervision and technicians?

* How do we discriminate between what is nice to know and what we need to know to be competent in our job?

As you begin designing your basic curriculum, consider these points.

The first is to start with a basic communications class which covers all aspects of communication - speaking, writing and listening. It's valuable to get this class under your belt since good communication is needed for the successful completion of all other types of training.

Second, present a balanced mixture of technical and interpersonal skills training. There are few jobs in your company that do not depend on both of these in equal measures. As your employees work on the job, their ability to work together and understand each other becomes critical.

Lastly, try to make all training competency-based. The basic tenet of this type of training is that human behavior in the workplace is shaped by what I call the "A.S.K. first" approach. A is for attitude and includes what the employees value, their learning styles and beliefs. S is for skills and what they can do. And K is for knowledge and what they know - the facts, concepts and theories.

Competency-based training recognizes that attitudes, skills and knowledge should be taught in an integrated fashion in order for one to be successful in a job. Make sure the information you are presenting to your employees will contribute to their development. If you offer training that is seen as irrelevant or seems to have little impact on them professionally or personally, they are sure to lose interest and confidence in your training program.

5 Top-Notch Trainers

As a trainer, it is hard for me to be objective about the trainer's role. If you remember the hours you've spent bored to tears in a seemingly endless session where valuable information is lost because of a speaker's poor presentation skills or lack of preparation, you will agree that selecting an articulate, creative and dynamic trainer is vital. Some of the best trainers have come from the company ranks. Strong interpersonal skills should be the prime reason why they are chosen. It has been my experience that it is easier to take a good communicator and teach them technical knowledge and skills than it is to take someone with technical know how and help them develop good "people" skills. I spent 16 years as a teacher and coach on both the high school and college levels. Keeping the attention of adolescents was a great preparation for me as a professional trainer.

But there are key differences in training adults. It is vital that your trainer understands how adults learn. An effective trainer will be aware that the adult learner wants - to know "What's in it for me?"; to be able to apply the learning quickly; to be able to participate and be active in class; to take classes based on solving problems experienced daily; and to be taught in a nonthreatening environment.

Poor presentation skills, insufficient subject knowledge and a lack of awareness of the adult learning model are pitfalls for every trainer to avoid.

6 Evaluation and Follow-Up

If you want to repeat good programs and flush bad ones, it is essential to conduct an anonymous survey after each session. Your course evaluation should address everything from the material to the instructor to the facilities. I suggest you end each evaluation with an open-ended question - "What could we do to improve this course?" Once again, employees are aware that their opinion matters and will have an impact on future training.

If you are going to hold your employees accountable for the information they have gained from training, then you will need to have a mechanism in place to determine if the training transfers to their job. Pre- and post-assessments are the best method. Interviewing the employee's supervisor, peers and subordinates is another way to track your results. It is important to decide if the training "stuck." If employees are just going through the motions and sitting through classes, then you need to reevaluate your trainer and the material.

Inch by Inch

Regardless of where you are with your training and development efforts, never doubt that quality training is well worth the effort. As the bumper sticker reads - "If you think education is expensive, try the alternative."

If you're just beginning a program, don't be afraid to start small. Woody France, our corporate director for human resources, likes to say: "I'd rather have training that's an inch wide and a mile deep instead of an inch deep and a mile wide." Begin with the basics and add to the program inch by inch as you gain confidence in the impact training will have on your company.

RELATED ARTICLE: A Deeper Look at Wheland's Training

The foundation of the Wheland mission is communication. Wheland believes if it can maximize the communication and people skills of its employees, the training of the technical material will be easy.

At a cost of less than 1% of gross profits, Wheland's training initiative reaches its three independent facilities. These three facilities - two in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and one in Warrenton, Georgia - are of differing size and composition. The result is three facilities at different stages of training, but each still sharing the same ultimate goal.

The most advanced of Wheland's training programs, said Matens, is at the Warrenton facility, a 200-person gray iron plant. Warrenton's program was developed in conjunction with the initial start-up of the facility in October 1995, allowing Wheland to receive financial and training support from Georgia's Quick Start program. Since both the plant and the training program were built from the ground up, coordination was easy.

Job applicants for the new foundry went through an extensive assessment of reading, math, behavioral, problem solving and teamwork skills. Wheland was able to generate a competent starting workforce with the basic skills necessary to succeed at the next level. Of the 1200 workers who applied for positions, 200 were hired.

Next came a 216-hr training period at the on-site training facility. Comprised of three distinct modules - interpersonal and team building, core technical training and foundry-specific training - this period was the foundation for the individual team and departmental on-the-job (OJT) training that followed.

At its Middle Street foundry, a 400-employee ductile iron facility, and its Broad Street foundry, an 1100-employee gray iron facility, in Chattanooga, Wheland is implementing a scaled down version of the Warrenton approach. Here, new employees receive a five-day orientation with instruction on topics ranging from Wheland history to sexual harassment to teamwork. In addition, the week is spent examining the various job responsibilities on the floor. "We have to acclimate new employees to the introduction of the foundry employment," said Tony Kilgore, technical trainer.

Wheland tries to orient the new employees to six different jobs that they may encounter when placed in the plant. Since this is job training, Wheland uses simulators to provide the most realistic situations possible. For example, a full size, working shakeout area at the training facility introduces new hires to that operation.

The proof of the orientation's success is in the numbers. More than 130 people have gone through the program since last February, and the retention rate of these workers is 75% after six months - a 25% increase.

For the existing hourly employees at the two facilities, the educational focus is a continuation of some of the orientation material. ln addition to technical/OJT training, topics include computers, problem solving, teamwork, conflict resolution and overall communication skills.

There also is the opportunity to participate in the job bid program to learn in depth about other positions in the foundry. Supervisors at the two plants have the opportunity to complete a nine-week course on effective leadership with an emphasis on communication skills.

For Wheland, the first round of training provided is beneficial, but the true measure of the program is the continued efforts that are made. "We are looking to document the quality and ability our employees have achieved. It allows them to have pride in what they do and what they have accomplished," said Kilgore.

Supervisors and hourly workers meet weekly to discuss problem solving and the lines of communication. Also, a communication network has been developed within the foundries with closed circuit television relaying messages from management and customers, as well as other updates. On a more personal level, the training and development staff, including Matens, meets with every employee face-to-face to discuss his/her situation.

In 1996, Wheland provided its employees 260 classes and meetings at the two facilities in Chattanooga with a total attendance of 4995 employees.

- Alfred T. Spada, assistant editor