Chapter 3 Homework Assignment

1. If you were going to use online technology to identify training needs for customer service representatives for a web-based clothing company, what steps would you take to ensure that the technology was not threatening to employees?

First and foremost I would make sure that all of the customer service representatives knew how to actually use the website they work for. Secondly, if I were conducting an online assessment, I would make it very plain and easy to use. Precise directions would be included, and also make it clear to those using it that it's for their benefit only.

2. Needs assessment involves organization, person, and task analyses. Which one of these analyses do you believe is most important? Which is least important? Why?

I believe that the organizational analysis is the most important because organizational analysis will determine whether or not the training will support the goals and strategic direction of the company. This analysis will determine how much money will be spent on training, as well as if employees will support it and become active in it. The least important is task analyses because most people are aware of their daily job activities, in other words, most people know what to do, but many may not know what level of performance they should be reaching.

3. Assume you have to prepare older employees with little computer experience to attend a training course on how to use the World Wide Web. How will you ensure that they have high levels of readiness for training? How will you determine their readiness for training?

I would determine their readiness for training by assessing needs such as experience with the Internet, or if they use computers daily, even if they had computers at home. More than likely, I would also ask something like, how often do you check email, things such as these would give me a good estimate as to what my employees would need to prepare for training.