Training Industry Quarterly - Winter 2009 - (Page 24) Table 2: The Basis for Objectives Level of Objectives 0 — Inputs and Indicators Measurement Focus The input into the project in terms of scope, volume, efficiencies, costs Typical Measures Participants Hours Costs Timing Relevance Importance Usefulness Appropriateness Intent to use Motivation to take action Skills Knowledge Capacity Competencies Confidence Contacts Extent of use Task completion Frequency of use Actions completed 1 — Reaction and Perceived Value Reaction to the project or program, including the perceived value 2 — Learning and Confidence Learning to use the content and materials, including the confidence to use what was learned 3 — Application and Implementation Use of content and materials in the work environment, including progress with actual items and implementation The consequences of the use of the content and materials expressed as business impact measures 4 — Impact and Consequences Productivity Revenue Quality Time Efficiency Customer satisfaction Employee engagement Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) ROI (%) Payback period 5 — ROI Comparison of monetary benefits from program to program costs Input objectives set the scope of the program in terms of resources, location, technology needs and other considerations. They describe how much the learning event will cost, the people who will attend, how much time the program will take. When an ROI is developed, the fully loaded program costs come from these input objectives. Topics for input objectives include volume/staffing, scope, audience/coverage, timing, duration, budget/costs, project origin, delivery, location, disruption, technology and outsourcing/contracting. Developing input objectives is nothing more than good project planning; yet in 24 too many cases poorly written input objectives lead to unnecessary program costs. While input objectives set the scope of the program, reaction objectives define the initial success to expect. Participant reaction is defined in any number of ways. This is why it is important to develop specific, measurable reaction objectives. Reaction objectives focus on content and non-content issues. Content issues include relevance of materials, importance of content to job success, timing of program, appropriate use of time, amount of new information, among others. Non-content issues include demo- graphics, location, logistics, materials, facilitator, media, etc. Reaction objectives tell designers, developers and facilitators what program success should look like at the end of a program. Reaction objectives describe to participants how they will evaluate the program upon completion and the hoped-for results. As we move up the chain of impact, the objectives become more important. Few would disagree that learning objectives are more important than input and reaction objectives. While they are all important, learning objectives define what people must know to succeed with a program. Benjamin Bloom and Robert Mager are the best-known sources on how to develop learning objectives. Bloom and other psychologists created a system for describing different levels of cognitive functioning so that the precision of testing cognitive performance could be improved. The result was a classification system that breaks cognitive processes into six types: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Mager gave us the tools to develop specific, measurable, performance-based instructional objectives. Using Mager’s guidelines that include action verbs, specific performance, conditions and criterions, measurable learning objectives that define success evolve. Learning objectives are important as they define what participants will know when they leave the learning environment. They don’t explain, however, what people are expected to do with that knowledge or the intended outcomes of those actions. This is why application and impact objectives are important. The Power of Application and Impact Objectives Application and impact objectives are routinely omitted from projects and programs. Ironically, they are the most powerful levels of objectives as they focus on the organization’s needs: success with application and the corresponding outcomes. Application and impact objectives: ■ Drive programs by providing focus and meaning to the program, direction to stakeholders and the definition of success. Continued on page 26 Training Industry Quarterly, Winter 2009 / A Training Industry, Inc. ezine / www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ http://www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ
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