Course on Training Needs Analysis and Development Planning (Online / Remote)
1Summary
Organisations rarely fail because people lack talent — they fail because training budgets get spent on the wrong things. Guessing what employees need to learn wastes time and money, while a properly diagnosed skills gap turns training into an investment with a measurable return.
This course, delivered by the Arab British Fellowship Training Academy, walks participants through the full cycle of identifying real training needs and translating them into a workable development plan, from collecting reliable performance data to designing schedules that organisations can actually deliver.
Throughout the sessions, participants practise linking every training decision back to organisational strategy, so that development spending is never disconnected from business priorities, and learn how to keep the resulting plan alive through monitoring and periodic revision.
2Objectives and target group
- Human Resources and Training Managers, as well as Institutional Development Officers.
- Training and Professional Development Specialists in both public and private sectors.
- Team Leaders and Supervisors seeking to enhance their training planning capabilities.
- Consultants and planners interested in improving human resource development strategies.
Target Audience
By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:
- Identify and analyse training needs accurately using structured, evidence-based methods.
- Distinguish between actual and assumed training needs before committing budget to them.
- Translate identified needs into measurable, strategy-aligned training objectives.
- Build a development plan with realistic timelines, resources and delivery schedules.
- Track and evaluate training outcomes, including return on training investment.
3Course Content
Module 1: Why Workforce Development Starts with the Right Diagnosis
- How training connects to organisational performance and sustainable development.
- Defining training needs and distinguishing individual, functional and organisational levels.
- Why real and assumed needs must be told apart before any planning begins.
Module 2: Gathering the Evidence — Data and Performance Analysis
- Interviews, surveys and field observation as sources of reliable data.
- Using individual and team performance records, administrative reports and past indicators.
- Methodologies for analysing gaps between current and required performance, supported by statistical tools.
Module 3: From Findings to Priorities
- Prioritising training needs according to business direction.
- Translating needs into measurable training objectives.
- Integrating the training plan with the organisation's operational plans.
Module 4: Designing a Development Plan That Delivers
- Building a comprehensive, time-bound training plan.
- Allocating the human and material resources needed for execution.
- Preparing integrated schedules and programmes covering all organisational levels.
Module 5: Running Training Programmes — Delivery and Logistics
- Standards for selecting trainers and training providers.
- Choosing the training methods that fit each type of need.
- Managing programme schedules and training logistics.
Module 6: Winning Buy-In — Marketing Training Internally
- Motivating employees to take part actively in training.
- Positioning training as an investment in human capital, not a cost.
- Building a culture of continuous learning inside the organisation.
Module 7: Measuring What Matters — Evaluating Training Effectiveness
- Levels of evaluation according to Kirkpatrick's model.
- Calculating the return on investment (ROI) of training programmes.
- Tools and methods for measuring training's impact on performance.
Module 8: Keeping the System Alive — Continuous Review
- Reviewing and updating the training plan based on results.
- Sustaining institutional development programmes over time.
- Feeding evaluation results back into the overall training system.