soloplus lifeboat staff training needs survey

Training surveys are individually designed to assess the levels of staff competence, their strengths and vulnerabilities around a given area, for example customer relations or personal safety. Based on discussions with staff and their management we prepare detailed and modular programme designed to match staff competencies to organisational objectives.

How it works

The first step is to discuss and agree our brief. We will be asking, for example:

.         The purpose of the survey

.         How the information will be used

.         Data collection methods:

.         Face to face interviews

.         On-line survey

.         Email survey

.         Postal survey

Surveys are generally carried out through face-to-face interviews by department, team or section. We aim to speak to 20% of the workforce in groups of 5 - 15 people for an hour to an hour and a half. We use a prepared list of questions plus a clinical model of enquiry (clean questioning) in order to avoid unduly influencing the responses.

The option of supporting this with online, email or postal questionnaire may also be useful, though not necessary. The aim is to provide a snapshot of staff views at a given date. The information gathered covers a range of topics and issues relevant to staff performance and welfare. In particular we look for general of understanding of organisational factors such as policy, objectives, working methods and resources. We also enquire about skill levels and views of professional development.

The exact focus of the study having been agreed with the organisation, our enquiries are directed at:

.         Staff awareness of organisational resources and policies (i.e. bullying, staff welfare etc).

.         Individual or group vulnerabilities or 'Hot spots'

.         Organisational and staff group strengths and resources

.         Staff views on the working methods

.         Views on management strengths, style of communication etc.

Staff are told that the interviews are confidential and that statistical data and comments will be included in the final report and that individual anonymity will be protected.

 

The Report

Our final report includes a detailed summary of staff views and responses in relation to:

.         Staff perceptions about training and development generally

.         The existing strengths of staff in the given area

.         Any specific or recurrent themes around skills deficits

.         What staff could do to take responsibility for their own development

.         What the organisation could do to aid staff development in the given area

.         A modular staff development programme covering the main priorities

The report also includes recommendations and suggestions for benchmarking and monitoring factors such as morale and job-satisfaction in the organisation.

The final report is delivered as spiral bound hard copy (six copies). As an optional extra we can also deliver a summary of the main findings, supported by PowerPoint presentation, and answer questions in more detail.