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Abstract
An effective training program improves employee performance by including comprehensive needs assessment, employing appropriate training methodologies, and anticipating factors beyond the actual training event that influence the transfer of skills from the training environment to the work environment.
Introduction
With continued advances in technology, markets become more competitive and management expectations of performance efficiencies increase. No business enterprise can maintain the status quo and improve processes without concerted effort in spear-heading innovative change in the pursuit of quality and efficiency. As with other realms of business, there is a considerable body of knowledge to acquire to meet the performance demands of research administration. Research Administrators (RAs), familiar with the cycle of proposal development to program close-out, must be responsive to changes in policies and procedures in their university and department, and must be aware of federal regulations and modifications of sponsors' guidelines. Furthermore, there is a continual need to communicate policies and processes between business administrators, principal investigators, and the research staff. The result is a constant learning curve for both junior and senior research administrators.
Training initiatives must prove their worth and are often among the first functions to be sacrificed during economic slowdowns. To survive in such an atmosphere, training must emphasize skills and the acquisition of knowledge in direct support of performance goals. Not only can effective training promote productivity, it can foster personal and professional development, contribute to the progressive organizational environment, help boost productivity, and promote employee morale. Grant (US News & World Report, 1995) notes:
Motorola has the most comprehensive employee training programs of any US corporation, and as a result has boosted productivity 139%, sales 18% and earnings 26%. Courses at Motorola University are geared to business strategy. Every employee receives a minimum of 40 hours of instruction per year.
Every business, including research administration, has performance issues, but the dilemma of optimum performance is universal. How can the quality of training be enhanced? How might training needs be accurately determined? What training methodologies are most appropriate for different learning objectives? When is training the proper intervention for productivity or efficiency issues? What factors influence training besides the material and the trainer, and what control could there be over these factors? The first step in developing...