BY BARRY CUMMINGS
WHY
ROI?
You usually measure a return on investment (ROI) in dollars or Dirhams, not how many times you walked to the bank. Why, then, do people still insist on counting how many people turned up for a workshop (the traditional ‘bums on seats’ number) and then offering that number as a measure of the value added for the time (and money) spent?
The fact that all 5/50/500/whatever employees in your organization had three training days this year has virtually no bearing on the learning that may (or may not) have occurred.
One of my favourite thoughts about learning is, “Learning is measured by a change in behavior.” If you are still doing what you always did, not a lot of learning has occurred regardless of how many days you spent in the training room! But how do you know if a change in behavior has occurred?
Well, you need to know where people started from, and that means some form of selection or assessment prior to any training taking place. Then, you need some form of measurement of where they are following the training, and the ability to relate any change in behavior to the requirements of the organization (including, as we shall see later, the expectations of the organization).
Kirkpatrick and Philips
Anyone seriously involved in evaluating training or assessing ROI has at some time used or referenced the work of Prof Donald Kirkpatrick (Kirkpatrick, 1959; 1998; 2007) and/or Dr Jack Philips (Philips, J. J., 1983; 1998.).
Kirkpatrick’s model of 4 Levels of Evaluation identified Reaction (1), Learning (2), Behavior (3), and Results (4) are relevant labels for assessment. Philips’ 5 Level model added ROI as a fifth level to Kirkpatrick’s 4-level work, introducing cost-benefit calculations as an additional form of assessment.
These models are almost sufficient in themselves for any caring organization to rely on for a reasoned assessment of where their investment went.
The practitioner or assessor must take some care, though, in the application of the overall model and any individual levels. Kirkpatrick’s first level, Reaction, more commonly referred to as the “Happy Sheet,” is not necessarily the most relevant evaluation criteria for an expensive long-term series of workshops.
IS THIS REALLY THE BEST MEASURE OF TRAINING SUCCESS?