Some years ago I was put in charge of the training function of a large manufacturing company. They already had a Training Manager so I had to come up with a job title that was a bit different. Since my role, apart from managing the training function, was to look at the future H.R. needs of the organisation, introduce a Manpower Plan and develop people for future roles, I chose the title Human Resource Development Manager. I had never seen the title before then, but over the years it became popular. Training sounds a bit restrictive, development sounds more future oriented and creative and I am sure better describes the role. In recent years Learning has become a popular word in training circles and Learning Advisors, Learning and Development Managers etc are replacing Training Managers in many organisations.

Training Needs Analysis seems to have stood the test of time when referring to the process of finding out, in advance of training, who and what should be trained. Is this term accurate I wonder? What about Development Needs Analysis? (could be abbreviated to DNA) This would suggest a more proactive, forward looking approach. And of course, since training is not always the solution, what about broadening it to Performance Improvement Needs Analysis? (PINA?)

I suspect it will be Training Needs Analysis for some time to come.

Tags: training needs analysis