Happy, Helpful or Hurtful Sheets - the only three questions you need to ask on a Training Evaluation Feedback Form

Happy, Helpful or Hurtful Sheets - the only three questions you need to ask on a Training Evaluation Feedback Form

By Sue Ellson BBus MIML MAHRI CDAA ASA MPC WV

In my very first training role, a very long time ago, I was encouraged to video my training session and watch it back. I resisted. I did not think that my evaluation of my performance mattered - I was more concerned about how participants felt about the training and whether or not they benefited from the session.

So I would monitor the anonymous training evaluation feedback forms and always look at ways to improve my performance. Their feedback was extremely important to me and I would carefully monitor the average quantitative results and there was a steady increase over time. I was more than happy.

Fast forward to today where we see an increasing number of people who are all too willing to provide a bad review or forget to acknowledge something useful, and as a sensitive person who only wants to add value and improve, it can be very hurtful when most of the written 'feedback' I receive is negative.

I could also add that it would be far more helpful if this feedback was provided to me personally during the training so that I could address the concerns immediately!

I believe that some of this negatitivity has a lot to do with the nature of the questions on the training evaluation feedback form (also referred to as a 'happy sheet').

Personally, I believe that the happy sheet needs to be constructive rather than destructive.

The goal of the training evaluation feedback form is multifaceted. In my view, it should assess:

• the value and relevance to the learner
• what could enhance the training
• how the training will be implemented

What I see in a lot of questions, and in the way that they are answered, is:

• a negative perception about the entire training as a result of focusing on minor issues that may not have been avoidable (like not briefing the trainer, unrealistic expectations or matters outside of the trainer's control - like room temperature)
• anonymous personal attacks that are not helpful in any way to the trainer or the outcomes of the training
• critical assessments aligned with the person's overall views about a situation on that particular day (may be completely unrelated to the training, perhaps frustrated with their employer or other staff)

These issues can make any training evaluation feedback both hurtful and unhelpful.

What is the point of saying something like 'the worst session I have been to' or 'completely unrelated to my needs?' In a mixed group of people, with various backgrounds and competency, it is almost impossible to guarantee 100% satisfaction. By drawing out these expressions, what is the likelihood of any of the training being implemented? How can this make training a good investment?

Evaluations should focus on helping achieve outcomes.

The reality is, a training evaluation feedback form should help provide the trainer with an acknowledgement of how the training has been helpful, what could improve the training and provide the learner with a reminder to implement the new learnings.

So here are the only three questions that I believe matter.

TRAINING EVALUATION FEEDBACK FORM

1. What has been most helpful?

Not only does this provide direct feedback on what is most helpful and relevant to the learner, it acknowledges what the trainer did well, how the learner can apply it and it reinforces the learner's responsibility in the training process - to evaluate what they can take away from the training and potentially implement afterwards. It also helps them to focus on the positive aspects of the training - not just be 'happy' afterwards but really assess the overall benefit of attending the training. If the trainer sees consistent themes aligned with the priorities of the training, that is extremely helpful. If the trainer sees unique themes, they can begin to understand how learners view the training.

2. What else would have been helpful?

This question allows the learner to identify what would have made the training more helpful to them. If they had an overall negative perception of the training, for whatever reason (valid or invalid), they would have an opportunity to voice it with this question.

For example, they could say, 'a better explanation of xyz' or 'more detail about abc' or 'more activities and interaction rather than so many slides' or 'less time discussing theory and more practical examples.'

It helps them to identify the 'problem' and potentially provide a 'solution.' Much more valuable than a personal critique and far more valuable than attacking minor issues and potentially creating an overall bad impression of the training. How does this help a learner implement their new learnings or provide the trainer with steps to improve? What if the trainer could not have overcome those issues in the training session?

3. What will you do next?

Essentially, training is there to help the learner acquire the skills, knowledge or networks to implement the new learnings. If they say 'nothing,' then it is clear that they have not gained any value from the training.

Helping the learner reflect on the most valuable learning is a way for them to embed the learning and be outcome driven as a result of attending the training. It can be very interesting to hear what learners identify as most valuable and how the information in the training has been interpreted. This question can help the trainer understand the value and effectiveness of their training whilst still focusing on the learner moving forward and gaining a reward for their investment of time and/or money.

Why only three questions?

It could be argued that these types of questions do not provide any qualitative rating of the training the learner has received. We all know that a lot of people are reluctant to give the highest score or the lowest score and again, this has the potential to obscure the real benefits of the training or provide valuable information on how to improve the training.

Let us not forget that the real reason training is provided is to help the learner learn and use their new skills in the future!

Ultimately, most learners want to feel as if they have gained value from attending.

Most trainers want to ensure that they have provided value.

Ultimately, creating three questions that truly assess this value exchange is ALL that is needed.

Making it easy and non-threatening to the learner to provide this information is why I recommend the above three question training evaluation feedback form.

I welcome your thoughts and other suggestions in the comments below - as I am genuinely interested in both learner and trainer viewpoints on this topic - so that we can all increase our learning capacity and provide trainers with steps on how to improve their training skills.

Keywords

Training Evaluation, Training Feedback Forms, Trainer Performance

First Published: 5 March 2019

Last Update: 5 March 2019

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Sue Ellson BBus, MIML, MAHRI, CDAA, MPC, ASA, WV is an Independent LinkedIn Specialist, Business and Careers Consultant, Trainer and Author of three books. More information at https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/sueellson and https://sueellson.com