Know your audience

When I develop training, I ask these questions.

Is there a reason why you would like this training?

In your opinion, what are the benefits of training?

Where has training not been developed before?

After going through the training, what do you expect them to achieve?

How would you like the result to be? In other words, what does the outcome look like?

To whom will the training be provided? Training audience or target audience?

The why of your program helps you determine which elements need to be included.

The why-question will show you if the training is being done to support an initiative or is in response to a complaint.

You want to know the end before you can start creating the training. Focus on the need to know.

Find out who these people are. Does upper management have a role to play? Employees in frontline positions? A new hire or an old hand? You should also try to discover what they already know. To be effective, the training should help the trainees accomplish new methods, not merely cover ground that has already been covered. To the best of your ability, inquire into the previous knowledge and experience of your trainees. Last but not least, determine where they will be receiving training. Location can impact design decisions. Answering questions like these will help you build a solid foundation on which you can build your training.