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Now that you know what your training objectives are and you have your
materials gathered, take some time to formally evaluate where the gaps are
in learning so that you can design a tailored training plan.
Ask yourself questions that pertain to the following domains.
Cognitive Domain
As a result of this training, what is important that people know?
What do participants need to know that they did not know before?
Affective Domain
How do I want participants to feel about what they learn?
Am I trying to create a positive attitude toward a changed process, excitement about a new
idea, or self-confidence over their ability to perform?
How do I want them to relate to people in ways they have not before?
Psychomotor Domain
What do participants need to do that is different from what they did before?
Interpersonal Domain
Are there behaviors that need to or will change as a result of the training?
To answer the questions, you will need to gather more information than you actually need. Thoroughly
research your topic, analyze the material, and then distill it down to the essentials that you will use.
Having too much information will mean that you do not run out of content during training, and that you
have the resources available so that you can answer questions that people ask. Remember, sometimes
our audience knows more than we expected, and material becomes redundant very quickly.
Here are a few research tips that will help you to determine trends that may be impacting the industry
or organization, and will help you to locate your reference material:
What articles have been published in trade or industry articles in the last 12-24 months?
What articles have appeared in business or popular publications in the last 12 months?
What topics are being blogged about repeatedly in the last 12 months? (Be careful about using
the information, as we mentioned previously. Blogs can tell you what the hot button issues are,
and provide you with information, but they could be thin on research or knowledge.)
What books have been published on the subject in the last year?