To Measure Better - Write Better Performance Objectives

Most of us in learning and development believe that the effectiveness of training should be measured.

After all, we need to:

·         Track and measure business results to determine if we are making the promised impact

·         Drive accountability for performance coaching and for using the new knowledge, skills and processes

·         Provide simple, relevant and actionable performance feedback 

But until we have set clear business objectives and identified the critical few metrics to move, testing results will be inconclusive and our proof shaky.

Those in training measurement services must rely upon the business and instructional designers to set clear and realistic expectations. Business and learning objectives and metrics should be created for every training experience…they set the foundation for all that follows. Training participants and their managers need to know exactly what learners will be able to do and how well (performance measure) once they complete each program.

Our advice? Take your time in creating the business and learning objectives. You are likely to need to revise again and again to simplify and clarify. Meaningful, accurate and relevant objectives set the stage for writing performance test items that really match what you expect of each learner as they perform on the job.