ProjectConnections Print View
888-722-5235
7am-5pm Pacific
Monday - Friday
We'd love to talk to you.
Learn more about ProjectConnections and who writes our content. Want to learn more? Take a site tour and compare our membership levels.
Become a Member »
Project Training Plan
Quick Summary
A thorough training plan describes the key decisions, tasks, and resources you need to develop a strategy for delivering needed training, whether it's for service technicians and help desk agents, or end users who need to help themselves.
What this is
A training plan describes the key decisions, tasks, and resources needed to develop a strategy for delivering training for a project. The purpose of the training program is to develop knowledge and skills so individuals can perform their roles efficiently and effectively.
Training is generally a responsibility of the organization, but IT projects must identify the needed skills and provide the necessary training to properly equip the user community and support teams. Depending on the situation, the training plan must address not only technical training, but also business process training to ensure that business teams understand how the software fits within their other job responsibilities.
Why it's useful
Creating a training plan encourages the project team to consider the training strategy and implementation relatively early in the project, rather than addressing training as an afterthought. In addition, this plan encourages the project and business teams to claim joint ownership of the training process, leading to strong cross-team collaboration.
This plan is also useful because it requires the project team to consider all aspects of trainingÑnot just delivery, but also documentation, reserving the appropriate space, engaging the appropriate people, and securing the appropriate funding.
How to use it
- Complete a draft of this plan during the execution phase of the project. This task may fall to the Project Manager, the Business Analyst, or another designated technical or business resource, but should include input from designated training representatives.
- Review the plan with the project sponsor, Project Manager, trainer resources (business and/or technical), and key business resources. Make modifications to the plan as appropriate based on this review, and make sure everyone agrees on the plan and the requirements for completing it successfully. (You may want to consider adding signature sign-offs, if it's appropriate to your organizational culture.)
- Keep the plan updated through the initial training delivery. Insert additional detail about the training curriculum or schedule as the information becomes available. Consider it a living document.
- Schedule periodic reviews by the Project Manager and/or plan owner to ensure that everything is going according to schedule, and make adjustments as needed.
Sinikka L. Waugh, PMP, is the founder and head coach of the project management coaching firm Your Clear Next Step, L.L.C. Sinikka is an actively practicing project management consultant, known for consistently helping teams find innovative ways to leverage effective project strategies across multiple disciplines and technologies. With over 10 years in project roles (primarily program manager, project manager, and business analyst) Sinikka has successfully applied project and leadership expertise to improve project performance in a wide variety of industries, including publishing, education, product fulfillment and distribution, insurance, event and travel management, human resources, and financial services. As a coach, SinikkaÕs down-to-earth, Òtry this nowÓ approach blends with her passion for helping others improve. Her energetic and engaging style helps make both the art and science of project management accessible to those she works with.
Sinikka holds a BA from Central College, an MA from the University of Iowa, and is a certified Project Management Professional through the Project Management Institute.
Training Needs Assessment Guidelines
Training projects need the same requirements management, protection from the scope creep, and project definition you devote to your other projects. These guidelines provide a broad overview of the steps in a needs assessment and the reasoning behind doing one, as well as a brief discussion of the different assessment methods you can use to make your next training assignment as effective as possible.
RFP for Training Program Development
Streamline the provider selection process using this template for a Training Program Request for Proposal (RFP). A comprehensive RFP will help you gain clarity and alignment on the real goals of your training program, and will make sifting through offerings and choosing an appropriate vendor easier on your selection committee.
©Copyright 2000-2012 Emprend, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
About us Site Map View current sponsorship opportunities (PDF)
Contact us for more information or e-mail info@projectconnections.com
Terms of Service and Privacy Policy