Kirkpatrick's Four Level Evaluation of Training - A Simple Guide

Copyright (c) 2010 The College Of Public Speaking

What do we have to do to convince our boss that further training will be a real enhancement to the business?

For those of us who have been in training for a long time, there is a simple formula which when delivered to the boss, makes it difficult for him or her to resist.

It's called Kirkpatrick's evaluation model for training. Donald L Kirkpatrick was a professor at University Of Wisconsin when he published his series of articles in the Journal of American Society of Training Directors in 1959. A training phenomena was born.

There are four levels to Kirkpatrick's model and they are:

Level 1: the reaction of student - how they enjoyed the training experience and felt about it afterwards.

Level 2: learning - the resulting increase in knowledge or capability.

Level 3: behaviour - extent of behaviour and capability improvement and implementation/application.

Level 4: results - the effects on the business or environment resulting from the trainee's performance.

All these measures are recommended for full and meaningful evaluation of learning in organizations, although their application broadly increases in complexity, and usually cost, through the levels from level 1-4.

Think back to your last course? Examine Kirkpatrick's four levels and then look for evidence which is demonstrable to your boss, this evidence must persuade him that more spending on your training will have proven benefits.

Your manager needs to know that your recent training courses have had an impact on you as an individual, as well as demonstrating a significant return on investment to the department. So, we need to persuade him that you're an exceptional learner.

Remind him of how the last course went: 'It was a brilliant course; the trainer was fantastic, the facilities first class and all of the support staff were really switched on. It was a great experience.

Now move on to level 2: I learnt how to do spreadsheets, calculations, and functions and I became so much more productive as a team member. I have now put myself forward for more advanced work.

It's going well - now move on to level 3: My previous training has really made a difference to the team. I'm so much more productive, I'm now helping some of the more junior guys when they're stuck. When I wake up in the morning, I jump out of bed because I'm so excited about the work and the professional progress that I'm making.

And now level 4 - what are the distinguishing results of the training? Well at my last appraisal I was told that my productivity has risen by 30% and my error rate has significantly been reduced. I am currently utilising my professional skills in helping less experienced colleagues and I intend to run a voluntary training session in the coming months.

If you can convince the boss that every penny spent on your training development will return a significant return on investment, you are much closer to the signature than you think.

About The Author The College of Public Speaking offers a BTEC level 4 accredited by Edexcel. This unique course is an inexpensive opportunity for indiviuals to get their foot on the training ladder. Workshops are run regularly in London and the South-East and welcome enquiries from around the country and abroad. For more details, please follow the following link: Training Qualification Train the Trainer