Skill Gaps, Customer Service and the Impact on Profits

In a recent business & training assessment quarterly poll, a large % of people stated that "ensuring the best customer service talent possible" was keeping them up at night.

A small % increase in customer service performance can boost profits by as much as upwards of 50%. Research has shown that loyal customers lead to greater sales growth.

Read more about some of the best training assessment services, eliminating skill gap practices and make the link between industry leading revenue growth and service...

Assessing Your team's strengths and skill gaps...

If you manage a team, come performance review time each year, you probably ask yourself the following training needs assessment questions,  while laying awake at night:

1. Priorities: What are the "must have" skills in order for my team to impact business results that I am responsible for creating that leadership will stand behind?
2. Difference Makers: What do my top performers do better than my my average performers that should be emulated?
3. Skill Gaps: What are the core strengths and skill gaps of my team?
4. Value: What is the business value associated with closing those gaps?

Once you know the answers through a thorough assessment process, you are ready to design a solution to get the results that you desire.

Search for the Right Training Assessment & Needs Analysis Resource. Right Now.

Introducing a powerful new Search Tool to help you track down the right Training Assessment & Needs Analysis Resource right now. Search this blog and the vast collection of corporate training communities and related best practice blogs with a single click.

Step 1 - Locate the Search Tool to the right of this post

Step 2 - Type your keyword search phrase. eg. Performance Culture

Step 3 - Click Search

Step 4 - Review the results, sorted by:

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See illustration below. Enjoy.

Training Assessment Research Study Results

Over the course of the past 12 months, we conducted an online research study where visitors to our website were anonymously surveyed across an area of topics related driving performance through investments in human capital. In particular, one such survey asked respondents the following question:

What is stopping you from conducting a training assessment & needs analysis as step 1 in your efforts to drive performance through investments in human capital?

From a list of predefined responses, here are the results for your viewing pleasure.

1. It is too expensive--21%
2. It is too difficult--34%
3. We do not need to--9%
4. We do not know how to--35%
5. Other--1%

How would you answer the above question regarding training assessment or training measurement best practices?

Training RAI(TM) - Raising the Bar through Assessments

Below is an abstract of a white paper highlighting the role and impact of a training needs assessment in any effective employee performance development programs, or the risks of bypassing this critical step in the process.

The majority of learning initiatives continue to bypass individual skill assessments prior to designing or delivering new programs. Skipping over this first step of assessing gaps is one of the root causes driving a nearly 90%+ learning program failure rate.
If that sounds surprising, try to remember the last training session that resulted in measurable and sustainable behavior change. Then try to remember a session that quantifiably impacted revenue, costs, or productivity. Does the fact that the great majority of training initiatives fail still seem so far fetched?

When we ask leaders about behavior change and impact related to training, we typically get a long pause and then a pensive and pained look. Then we usually get a long answer that would make many politicians proud for the lack of clarity and specifics.

Unfortunately, the training bar is still too low. Most people continue to consider training “successful” simply when participants get a few “Aha’s” and feel that it was not a waste of time. We can’t think of another business process that gets less scrutiny or has lower expectations than training. The training bar needs to be raised.