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Linking your workplace education program (WEP) to your other corporate training and performance appraisal processes are two important strategies for getting excellent results from your investment in basic skills development. 

Link to Training
When planning to develop a WEP, you should consider linking it to your other corporate training initiatives, including job-specific and technical training.  This will help ensure that your employees have the basic skills they need to get the most from your more advanced training.

Link to Performance Appraisal
By linking your WEP to your performance appraisal processes you give your employees a real incentive to take part in basic skills training and a stimulus to do as well as possible.  

Linking WEP training with performance appraisal also makes sense because it helps you connect your training investment to employee performance on the job - the ultimate reason why you invest in basic skills programs in the first place.

In addition, it signals to your employees that you are genuinely interested in their career development which tends to motivate them to perform better, to improve their skills and heightens their loyalty and sense of accomplishment.

Jobs for the Future strengthens the transitions and linkages between work and learning. Its workforce development system includes post-secondary vocational education, adult basic education, short-term job training programs, and on-the-job training.
     URL: http://www.jff.org/

This article on how Chief Learning Officers shows how CLOs are delivering--greater retention, more career guidance, and training that is more closely coordinated with business needs.
     URL:
http://www.workforce.com/section/11/feature/23/35/98/index.html

This report helps instructors to support adult learners through performance-based assessment. The key characteristics of this type of assessment, which gives a comprehensive, valid picture of student / worker achievement, are discussed.
    URL: http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/collections/eff/ananda_eff.pdf

Using an HR Audit, such as this one used by the Commonwealth of Virginia, allows organizations to examine their recruiting, training, benefits, and labor relations policies.
     URL:
http://www.workforce.com/section/09/article/23/39/64.html#Explanation%20of%20Department%20Organization%20Questionnaire

This article discusses how to set up a training function inside a small company that has never had one before. Included are steps to establish a network; align it with the business strategy; create early wins; invest in it; and assess the impact.
     URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/article/23/37/96.php

Deciding how much to allocate per person for training is a difficult but important issue. This article suggests that a good approach is to assess areas where changing performance will yield the most value and then implement strategies to achieve that goal.
     URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/article/23/22/44.php

HR can create skills and competency management systems, and can also encourage employees to use them. Educate employees about the benefits of improved skills to show their importance for self-appraisal, career development, and other processes. 
    
URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/feature/22/29/92/223613.php

Workplace literacy is an individual’s ability to read, write and speak in English, and to compute and solve problems at the necessary levels. According to the National Workforce Assistance Collaborative, the most effective workplace literacy programs share many common traits.
    
URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/feature/22/17/40/224259.php

The bottom line on training budgets is to ensure you're funding the right efforts to keep your company competitive and get it to its future goals. A business-strategy approach also helps safeguard your training budget from being cut.
     URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/feature/22/17/10/223644.php

This article shares guidelines for using employee education and training as a means to business results. Start by letting the business strategy, culture and outcomes determine learning needs, and then create learning opportunities that make sense for employees.
    
URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/feature/22/23/06/223892.php

As an employer, you can create your own in-house certificate program by partnering with an educational institution. It offers a flexible but results-oriented system for directing employees toward the long-term growth and development  needed for a dynamic workplace.
    
URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/feature/22/16/52/index.php

Coaching an executive requires an understanding of the executive work world, psyche and leaders' language. Effective executive coaches recognize these seven coaching issues and use them to design and implement appropriate strategies. 
    
URL: http://www.workforce.com/archive/feature/23/57/45/index.php

Profiting from Literacy: Creating a Sustainable Workplace
Literacy Program 
is a recent report that provides information and advice for action to employers working to create, improve and evaluate successful workplace literacy programs.
      
Profiting from Literacy (free download)

Incentives to train: Ensuring employer engagement is a UK research report (40 pages) looks at findings from interviews and a roundtable discussion. Participants evaluated existing provision to incentivise training for employers, identifying the major areas of concern and proposing recommendations for change.
    URL: http://www.nationalskillsforum.org.uk/Incentives_to%20Train%20(2).pdf

Working Mathematics for the 21st Century is a UK report that examines the changing mathematical demands of the workplace, employee skill levels, employer views and the costs and benefits to employers and individuals relating to maths teaching and learning.
     URL: http://www.nrdc.org.uk/publications_details.asp?ID=119

For problems or questions regarding this web site contact campbell@conferenceboard.ca.
Last updated: April 25, 2008.