Services provided - Bryan Hopkins

This page describes the learning and development services that I provide. These include:

For more information about any of these services,
please contact me.

Training needs analyses

If you have some performance concerns within a team, department or operation, a good training needs analysis can identify what the causes are and how these may be resolved, through identifying formal training programmes, suggesting ways of strengthening informal learning networks or through proposing organisational changes.

Training is not necessarily the only solution, and may not even be an appropriate solution. My systems-based approach to analysis helps to identify systemic factors affecting performance so that you will have a clear idea about a range of solutions which you can implement.

Evaluating training

For a variety of reasons, most training programmes are not evaluated effectively to see what impact they have on performance or for the organisation's effectiveness.

One key reason is the limitation of many existing approaches to training evaluation, but I use a systems thinking based approach, drawing on theory-based methodologies,which explores the many, often interlinked, factors which can influence the effectiveness of training programmes. This means that your evaluation report will assess the effectiveness of training at various levels (such as learning, changes in behaviour and organisational effectiveness) and will identify factors which are both promoting and hindering learning.

Training design, development and delivery

Whatever the scope of a blended training solution is, I can develop a design specification which will include learning objectives and delivery media which ensures that the final programme both enables and assesses learning and helps people to transfer this learning to the workplace.

This includes both face-to-face learning and the various possibilities technology-enabled learning, such as e-learning courses, webinars and ongoing support for such things as on-line forums, communities of practice and so on.

My philosophy about training design is to always promote the application of knowledge to performance, and to make sure that training activities promote the trinity of improved knowledge, strengthened skills and positive attitude changes.

Training the trainer

The breadth of my experience in the education and training worlds means that I am well qualified to deliver training in a wide range of training skills. These include:

Carrying out training needs analyses
Designing training programmes for many different delivery modalities, including workshops, distance learning and technology-enabled courses
Evaluating training programmes

I do not offer an 'off-the-shelf' package, but will develop a customised solution to fit your particular needs, whether it is for occasional days consultancy or a multiple-day workshop with a group of trainers.