The training plan includes all training actions directed at the personnel of a company. At the initiative of the company, it is not mandatory, but it is generally recommended. Indeed, the company has an obligation to vocational training with respect to employees. This training plan facilitates its application by defining current and future training objectives. It should also be discussed twice a year with employee representative bodies.
Training plan or skills development plan? Both terms describe the same thing, with the training plan being renamed Competency Development Plan on January 1, 2019. It therefore includes the skills assessment, mandatory training, validation of acquired experience (VAE), training provided by external service providers and training courses taken internally.
Step 1: A skills development plan that follows business strategy
To be relevant, a training plan must be aligned with the strategy company training. The first step in building a training plan is therefore to gather a certain amount of strategic information. It is a question of knowing the strategic directions of the company in the short, medium and if possible long term, the possible future technical developments in relation to the company's professions, and the company's development strategy, from a commercial and sectoral point of view.
-> What actions should be put in place?
1 - Get closer to marketing and governance in order to collect the necessary strategic information, as well as the priorities of the company that may directly or indirectly affect the professions.
2 - Gather information related to the current training strategy and the actions carried out in order to carry out an assessment and identify areas for improvement.
Step 2: Assess needs throughout the stages of the training plan
There are two ways to assess training needs: knowledge of future business developments and individual interviews. These make it possible to assess training expectations, skills needs and employee engagement. Some training needs can be identified by staff representative bodies. Once the needs are listed, they should be prioritized, from the most priority to the secondary ones.
-> What actions should be put in place?
1 - Identify collective training needs, for example in the context of legally mandatory training or performance improvement objectives for a range of professions.
2 - Identify individual training needs.
Step 3: Make a training plan
It's time to organize all of this information into a training plan document. The company is free to choose the form that its training plan will take. The support should contain information relating to training actions, VAE, skills assessments and a provisional timetable. A training action describes a pedagogical objective, a program, pedagogical and supervisory resources as well as a system for monitoring and evaluating results. The training courses are classified into two sections: training relating to the adaptation to the workplace and those related to the development of skills in preparation for a change in employment.
-> What actions should be put in place?
1 - Design a plan for the implementation of the training strategy, which includes resources and deadlines.
2 - Create a budget for all the actions of the training plan.
Step 4: training plan: how to set it up
The consultation of staff representatives on the training plan is a prerequisite; it takes place twice during two mandatory meetings. One to discuss the documents provided for by the Labor Code, the other to discuss the conditions for implementing the CPF (personal training account). Staff representatives must also be aware of actions and budgets as well as strategic guidelines and are entitled to suggest changes to the training plan. This information must also be available for consultation in the BDES (Economic and Social Database). Finally, the success of the implementation of a training plan is almost mainly based on its adoption by employees. An internal communication strategy around the subject is to be expected.
-> What actions should be put in place?
1 - Consult management and staff representative bodies.
2 - Communicate the training approach and strategy to employees, who are the main stakeholders.
Step 5: Evaluate performance according to the type of training
Any strategic action of the company involves collecting quantitative and qualitative data in order to measure its performance. The training plan is no exception. Each action in the training plan must include performance indicators that make it possible to monitor its success, to measure the return on investment and to put in place possible adjustments.
-> What actions should be put in place?
1 - Ensure permanent control of actions in a logic of adaptation and continuous improvement.
2 - Conduct regular reviews of the impact of the training plan, annual for example, in order to adjust the training plan in the years to come.
