Business Edge™ Cycle & Tools

The Business Edge™ way

The five steps involved in providing Business Edge™ training to SMEs:

1. Setting performance objectives and collecting base-line data
   This is the foundation necessary for measuring impact and deciding on the course’s format. The client and the training firms also agree on a reporting format, schedule and persons responsible for reporting. Common business objectives include increasing market share, sales growth, increasing profits by managing costs and raising employees’ productivity, raising capital, increasing customer loyalty, and improving quality. The objectives must be SMART: specific, measurable, realistic and time-bound.

2. Training Needs Assessment (TNA)
   Key stakeholders are interviewed to clarify the clients’ needs and to validate the objectives set in step 1. In addition, the TNA results help refine the scope of work and the budget. Training firms have access to TNA tools for both basic and in-depth assessment of clients.

3. Customizing Business Edge™ topics
   The training firms adapt the selected courses in line with the TNA results. They may also incorporate technical content subjects, provided these do not exceed 30 percent of course time.

4. Delivering training and coaching
   Training is delivered through customized workshops that provide solutions for business owners or managers wanting to achieve specific business targets within a set period. The workshops are run from one to several days over a period of several months, up to a year, covering one or many courses. These workshops also provide excellent networking possibilities. Classes are kept small (a maximum of 25 students) to help facilitate interaction among participants. At the end of the course, participants are issued attendance certificates. These records can also be shared with the clients as evidence of training.
   1. Post-training coaching & mentorship
      Business Edge™ training firms may also provide on-the-job coaching to implement the action plans developed during the course work.

5. Training impact assessment
   The Business Edge™ impact assessment follows the Kirkpatrick Model, a common way to measure the effectiveness of training programs worldwide. The basic structure of Kirkpatrick’s four-level model is shown below:

Level 1: Reaction	Were learners happy with the learning experience?
Level 2: Learning	Did they learn what they were supposed to learn?
Level 3: Behaviour	Did they apply the learning once back on the job?
Level 4: Impact	Did business performance improve as a result?

The results at each stage are compared with the targets set in stage one. If the results are not meeting the objectives, then the client and/or trainer will alter the training program.