How do you ensure that your employee training sessions are effective?

"Before a course is even developed, I always set training objectives with the manager in charge and the instructional designer. First, we must ensure that all our objectives are tied to operational goals. For example, if the overall goal of the business is to increase net sales, then we must understand the current sales performance and the target metrics associated with it. From there, we will be able to build a program that directly addresses the skills and knowledge to improve sales performance. The second factor that we need to incorporate into the course is evaluation. The skills and knowledge we address must all be quantifiable and measurable to evaluate learning realistically and pragmatically. After the training, we measure the same sales performance metrics for improvement. The last element would be feedback surveys. It's one of the best ways to ensure that the course is relevant for the learners, the training method works, the training environment is conducive, and the facilitator is effective."