#Training new talent at Hansson
The company Hansson runs a nursing home in Täby near Stockholm, Sweden. The home was set up about 20 years ago as a form of sheltered accommodation and community living for the elderly, but about ten years ago it changed focus to meet the requirements of an aging population and now specialises in nursing care, including a specialist dementia unit. It employs approx. 100 nursing, care, domestic and admin staff, with a manager responsible for each team.
When it was first set up the Hansson home had a very good reputation and was considered to be the no. 1 residence for older people in the area. However, its ratings have slipped in the past few years, and internal investigations have linked this to high staff turnover. A few long-standing team members have retired, and nearly one-third of new staff leave within 12 months. Exit interviews show that they feel overwhelmed by the increasingly complex demands of the work, e.g. record-keeping, risk management, health and safety, and think the on-the-job training they receive is inadequate and, in some areas, may not even meet legal requirements.
You are the assistant manager at the home, with special responsibility for recruitment and training. Senior management have asked you to write a report proposing how the current on-the-job training could best be improved.
**What would you recommend?**
[[Change of approach:]] Overhaul the current on-the-job peer training approach
[[Team managers:]] Move responsibility for training to the team managers
[[Professional:]] Hire a professional trainer
[[College:]] Arrange for new hires to attend relevant courses at a local college
#Overhaul the current on-the-job peer training approach
**Pros**
* This is the least costly option as the basic current training system would be unchanged.
* The long-standing team members have an excellent understanding of what their jobs involve.
* The existing staff are already used to this approach, and some of them really enjoy training new staff.
* Research has consistently shown that adults tend to learn best by doing.
**Cons**
* Long-standing team members will need time to revise the training they give, making their own workloads worse.
* In some cases they may not accept that this is necessary.
* It may not be possible to achieve as much change as you would like if existing staff do not accept that change is necessary and carry on doing things the way they always have: bad habits will be propagated.
* A good team member does not necessarily make a good trainer.
#Move responsibility for training to the team managers
**Pros**
* This is a relatively low-cost option as no external trainers are involved.
* The team managers have a good understanding of the legal requirements as well as what the work involves. Therefore managerial involvement will probably make it easier to address the areas of concern highlighted by the exit interviews.
**Cons**
* The team managers are already under a lot of pressure.
* The managers may not always be available to train new hires when required because of annual leave, illness, etc.
* There is a risk of divergence between what the managers say and what existing staff do.
* Putting the managers in charge of training could be resented by the existing staff.
#Hire a professional trainer
**Pros**
* A professional trainer is likely to offer a higher standard of training.
* An outside perspective may be the best way of generating new ideas and achieving the fresh approach needed to improve training.
* The training can be tailor-made to address the home’s needs.
* Training is not one of the Hansson company’s core skills, so it will be relatively easy to outsource.
**Cons**
* This is an expensive option, with the initial cost of developing the training modules required and the ongoing cost of running the training for new hires.
* It may not be easy to find a professional trainer with relevant knowledge and expertise.
* There may be difficulties scheduling the training every time a new employee starts because the trainer is likely to have other commitments. Perhaps this could be overcome by starting new hires at regular intervals, e.g. once every three months?
* Outsourcing to a professional trainer could be resented by the existing staff and managers alike.
#Arrange for new hires to attend relevant courses at a local college
**Pros**
* This will be less expensive than hiring a professional trainer.
* The training is guaranteed to meet legal requirements.
* It ensures that new hires will have the time and space to absorb the subject matter.
* Existing staff could be given the same opportunity.
**Cons**
* Depending on the structure of the course, new hires might require longer to become fully functioning team members.
* New hires (and even existing staff) may have difficulty transferring the theory they learn at college into the context of their job.