A skills needs analysis can be conducted by an in-house trainer or by a consultant. The process is systematic and based on specific information-gathering techniques. Ultimately, there are several ways to determine which areas require attention. There is, however, no short cut formula to carrying out the process. Each organisation will require a different method of collecting and organising information to assess their needs.

These techniques can contain any of the following:

1. Observation

   By observing an employee’s work you can determine where his/her skills lack and identify where they require training. It is advised that you develop a checklist to remind you what to look out for. Ideally, you should identify the employee’s strengths that can be worked on and their weaknesses that need to be overcome.

2. Interviews

   With interviews you can discuss key areas that you believe to be problematic and gather the opinion of several individuals to determine a trend or widespread perception.

3. Questionnaires

   The most positive aspect of questionnaires is that they allow you to gather information from every person from whom you require feedback in a manner that is not as time consuming as face-to-face interviews. It also allows for flexibility and anonymity – so employees can answer questions openly and honestly in their own time.

4. Job Outlines

   Conduct a job analysis to determine all the functions of a particular role – this will provide a framework to assess the employee against. Once you have a detailed job description you can match up training with the expectations of the position.

5. Performance Review

   Annual performance reviews of an individual should be seen as an opportunity to identify areas for improvement. These reviews provide a time for both the manager and employee to discuss the causes for problems in performance.

6. Company Performance Review

   For certain job functions one can immediately determine areas which require training by looking at the overall performance of a department or the company. A sales team that gets many leads but fails to close as many sales can be an indication of a need for sales training or if the amount of money recovered in debt recovery is substantially less than that owed there may be shortage of experienced debt recovery agents.

7. Industry Trends

   To ensure your company is kept up-to-date on industry developments and the latest training available it is advised that you monitor seminars and workshops being presented in your field. Also make a note of which courses seem to be the most popular amongst your competitors and within your industry so you can determine if you are losing your competitive edge.

   For example, it is no surprise that the most popular course amongst Compuscan Academy’s learners is the All-in-One Credit Course. Regardless of your position – if you are in the credit industry this course is essential. The course itself is a combination of accredited skills programmes and presents employees with the key skills they need to work in the credit environment. Another exceptionally popular course at Compuscan Academy is Credit Control and Collections. This one-day course covers every aspect of efficient loans collection from how to develop a client loan repayment management system to how to respond appropriately to problem loans.

Once you have analysed which skills you need to invest in start looking for a training provider that can customise a course especially suited to target these needs. Compuscan Academy specialises in customised courses and can help you to comprehensively meet all the needs uncovered in your skills assessment.

Please feel free to look at the list of courses Compuscan Academy has on offer on our website www.compuscanacademy.co.za or call us on 021 888 6000 or email info@compuscanacademy.co.za.

This is according to Clayton Samsodien, Managing Director of Genesis Capital Group’s health care subsidiary – Genesis Healthcare Consultants – who says the NHI Green paper made provision for R125 million in 2012, whereas the current budget has only made provision for R121.5 million. “Considering we are only at the beginning of the anticipated 14-year period for implementing NHI, it is extremely concerning that we are already seeing the budget for the project being cut.”

“We hope that the Finance Minister’s speech this week will provide further clarity on the funding of the NHI model and address any concerns about the current shortfall. This is a huge, but welcome, undertaking by the government; however it is crucial that its implementation is not derailed by a lack of appropriate funding right from the start.”

A huge concern is the financial status of certain provisional Governments that have not been paying healthcare suppliers resulting in withdrawal of essential services in some instances. No announcements have been made in respect of the accredited facilities either. The scenario at state facilities is not improving; most recently new borns have died as a result of inefficiencies in the system.

Samsodien says South Africa already spends 8.3% of its GDP on healthcare, which is in line with spending by many other countries in the world, though often with less positive results. “The money appears to be available but how it is spent is crucial in determining whether this initiative will work in the long term. We need to understand whether pouring more money into a system that does not have sufficient resources will yield a meaningful result, or whether in fact we need to invest in correcting the poor management of facilities and eradicating corruption.”

He says South Africa has had some amazing success stories with regards to its healthcare including all public health facilities now offering services to pregnant women, including HIV testing. “A landmark achievement for our country is the 50% reduction in the transmission of HIV from mothers to children between 2008 and 2010.”

Samsodien notes that a further concern is that while the deadline for public submissions was extended to 31 December 2011, the proposed pilot implementation date earmarked for April 2012 was not extended by the same period. “This is extremely concerning as government still has to respond to a plethora of submissions by public and other role players. In order for NHI to be truly successful, we need to have a buy-in from all stakeholders, particularly the private healthcare industry. If the implementation of NHI is rushed through without taking all concerns into consideration we risk the project being doomed before it has started.”

“Talk of raising VAT in order to help fund NHI has been met with some fierce resistance; however, increasing taxes by reducing rebates or increasing tax rates may simply be unsustainable due to the country’s small tax base. Despite these concerns, however, Government intends to raise the tax base by 3% of GDP to pay for NHI.

“With almost two months to go until NHI is implemented, government is unnervingly silent and appears fixed on ploughing ahead with its implementation without consideration to sound arguments from public and industry experts,” concludes Samsodien.

The benefits of implementing a customised training programme rather than a generic course are vast and as such it is often a more desired option for the following reasons:

• Improved Skills Levels: At the start of the process a training needs assessment is conducted. The training is then built to address the specific requirements detected. The content and exercises bridge the gap from the current state to the desired state where key learning outcomes can be measured. The attendees will then be able to transfer what they have learned directly to the workplace resulting in improved productivity and performance.

• Practical Application: Training is only truly effective when a learner can identify with what they are being taught and apply it back to their own situation or workplace. In a customised training programme case studies, scenarios, examples and exercises are pertinent and applicable to the learners’ actual work environment which helps them to clearly understand how the theory can be practically applied.

• Flexibility and Convenience: Customised training programmes are extremely flexible and their components are determined solely by what you as the client need and expect from it. Time, subject matter, audience, location and duration can all be tailored to best meet the needs of the group for which the training is being conducted.

• Operational Solutions: Often customised training is the perfect medium to look for solutions to problems the company is facing. Practical tools, methodologies and applications that arise from the training can be taken back to the workplace to be incorporated into policies and procedures or used to train new staff members. An added benefit of customised training is that the material is the intellectual property of the client, not the training facility.

• Better Return on Investment: Although there are costs involved with the original creation of the customised course these are outweighed by the cost of having your staff attend an all-day course where only a few hours were relevant to them.

• Strengthened Teams: A sense of teamwork is encouraged through group brainstorming exercises. As the content is customised to the company’s specific needs the team is strengthened through their combined effort to find solutions to problems the company is facing.

• Greater Sense of Achievement: Staff will feel motivated and accomplished on completion of the course as they will see the value that the course has offered them. If, however, they attend a course which is not applicable to their role or which they feel cannot be practically applied – they may feel dejected by the time they have wasted.

At Compuscan Academy we understand the value and benefits of customised training and undertake each project with determination and commitment. Despite the fact that our specialities lie within the credit and micro-lending arena – we can assist in developing a course on almost any subject by employing the services of a subject matter expert.

Recently Compuscan Academy was contracted by several important players in the industry to customise training programmes for their staff.

The customisation process is easy and hassle free. Firstly you will meet with a course developer to determine your specific needs. We design and develop training solutions in line with your business’ requirements and spend time in your organisation to ensure that we understand your workplace environment, terminology and training philosophy.

Once an analysis of your needs has been conducted you will be presented with a proposal that includes specifics about program delivery, dates and times of training, detailed training outline, cost and contact information. If you have any changes or concerns regarding the proposal – these can be amended until you are satisfied with the final draft. Nothing is set in stone and we will do our utmost to cater to all of your requirements.

For more information on our customised training programmes please feel free to contact Compuscan Academy on 021 888 6000 or email   info@compuscanacademy.co.za. You can also visit our website www.compuscanacademy.co.za to learn more about our products and services.

Applicant X works for a small company whose name you have never heard of, they rent the building they operate from, they do not own property, the owners both have a poor credit score, each has a judgement against their name and the company’s payment history and Business Credit Score reflects that they are high risk. The company’s auditors recently made headlines for fraud.

Applicant Y also works for a small company, but the company owns three properties, have reasonable bonds on each and have never missed a payment. Several of the directors of Applicant Y’s company also sit on the board of other influential businesses, none have judgements against them and all have excellent credit scores. The company’s auditors are one of the big four.

If you were granting each of the above applicants a substantial loan and their ability to meet the repayments rested solely on them receiving a regular and stable income – which would you grant credit to?

Being privy to the financial position of a company, the creditworthiness of its directors and the connections it has to other businesses could greatly influence your decision. Likewise, when granting credit to a business – the above information could prove vital in your decision as to whether or not they are in stable position to meet the repayments.

But the information above’s uses far exceed these. For example you recently closed a deal with a business you have long had your eye on. You now also discover that a director of this company sits on the board of another company who you believe to be one of your most promising potential customers. This fact alone could prove highly useful when trying to open avenues of communication with the potential client.

When considering a supplier for a long-term deal – would the company’s financial position and that of its owners influence your decision on who to choose? If the owner had judgements or administration orders against their name or did not have any assets or financial security – would you risk placing a substantial order with them?

Ultimately, insightful business data can revolutionise the way in which you target potential customers and make decisions. It can protect you from loss and ensure that you are selling, purchasing, partnering and marketing to and from the correct individuals and businesses.

Bizinform, a joint venture between Compuscan and Lightstone is a business knowledge solutions provider which can provide you with the above business data and help you turn business information into insight that will drive your decisions and give you a competitive edge.

To find out more about Bizinform’s data offerings and how they can benefit your company contact Bizinform on 0860 555 457 or email   info@bizinform.co.za. You can also visit the website www.bizinform.co.za