50 post-training survey questions you should ask
Your team has just finished their assigned training. You see a completion rate of 100%. And you see they all passed their quizzes and assessments with flying colors.
That’s all good. But is it sufficient?
Metrics such as completion and pass rates are good indicators of the effectiveness of a training. However, relying solely on these quantitative metrics doesn’t give you a well-rounded view of training outcomes.
A lot of work is put into creating, managing and delivering training to learners with the aim to equip them with the skills and knowledge they need to be successful. Part of the process is being able to evaluate the effectiveness of training programs and that can only be achieved when you consider quantitative as well as qualitative metrics.
But to see all the rewards, you first need to know if it actually works, and if not, you’ll need to know what to optimize. Otherwise, you might waste time, money, and effort.
Post-training survey questions are a great way to prove the effectiveness of a training program. The right post-training survey questions can tell what is working and how your employees are moving toward the learning goals set for them. They can also show you areas in which you can improve your course content, delivery, and overall training experience.
Training survey questions are a tool for collecting specific learner feedback for a training program they’ve participated in. It’s a systematic approach to review the quality, relevance, and impact of the training on participants.
There are two key reasons for using training survey questions:
Now you might be wondering… How long should the survey be?
Of course, that depends on how in-depth the training is. For shorter trainings, a quick pulse check would be more acceptable than a lengthy survey. While for longer, ongoing training programs, you may need to be a bit more thorough with your survey.
And in terms of timing, post-training surveys are best conducted as close to the completion date as possible. That way, the training experience is still fresh in learners’ minds, and can therefore provide more accurate information.
These 50 post-training survey questions will give you valuable data points and relevant insights to take your current training program from good to great.
You can also download your very own template here and adjust it to your own needs.
How confident are you in applying the skills/knowledge acquired in this training?
What specific tasks or scenarios from your job do you predict using your new skills?
Which parts of the training do you feel will be helpful to enhance your job performance the most?
What are the barriers or difficulties that you foresee in implementing training concepts?
How will you ensure the implementation of the skills you gained is maintained and, over time, further inculcated?
What additional resources, tools, or support would help you better apply what was taught?
Can you give an example of how you have already used something from the training in your work?
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There are two main types of post-training survey questions: objective and subjective. Objective questions aim to gather factual, quantifiable data, while subjective questions focus on the trainees’ opinions, attitudes, and perceptions.
Objective questions are typically close-ended, with predetermined answer choices. These questions are ideal for gathering measurable data, such as:
Examples of objective questions:
On the other hand, subjective questions let learners share their thoughts and experiences freely. These questions yield powerful qualitative insights, such as:
Examples of subjective questions:
As you create a survey to gather feedback after training, you have multiple options for how participants can respond, each with its own unique insights.
Some of the most popular formats are:
These simple scales ask respondents to rate something on a numerical scale, typically from 1-5 or 1-10. They are simple and easy for respondents to use, plus they yield quantitative data that are easy to analyze and compare.
Example: On a scale of 1-5, how would you rate the instructor’s knowledge of the subject matter?
Rating scales work well for gauging overall satisfaction, quality, the relevance of the content, and the usefulness of the materials.
Similar to numerical rating scales, Likert scales measure attitudes and opinions with a greater degree of nuance. A common format is: Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Neutral, Agree, Strongly Agree.
For instance, “The training content was relevant to my job duties” followed by the Likert scale options.
Likert scales show how people feel about things like objectives, instruction pace, and practice exercises.
Open-ended questions gather rich data but can be harder to analyze at scale. They work well for gaining deeper insights, suggestions for improvement, and specific examples or anecdotes related to the training experience.
Example: What did you like most about the training?
While open text boxes can be more challenging to analyze at scale, they offer rich feedback that can inform meaningful improvements.
Multiple-choice questions come with pre-defined answer options, making them quick for respondents to answer and easy to analyze. These questions are ideal for gathering feedback on specific aspects of the training where there are clear, distinct choices.
Example: Which training delivery method did you prefer?
A. Instructor-led
B. Online self-paced
C. Blended
Multiple-choice questions can also be used to gather demographic information or to identify areas for further exploration.
Like multiple-choice but more compact, dropdowns work well when there are many possible answers. They keep surveys concise and help to gather quantitative data.
For example, “Which department are you in?” with a dropdown of all company departments.
Dropdown menus can be particularly helpful when surveying a diverse audience with varying needs and interests.
You can gain a number of benefits from conducting employee post-training surveys.
Post-training survey questions can help assess the efficacy of employee training and development programs. It may help you determine if the content was relevant, engaging, and thorough enough to achieve the designed learning objectives.
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If you gather feedback and analyze it, then you will probably have everything to build a stronger training program.
Using feedback from the training survey questions, you can develop highly customized and relevant training sessions that directly address the needs and knowledge gaps of the workforce.
Post-training survey responses can shed light on employees’ preferences regarding various training methods and tools. Some people do better in workshops that involve hands-on activities, while others prefer learning online at their own pace. Employers can use different training methods that work well with different learning styles to boost engagement and knowledge retention.
You can relate the feedback to current or new performance metrics. You could tie it to better job performance, more efficiency, happier customers, and financial growth.
Post-training survey questions help employees feel more engaged.
Asking for learners’ feedback makes them feel valued and respected. This increases their commitment to their jobs and the company.
Survey responses can also show you how to make training more engaging. For example, employees might say the delivery is terrible or give negative feedback about the instructor or course design. Correcting these issues in your training program should help your employees engage better with the content.
Achieving high response rates for post-training survey questions is how you gather rich data to act upon later, but it’s not always straightforward. Sometimes employees might get caught up in work, or personal things, or they might not understand the importance of answering these surveys.
Nevertheless, you can use these six tips to increase employee survey response rates:
Employee surveys should be part of regular communication. Beyond post-training surveys, you can collect employee feedback about almost any business-related topic you need input about.
Of course, the tools of the trade make this whole process much easier. Modern employee training software helps simplify how employers conduct employee surveys and collect feedback.
Collecting responses on post-training survey questions for employees is just the start—the real value comes from analyzing and using the feedback.
Based on what you find, you may need to update training content, change delivery methods, add more resources, or offer refresher sessions.
It is a good idea to share the survey results and changes made with your team members or stakeholders—this way, everyone is on the same page about better future training sessions.
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Originally published on: 28 Jan 2019 | Tags: eLearning Design
Marialena hates talking about herself in the third person. She loves to inspire people with authenticity. And she prioritizes that in all her content—without the need for smoke and mirrors.
