Training Requirements

ISO 9001 Section 6.2.2 Competence, training and awareness identifies five requirements:

1. Determine necessary competence
2. Provide training
3. Evaluate training given for effectiveness
4. Assure that personnel are aware of the relevance of their work
5. Maintain training records

1. Consider creating job descriptions. Job descriptions identify the skill set a qualified employee must possess to perform the functions of the job. Larger companies have them because they are used as a mechanism for determining the value of, and hence the wages paid for each job, but they also identify the training requirements for the employee.


2. With a job description in place, it is easy to do a gap analysis for an employee to determine what additional training he or she should be offered. Some training must be provided to all employees, and some training must be repeated periodically. Safety training is an example of training that in many cases is required to be given periodically. Most employees are not skilled in the requirements of ISO 9001, or quality in general, so some form of general quality training is normally required for all employees.


3. There are many ways to evaluate the effectiveness of training. One way is a periodic performance review. These are usually attached to pay increases, and, done properly; they also identify skills weaknesses that can be corrected by additional training. Perhaps the most effective method of determining training effectiveness is testing.


4. Employees want to do a good job. They know how to perform the tasks of the job and usually do it consistently well. But many manufacturing employees have no idea how what they are making or how the product they are making will be used. Explain to employees how the work they perform affects the quality of the products and services the organization supplies, and what the product does for the customer.
   
   Not explaining how the organization’s products are used can have unintended consequences. The Space Shuttle booster rockets were stored in a dry nitrogen environment prior to use. A component we produced helped circulate nitrogen in the storage container. We all watched the launch of the Challenger. When the Challenger space shuttle exploded on takeoff, the employee who assembled this component started crying because she believed that the product she produced had failed and caused the explosion. Of course this was not the case.


5. Each employee should have a training plan. A training plan outlines the training that a person is required to have. The training plan should be in alignment with the job description, and any other company or regulatory requirements for training. ISO 9001 requires that records of training performed be maintained. Training records can be compared to the required training and used to identify any required training which needs to be performed.

Finally, for those senior managers who believe that training is unnecessary, or a wasteful expense, I offer this question: How many incompetent people do you want working for you?

For more information visit www.rosehillsystems.com.  In the tools section you will find some PowerPoint presentations that can be used as a basis for ISO 9001 training.  Steal shamelessly.