Burger King Training Plan

Introduction 

Part 1 and Part 2 of the Burger King Needs Assessment introduced the organization and the problem of high employee turnover at BK that has adverse effects on productivity and profitability. Section 4 of Part 1 is a questionnaire that provides insight to the training needs of BK employees. Part 2 builds on the outcome of the survey to identify the goals, objectives, and strategies of the training as well as the results of the training. The ultimate aim of the training is to fill the knowledge gaps among employees and managers and address issues affecting performance and employee retention. Part 3 is the actual training plan based on the ADDIE model. The first part of the training plan is the analysis section which summarizes the TNA while the second part is the training plan design detailing the length, budget, and strategies for training. The training plan also explores the development, implementation and evaluation stages of training. An effective training plan with all the steps has a higher chance of success and helping BK fill the gaps in performance. 

1. ANALYSIS 

Part 1 of the TNA introduced Burger King as the organization faces many issues. BK is facing intense competition in the fast food industry from players such as KFC, McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut among many others. BK cannot effectively compete when facing a myriad of internal problems affecting productivity, mainly high employee turnover. 

The training will targets employees who interact with customers as well as kitchen staff within a BK outlet. They include servers, cooks, dishwashers and the manager. The training aims to improve the team dynamics and productivity while reducing employee turnover. Human resource researchers argue that training reduces turnover because the employer is meeting the needs or at least some demands of the employees. Effective training plans inspire confidence, encourage skill development, and re-affirm employee’s decision to be a part of the occasion (Ford, 2014). Training also helps employees learn about their career paths and career progression within the organization such that will take time to nurture their careers. Ford (2014) advises on the need to train from the top-down; training is not just for the front-line employees. The manager and kitchen staff need training too because they are affected by the issues affecting the front-line employees. 

Part 2 of the TNA discussed the organizational and training goals and objectives. BK cannot invest in training unless it helps the organization increase productivity and profitability. BK’s goal is to serve customers with the best meals and training should help BK achieve its goal. When BK customers enjoy their meals, they are more likely to buy more from BK, and this will help the organization achieve sales and expansion targets. 

Another organizational goal for training is to reduce employee turnover. Employee turnover at BK is one of the issues that affect productivity (Long & Perumal, 2014). Employees have cited many reasons for high turnover, and inadequate training is one of the reasons. The organization will use the training to address some of the pressing issues affecting employees with the aim of reducing turnover. 

The last organizational goal of the training is to improve customer service. With the increasing competition in the fast food industry, BK cannot afford to have its employees lacking the necessary customer relations skills. The training will equip employees with skills on how to interact with customers, how to act when under immense pressure and how to work together as a team. Notably, employees have their own goals and objectives for the training. Employees want to fill the knowledge gaps to help the conduct their day-to-day operations with ease. Employees also view training as part of career development, and they will use the knowledge and skills from the training to advance their careers within the organization. 

Training and development is the process of imparting knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs). Training is different from education because it focuses on the practical aspects of the job while education focuses on the theoretical aspects. Some of the KSAs for fast-food employees include preparing and cooking food, taking orders, meeting and greeting customers, operating a cash registry among others depending on the position within the organization. An important skill is customer service. Employees interact with many customers throughout the day, and they have to be friendly, polite and respectful in all their interactions. Employees have to learn to keep their cool even when the customers are not friendly. 

2. DESIGN 

The training process begins with the training needs assessment meant to identify the issues that will be addressed in the training program. The training program is based on the ADDIE (analyze, design, develop, implement, and evaluate) model. The model has five comprehensive steps making it a robust approach to meeting the organization’s training needs (Molenda, 2015). The analysis section started with a purpose as well as the goals of the training program. The core purpose is to reduce employee retention and to help the organization and employees achieve their goals and objectives. The design phase of ADDIE is about applying vision and creativity to identify essential factors such as budget, length of training, and methods of delivery. The design phase also involves the creation of learning objectives for the learners. It is essential to come up with specific and measurable goals because they affect the following stages of the training program. BK is hoping that after the training, there will be reduced cases of customer complaints. Another objective is that after training there will be a 5% increase in sales. Lastly, the last objective is that the training will reduce employee turnover by 50% and increase employee satisfaction. 

After determining the objectives, the next step involves addressing critical issues of who are the trainees, who are the trainers, methods, and techniques of training, level of training, learning principles and location of the training (Tracy et al., 2015). The training program will target employees from different BK outlets in one city. There are 13 BK outlets each with an average of seven employees, including the manager, two kitchen staff and three servers. The training program will be conducted in a BK approved Training Restaurants. The training restaurants are often used to conduct franchisor training and other forms of training. The training centers have the necessary tools for training, mainly the conference center with a business center. The trainers are immediate supervisors and managers, specialists from corporate, outside consultants. Employees will also be a part of trainers, particularly employees with experience and a good track record. 

The training program will attempt to incorporate everything into the training including employee manual, job description, employee knowledge, and the central issue of employee turnover. The training program will start with job descriptions to verify if employees are aware of all their roles and how to implement them (Tracey et al., 2015). The training will take six days, and it will take place between 4.00- 7:00 pm because the branches will still be operational during the day. The last training day, which will be on a Saturday will last the whole day rather than just three hours. Each training day will have two lessons addressing different employee issues. The last sessions will be open forum sessions where employees can contribute as the managers/ organization are interested in understanding employee issues from employees themselves. The trainers will use different methods including technology-based learning, coaching/ mentoring, lectures, group discussion, practical, and case studies depending on the subject of training. Trainers have to use different methods to avoid boring the learners and to keep them engaged in the training program. 

A budget for the Training Program 

The proposed budget for the training program should cover the cost of all the activities including transportation, stationery, refreshments, printing, and specialists fees. The industry consultants will be training employees for three days, but during the other days an HR official from BK will act as the training facilitator and work with supervisors and managers to train employees. On the last day of training, employers and trainers will engage in team building exercises and other forms of outdoor training. On the last day, each participant will be given a training allowance to show that the company appreciates their efforts. The trainers, including the supervisors and managers from BK have to be compensated. There are no living expenses, but the participants have to be transported to their homes at the end of each training day. Hanaysha (2016) adds that the cost of support, including clerical staff and indirect cost in form of lost productivity should be considered. BK provides the conference with equipment including tables, chairs, computers, projectors and printers which are often used for franchisor training. Below is a summary of the budget for the training: 

Item	Cost $	Number of days	Total Cost
PERSONNEL  Training allowance  Consultant’s fees	$10000  $300	-  3	10000  900
NON-PERSONNEL  Transport	$300	6	1800
Stationary	$200		200
Refreshment	$200	6	1200
Meals for the last day	$1000		1000
Printing	$100	6	600
Miscellaneous	$500		500
PREPARATION AND EVALUATION
NTA questionnaires	$100		100
Post-training Evaluation	$200		200
Total			$16, 500

3.DEVELOPMENT 

The development phase of training is a crucial pre-execution stage of the training program. The development stage is about proper planning involving identification of issues/ objectives, grouping, and sequencing of the learning objects. A learning object is the tool or resources aligned to every learning objectives, and they include workbooks, audios, group exercises, videos, PowerPoint, activities among others. Learning objects are reusable including PowerPoint presentation, videos, group exercises, and notes. For examples, trainers will often go through the notes/ presentation of other trainers when creating their lessons. 

The goal of the development phase is to create and finalize on the content and strategies for the training program. According to Tracey et al. (2015), the result of the development phase is a summary of every aspect of training that will be used by BK trainers including content, aids, handouts, images, presentation, and graphs among others. The development phase starts with the reflection of the training need/s and design established in the previous stages. The core purpose of the training is to address the issue of high cases of employee turnover at BK, but the TNA identified many other problems related to the core issue and performance that will also be included in the training. Aforementioned, the training program will use the strategies of technology-based learning, mentoring, lectures, group discussions, cross-training and case studies. 

At the development phase, each facilitator/ trainer prepares material based on the topic, objectives, and the goals of learning for that particular topic. For example, the introductory lesson could be about job descriptions for each position at BK. The trainer will be a manager at one of the BK location with experience and a track record of success. The trainer can combine use videos, PowerPoint presentation, and demonstration to train the participants on their roles and responsibilities within BK. Since the training will be conducted at a Burger King Training Center, trainers will have access to the necessary tools for demonstrations on how to use equipment, making customer orders, working the tables among other roles. The trainer in charge of the introductory section has to be well prepared as he/she will play a crucial role in setting the tone for the entire training program. 

In the development phase, trainers go through the different strategies of training to identify their advantages and disadvantages and how to utilize them to achieve the training lessons. Technology-based learning is the modern approaches to training, but they are not applicable to all sessions, particularly the practical work and group exercises. In some cases, trainers will use lectures to teach participants about important issues such as career development opportunities with BK and the entire fast-food industry. Lectures represent traditional approaches to training, and it is becoming one of the least popular training approaches among participants. Trainers planning to use lectures should supplement them with videos, PowerPoint presentations, and discussions to avoid engaging in one-way conversations. 

There are different topics to be covered including job description, job rotation/ cross-training, safety and health standards, customer relation skills, employee motivation, employee benefits, company culture, working conditions, employee turnover, performance among other issues identified in the TNA. The planners also have to prioritize the training program based on the criticality of the problems. Some issues should be given more attention than others. The subject of employee turnover will be prioritized because it is the core issue affecting BK. Each trainer will be in charge of at least two topics depending on the specialty and skills of the trainer. The TNA identified many problems that should be addressed during the training and trainers should be keen to identify new issues that will come up during the training (Bercu, 2017). Trainers should also be careful not to rely on one approach as each approach has its advantages and disadvantages. For example, videos and virtual training methods are easy to use, but they do not engage the participants. 

An important issue to consider during the development phase is the level of learning. Training is used to impart knowledge and skills to the participants; however, trainers should be careful to pass the right knowledge to employees. As described in Part 1, BK employees have a low level of education and skills, and trainers have to consider this when training them. The job description for fast-food workers is quite simple, and skilled workers can master them quickly, but given the level of skills for BK employees, the trainers have to take time to educate them on their responsibilities. Trainers will also equip employees with additional skills, but they should be careful to avoid overwhelming employees. 

The development phase ends with the creation of a structure that is aligned with the training approaches and learning objects that will be used for the session. This is an essential part of the planning phase as it enables the trainers, facilitators, participants and the organization to have a visual plan of the training and the resources that will be needed for each day (Bercu, 2017). For example, if the first session involves the use of videos and PowerPoint presentation, the planners will know that they have to avail computers and projectors. By coming up with a structure, it will be easy to plan the training program and avail all the necessary resources in advance. 

4. IMPLEMENTATION 

The implementation phase is the most visible part of the training program. According to Molenda (2015), the implementation phase is where the work is done in the previous steps of the ADDIE model begin making an impact on the organization. The implementation phase can only be impactful when adequate preparation was done in the other stages. Trainers have to take the time to understand the subject and use the right approaches and learning aids. The quality and comprehensiveness of the planning in the previous stages determine success in the implementation phases. 

According to Solis (2017), there are important factors to consider during the implementation phase as they affect the success of the implementation phase and the entire training program. Those factors include motivation, recognition of individual differences, individual goals and objectives, reinforcement, schedules of learning, material, and the transfer of knowledge. Motivation to learn is a fundamental requisite for the success of the training program. Managers and trainers have to motivate employees by informing them in advance about the training, training objectives, and how the training will help them improve performance and advance their careers. Motivation is not enough as the individual ability to learn determines the learning outcomes. Trainers should take into consideration individual differences when creating the training material and learning objects. Reinforcement is another factor closely related to motivation. Reinforcement strengthens or encourages a specific pattern of behavior. For example, using compliments can encourage employees to pay attention to the training. Feedback is also a form of reinforcement, and it can be used to promote the behavior. Train the Trainer approach will also be used to facilitate better implementation in the days when the training consultants will not be available. Specialists will train managers and employees on how to train and the content for training, and the trained managers and employees will be the instructors. 

The implementation phase aims to establish a relationship between learning and the usefulness of the subject learned (Long & Perumal, 2014). For example, the trainer must establish that employees will only learn and implement their roles and responsibilities well if they listen and engage in the lesson. Trainers should not rely on traditional methods only to avoid facing resistance from employees. Participants are less likely to resist if they are given a chance to learn new behaviors and implement them. 

Aside from the above strategies to enhance the success of the implementation phase, this phase is an action phase. The planners have to implement everything planned in the previous stages including preparing the training venue and facilities. BK training centers come with equipment such as chairs, tables, computers, printers, a projector, but they have to be requisitioned in advance before the training. The training will take place for an entire week on the first week of October once corporate approves it. The training will be between 4:00- 7:00 from Monday to Friday, and for the whole day on Saturday. The planners have to liaise with a transporting company to ensure all the participants reach the venue on time, and that the training program goes on as planned. Trainers and participants will have a breakdown of the training program including the trainers for each session, topics, learning objectives, and learning aids. The planners have to be careful to ensure everything is implemented according to plan to avoid disrupting the whole program. 

5. EVALUATION  

BK is investing a lot in the training program; thus it is essential to evaluate the program. Evaluation is the fifth phase of the ADDIE model that aims to determine the effectiveness of the training program. The training program was created with the core purpose of addressing high employee turnover at BK, but there are other goals of training such as improving performance and customer service. The training has to achieve its goals and objectives; otherwise, it will be a waste of money, time and resources for BK. According to Bercu (2017) evaluation is used to identify the strengths and areas of improvement for the program. Evaluation is also used to gain feedback from the participants on how they perceive the whole training program. The results of the evaluation can be used to plan follow-up training or change processes within the organization. 

The planners have to plan on how to evaluate the training program in advance instead of waiting until the end of the training. Molenda (2015) outlines essential factors to guide evaluation. The first factor is the creation of the purpose and goals of evaluation. Trainers cannot engage in assessment when they do not have goals and objectives. The second factor is that evaluation must be continuous, for example, trainers can ask the participants how they experienced the first training session and use their feedback to make the right changes to the other sessions. The evaluation must be specific and objective such that trainers are not the ones to evaluate their sessions as they will be biased. Lastly, the evaluation should involve realistic targets on the needs to be evaluated and the timeline for evaluation. Evaluation should be implemented with a sense of urgency, but participants should be given adequate time to assess the program thoroughly. 

There are many evaluation tools used to assess training programs. BK trainers will use the Kirkpatrick model to evaluate the training program. The model has four levels of evaluation as a reaction, learning, behavior, and results. This is the best evaluation tool because it is continuous. The first level is used to get the feedback from the participants on the training to identify whether they found it valuable and aligned to their jobs. Trainers should also send out a pre-evaluation briefing to all the participants to let them know the goal of the training and expectations for the training. A pre-evaluation briefing will make it easy to compare to assess whether the training had any impact or not. Trainers can use short-term evaluation tools after a training session or three days into training. Short-term tools include a follow-up quiz to see what they have learned as per the second level in the Kirkpatrick model. Questionnaires can be used as short-term and long-term evaluation tools. Trainers can give out questionnaires at the end of the training program to get immediate reaction of the participants or use them a month later after the training to find out if employees still remember what they learned and if it has effects on behavior. A post-training questionnaire is attached at the end of the paper (Appendix 1) to evaluate the training plan. The evaluation will help the trainers to see if the training addressed all the issues identified by employees in the TNA. The issues identified in the TNA are responsible for the performance gaps and high employee turnover. 

In conclusion, BK training program uses the ADDIE model to create a comprehensive training plan to meet all the needs of employees. The training plan has five successive phases that affect the success of the training. While the implementation phase is the most crucial phase, BK has to be careful to plan the other phases well as they influence the implementation phase. The evaluation stage will determine whether the training achieved its goals and objectives, if not, BK will plan a follow-up training. 

References 

Bercu, A. M. (2017). Impact of employees' training programmes on job satisfaction.  Current Science (00113891) ,  112 (7). 

Ford, J. K. (Ed.). (2014).  Improving training effectiveness in work organizations . Psychology Press. 

Hanaysha, J. (2016). Examining the effects of employee empowerment, teamwork, and employee training on organizational commitment.  Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences ,  229 , 298-306. 

Long, C. S., & Perumal, P. (2014). Examining the Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on Employees’ turnover Intention.  International Journal of Business & Society ,  15 (1). 

Solis, R. (2017). Employee training strategies for today’s workforce.  Strategic HR Review ,  16 (6), 250-254. 

Tracey, J. B., Hinkin, T. R., Tran, T. L. B., Emigh, T., Kingra, M., Taylor, J., & Thorek, D. (2015). A field study of new employee training programs: industry practices and strategic insights.  Cornell Hospitality Quarterly ,  56 (4), 345-354.