The performance level attained by new employees will rise through the use of effective training programs. However, many times the new employees that are hired at the entry level or just above are "given" to an existing employee to train without regard to their ability to train. Furthermore exactly what tasks the new employee is to be trained to perform is never clearly defined.

The only direction the trainer is given is to "teach him to be a good Delivery Driver". This is not enough. Having clearly defined training objectives, a structured on-the-job training program, qualified trainers, and evaluation of the results will provide your beer distributorship with improved performance from new hires and existing employees. The new hires will have less anxiety and are less likely to leave after a short employment period. The structured training will give them the confidence they will need to succeed in their new position. The new hires also benefit from structured on-the-job training because they have an opportunity to learn a new skill while earning an income and they have a chance to improve the quality of their life.

From their success comes your success as a beer distributor. Properly trained employees are the key to high-quality customer service, improved sales and market share growth, and profits. Investing in a structured on-the-job training program is an essential element of distributorship success. This relatively low cost approach to training new hires is gaining recognition for it flexibility and effectiveness. It is also gaining respect among training professionals. On-the-job training programs are no longer viewed as the "black sheep" they once were.

Owners and managers of distributorships must take an active role in structured on-the-job training programs if they are to be effective. You must support without question the program, its objectives, the trainers, and provide corrective feedback when results do not meet the objectives that were established. Your involvement from the beginning is essential; provide input to the objectives, help identify the positions to be included in the program, select the trainers, and be an ongoing part of the evaluation process. Making structured on-the-job training part of the culture on your distributorship will allow it and training in general to become second nature to your employees.

What (by position) do you want the structured on-the-job training program to achieve? Using the Delivery Driver position as an example you can set objectives for rotation, vehicle operating costs, overtime, damaged product, reduced turnover, etc. The objectives that are set initially must be somewhat effort stretching but attainable.

In an effort to get off to a successful start you may want to limit the number of objectives to one or two. The overall success of structured on-the-job training is tied to setting objectives; if you do not set meaningful objectives you will never know if the program is doing what it is intended to do.

Just about every position within a beer distributorship can be included within a structured on-the-job training program. However, in order to provide initial success you may want to start with just one or two positions. Typically these positions should be the entry level positions or one step above. These positions may include Route Assistant, Line Cleaner, Warehouseman, Loader, Forklift Operator, Delivery Driver, and even Driver Salesperson. Regardless of the positions, select one and work to optimize the structured on-the-job training program for it. After you are satisfied with the results select another position and develop the training program for it. Continue developing and testing on-the-job training modules for each position within your organization until all are covered by the program.

Determining the training needs is simply finding the difference between the requirements of the position and what skills the new employee already possesses. If your new employee was hired to be a Delivery Driver one of the primary requirements will be his ability to drive your delivery vehicles. If he has this skill (demonstrated by a road test) and a valid CDL obviously you do not need to spend training time in this area.

You will be able to move on to package identification, morning check-out procedures, safety, lifting, 2-wheel operations, customer service, rotation, merchandising, hand-held operations, and check-in procedures. These are the areas your newly hired Delivery Driver will cover in the on-the-job training with your trainer(s). The more structured the training the sooner the new Delivery Driver will be able to work on his own.

Needless to say, the higher the quality of the training the more likely the new Delivery Driver will feel confident in his job performance, improve his own productivity in a short time, and be less likely to seek employment elsewhere.

If you have position descriptions for the Delivery Driver (and other positions) you should consult them to ensure all the tasks identified within them are covered by the structured on-the-job training program.

After the tasks for the Delivery Driver position have been identified you and your management team must analyze their content, decide how best to provide on-the-job training to the new employee, and who will do the training. For the sake of demonstration we will briefly take a look at the aspects of hand-held operations. The first question to ask is; Who is best qualified to teach this task? Is it an existing Driver, the Route Supervisor or the Office Manager? Make the decision and proceed with the next question. Where is the hand-held training to take place? In the warehouse or out in the market? Make the decision and proceed with the next question. Will the new hire be required to perform all the hand-held operations immediately with direction or will he be given demonstrations by the trainer? Make the decision and proceed with the next question. Determine the point in the training process where the employee will be required to operate the hand-held for an entire day out in the market with minimal assistance from the trainer.

Regardless of the tasks of the position it is important they be broken down into individual points and discussed to ensure the on-the-job training is the most appropriate for the situation. Also remember; what is effective for one task will not necessarily be the best for another.

OK. We now know who we are going to train, when they are going to be trained, and the topics to be covered in the training. The training modules are the heart of an effective structured on-the-job training program. The training program for our Delivery Driver will contain several modules. A training module for each position task including package identification, morning check-out procedures, lifting, 2-wheel operations, customer service, rotation, merchandising, hand-held operations, and check-in procedures will need to be assembled.

Each module will contain all the steps, points and procedures that must be learned if the new employee is to be able to perform the job by himself. Using the hand-held operations as an example the training module would include at least the following:

The training module does not have to contain every small action; however it should contain a list of the major actions and/or steps of each task. The module may be used as a checklist by the trainer to ensure all steps have been covered. It can also be used by a supervisor to review with the new employee all the aspects of the module. Most training modules can be reduced down to one or two printed pages that list all the steps of each task. Getting more detailed than this changes the training from on-the-job to a passive reading of procedures. Keep the modules short and in list form; allow the trainer to use his knowledge and skill to train the new employee in a flexible and interactive manner.

After you have completed all the training modules for the Delivery Driver position give them to those individuals that have a good knowledge of what is expected of a Delivery Driver. Solicit feedback on the modules, make improvements, and then test them using a new employee in a real-life training situation. Again solicit feedback from both the employee and the trainer; make improvements if necessary to refine the modules. Once you and your staff are satisfied with the Delivery Drivers training modules select the next position and begin the process again.

On-the-job training with quality trainers is probably the most cost effective means you have available to improve the productivity of your distributorship. Although the assembly of training modules may seem like a lot of work their usefulness in the field is invaluable. They help keep both the trainer and new employee focused upon the task at hand.

Having prepared training modules reduces greatly the need for a formal "train-the-trainer" program. The entire concept of on-the-job training is to convey the job knowledge of the trainer to the new employee in a real-life setting. For the on-the-job trainers it is more important for them to have good work practices and a strong desire to be a trainer than to have formal training.

In an ideal setting all experienced workers should be qualified as on-the-job trainers. You may want to consider including the role of trainer as part of the Delivery Driver position description and performance evaluation.

The attributes that an on-the-job trainer must have to be effective include:

Interestingly, these attributes are no different than those desired by every beer distributor for all their drivers.

The next stage of the structured on-the-job training program is to prepare the new employee for the training. This can be accomplished during the employees' first day on the job. Typically the first day is set aside for the completion of employment paperwork, introduction to other employees, orientation to the company and its policies and procedures. Completing a review of the structured on-the-job training program should also be included. The training will be more effective from the start if the new employee knows exactly what is going to be happening to him in the next few days and weeks. Nothing creates more unnecessary turnover with new employees than keeping them uninformed about what is happening with them in their new place of employment.

Structured on-the-job training, by its very nature, does not allow the new employee to become a "lazy learner". If the new employee truly wants to ensure his success he must become proactive in the development of his skills and knowledge.

We're ready to go. We have a new employee that we are going to train to be a Delivery Driver. You now need to decide which of the trainers will deliver the various modules. With some distributors it works best if the new employee is assigned to one trainer that covers all the modules. With other distributors a team of trainers are used to deliver the modules.

In the multiple trainer situation the trainer who is best at instructing in the operation of the hand-held is assigned to work with the new employee on this module. Another driver (trainer) is assigned to train the new employee in the art of display building. Depending on the training topic of the module the new employee will spend one or two days, a week or more learning the tasks outlined in the module. The new employee will not progress to the next module until the trainer is satisfied he is able to complete all of the tasks of the module correctly without assistance.

Structured on-the-job training does not need to be limited to just new employees. Within many distributorships there are individuals not performing all the tasks of their position. Having a structured on-the-job training program is a great tool to use with experienced employees that are having difficulty with certain aspects of their position. You do not need to use all the modules; retrain the existing employee(s) only in the tasks (modules) they are having difficulty performing.

Cross training, the training of employees to perform each others duties, and structured on-the-job training; what a great combination! Effective cross training of your employees will always put you ahead of your competition when it comes to market execution and customer service. A properly designed, supported, and implemented structured on-the-job/cross training program is not only cost effective; it will give you an excellent return on your training investment.

When assistance is needed it should be given in a constructive and positive manner. When a new employee "just doesn't get it" the trainer and the supervisor need to discuss the situation and determine if more time is needed, a different trainer is required, or the employee should be terminated. There is no benefit to your organization to have half trained or incompetent employees. Not all turnover is bad.

Significant results from structured on-the-job training will not be evident within a month, a quarter, and perhaps not even in the first year. At the beginning of the program you established objectives for the program. Do not lose sight of them just because the results will take a while to appear. This is a long-term effort to improve your rotation, vehicle operating costs, overtime, damaged product, reduced turnover, etc. Like all long-term efforts results will only be forthcoming when the program is followed, feedback is given, and adjustments are made; success can only be achieved by staying the course.

Reducing turnover, improving rotation, controlling overtime, and having less damaged product are all obvious benefits to your beer distributorship. There are however other benefits that will be coming your way with the implementation of a structured on-the-job training program. You will have fewer retailer complaints, improved teamwork, and better market execution.

Your distributorship is not the only beneficiary of a structured on-the-job training program. Professionally trained employees will function better, feel better about their employer, be part of an effective team, grow their income, and obtain promotions. These benefits, although not always measurable, may be the greatest benefit to your bottom line.