Report - Government Executive

TRAINING
▪ Planning ▪ Delivery
Effective training is comprehensive and delivered through multiple channels. Without it,
employees waste time and effort, make mistakes, and experience frustration. In turn, this lack of
knowledge and skill diminishes support for the system. Because DCIPS represents a major
culture shift for the intelligence components, an effective approach encompasses both the
broader knowledge and skills needed to support the change, as well as the technical features of
the tools and work processes.
Planning
Training plans provide an overall strategy and framework for developing and delivering
instruction that directly support the change being implemented. Issued in 2008, the DCIPS
Communications and Learning Plan identifies the target audiences, learning strategy, preliminary
list of training products (courses and exercises), and recommended sequence of learning events.
The document represents OUSD(I)’s strategic guidance and overall approach to training.
More detailed plans, such as a training design document, are mentioned within the
Communications and Learning Plan. A design document typically offers detailed guidance,
including learning and performance objectives, assessment strategies, high level course flow, and
design outlines. Similar to a style guide, it helps ensure that training has a level of consistency
and conveys the knowledge and skills that employees need to adopt DCIPS. However, these
design documents are not yet available.
The courses outlined in the DCIPS Communications and Learning Plan focus almost exclusively
on knowledge and skills training about the system itself. Given the major culture change
underway, shifting from a system requiring little management engagement to one placing
significant new time and management requirements on supervisors, the degree of management
burden is given minimal emphasis. The OPM framework holds that a solid training plan for
implementing alternative pay systems should include employee training on how to understand,
communicate, and accommodate change; communicate performance expectations; and offer
feedback. 125 The DCIPS training plan falls short in these areas.
The plan outlines nine communication/learning products for employees and managers; one of the
shortest courses is a two- to four-hour workshop where managers practice communicating with
employees about their performance. Given the transformational change that DCIPS represents,
there is a notable lack of training that targets the skills that managers need to build a
performance-oriented culture. OUSD(I) has acknowledged the need for “soft skills” training,
especially for first-line supervisors, that will better support DCIPS’ overall performance
management aspects.
125 OPM Framework, p. 66.
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