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Ron Zemke
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Figuring Things Out: A Trainer's Guide To Needs And Task Analysis

by R. Zemke (Author), T. Kramlinger (Author)
3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 10 ratings
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Aware of the complexity of the tasks facing the human resources development specialist today, Ron Zemke and Thomas Framlinger have written this book to serve a need...to give you a handy source—a catalog—of tactics, techniques, and procedures designed to help you apply more effectively the knowledge and skills you've already gained.The authors offer a system for conducting organizational effectiveness studies, determining training needs, and performing task analysis. This system represents the ”successes” in many years of trial and error and basic intuitive judgments in the field of human resource development. Figuring Things Out is process-oriented, adaptable, and highly useful.Section I gets you started with the rationale and tactics for conducting a ”Figuring Things Out Study” and helps you formulate a performance model. Sections II through V explain in detain the techniques and procedures, complete with examples of how they work. You'll find coverage of time studies, task listings, S-R tables, behavioral frequency counts, behavioral algorithms, focus group discussions, one-on-one interviews, consensus groups, the critical incident technique, fault tree analysis, and much more.In Section VI, you'll learn about matching techniques with problems. Based on the successes and failures in the authors' own experiences, this section presents factors—political, strategic, tactical, and technical—that you will have to consider in deciding which technique is appropriate for which problem.Section VII tells you how to structure and deliver a presentation of results that will gain the support and confidence of senior management. Here's what Figuring Things Out gives the human resources development specialist:
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  1. ISBN-10
    0201090988
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0201090987
  3. Publisher
    Basic Books
  4. Publication date
    January 21, 1982
  5. Language
    English
  6. Dimensions
    8.75 x 1 x 11.25 inches
  7. Print length
    368 pages
  8. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Basic Books (January 21, 1982)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0201090988
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0201090987
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.75 x 1 x 11.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 10 ratings

About the authors

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  1. Ron Zemke

    Ron Zemke

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    Ron Zemke is co-author of the original Service America, and is also the key author in Amacom's successful Knock Your Socks Off Service series. Knock Your Socks off books have sold over one million copies worldwide.

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  2. Thomas Kramlinger

    Thomas Kramlinger

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    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

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Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars
3.7 out of 5
10 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2016
Verified Purchase
Excellent resource - comprehensive and well organized - highly recommended
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Jane Bozarth
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best resources I own
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2010
Sorry to disagree so wholeheartedly with the other reviewer, but I wonder if we're even talking about the same book. This is a compendium of techniques for conducting a needs analysis (from task analysis to critical incident reporting to fault tree analysis, and on and on). There's very little 'war story' here. I reviewed this for the HRDQ-sponsored "Training Book Review" blog [...] so will quote that here:

After several years as a workplace trainer/instructional designer, I went back to graduate school in the late 1990s to begin a Master's program in Training and Development, and was shocked at the poor quality of many of the assigned texts. Oh, there was nothing wrong with the writing, or the layout. It was just that so many of the authors had obviously never actually done any real training in any real workplace. "Insist on meeting with the CEO and entire senior management team before undertaking any training design." "Expect the assessment phase to last for 3 to 6 months." "Managers requesting training should understand the need to shut the shop floor down for several shifts in order to give you access to front-line workers." Uh, huh. And monkeys fly out of my ears.

Then a professor assigned Figuring Things Out, at least 20 years old even then. It was immediately apparent that the authors had done this. They understood that the reality of going into a setting (in which even an internal training consultant is usually viewed as an interloper) is fraught with political, tactical, and strategic issues, never even mind the actual work. They understood the reality of impatient managers and stakeholders who didn't really understand training design, but thought they did. They understood the real uses and limitations of the techniques they offered. And unlike the other textbooks, they were honest in sometimes saying the answer is, "It depends."

The book offers a review not just types of assessment, but which techniques to use when, with the goal of actually figuring out the problem. The authors offer instructions for using techniques like time studies, critical incident, and behavioral frequency counts; consensus groups, surveys, and fault tree analysis, and many more. More importantly, they provide these not as a one-right approach but with pros and cons, tips and tricks, and potential pitfalls. pitfalls. And: all within realistic time frames ("Call a task force and take a year...half the jobs involved may cease to exist"). The authors then wrap up the section on techniques with a nice overview called "What to Use When" and a flow chart approach to selecting the best techniques for the situation.

Two sections I`ve found particularly useful over the years, different from what you will find elsewhere in most work on "needs analysis". First, a whole section on presenting findings to management: "Like it or not, the results of a mediocre study persuasively presented are more likely to generate management action than are results of an excellent study poorly presented...when we report findings to a client, our pervasive goal should be to cause someone to do something." They offer good tips here, including advice for delivering bad news. Then, there's the 19-page "Emergency Kit Statistics" chapter is a wonderful add-on for those of us who do not find math to be our, shall we say, unique ability.

Figuring Things Out is sharp, smart, practical, and pretty much as applicable today as it was 20 years ago.
10 people found this helpful
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Edwin C. Pauzer
5.0 out of 5 stars A Training Specialist's Guide
Reviewed in the United States on August 25, 2010
Part of the thrill of being a training specialist is that it makes you sort of a performance detective. You have to figure why what is not getting done, or why it isn't being done well enough, and once in a while your managers might have a streak of common sense and let slip the dogs of training to find out how performance can be improved. That doesn't always mean you end up training people; it means you conduct a needs analysis. It's cerebral and that's what makes this one of my favorite phases in the instructional systems design (ISD) process.

"Figuring Things Out," by Zemke and Kramlinger, is "a trainer's guide to needs and task analysis," just as it says in the subtitle. The authors have a strategy and several tactics for "figuring things out:" 1) Always work from a model of human performance 2) Start the study as high in the organization as possible and work your way down. (This means an organizational analysis and operational analysis, if possible). 3) Always know whom you are studying, 4) Never use just one information-gathering technique, 5) Let line managers make critical decisions, and 6) Remember the KISS principle. The authors believe that following these principles, with a touch of ingenuity and a thorough understanding of the performance problem, the solution will define itself.

The first part of the book concentrates on conducting task analyses. What tasks do the people do, what subtasks and what are the elements of each subtask? They describe several methods: analysis, observation, time studies, task listings, S-R tables, and behavioral algorithms.

The next sections III & IV, are more tactical. It is about talking to people about work. The authors illustrate a number of methods for gathering information such as focus groups, a structured interview, and phone interviews. Section IV is about asking questions through critical incidence techniques, consensus groups, and surveys and questionnaires. The final section, Odds and Ends, cover such topics as matching techniques to problem and reporting results to management.

Zemke and Kramlinger are very easy to read, and their topics are not entertaining, but they are not boring to the training specialist. This book not only helps the trainer to identify the proper techniques and under what conditions they should be used, but it also includes an examination of doing things wrong that will bring the inevitable pitfalls to any project.

Conducting a needs analysis is the first step in the ISD process. It is vital that the persons conducting it get it right because it is the foundation for the rest of the model. If your idea of training is more than implementation, than I recommend you entertain the idea of adding this book to your shelf.
4 people found this helpful
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DapperDan
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Resource
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2010
I first heard about this book during a Twitter #lrnchat discussion, when several people said it was the best book they used in grad school. It is an excellent, real-world tool, full of tools for analyzing training problems and deciding whether they ARE training problems. The sections on delivering bad news and 'emergency kit statistics' are excellent.It's a shame it's out of print, but I'm glad copies can still be had.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

NinjaRoadWarriER
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 8, 2013
Verified Purchase
The subject matter has been broken down into chunks to aid easy mental digestion. I have found this a fascinating read. The book has the information as I would have liked it.
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