Have you ever wondered if training is really the best solution for solving a given performance problem? So often organizations assume that if employees are not performing as desired, it’s because they don’t know how. Equally as often, it’s assumed that in order for people to do what is needed, they must be taught how. The paradigm shift from training to performance helps address these mindsets, but there is also an imminently useful and simple tool that can help you determine where your efforts are best spent.
This article briefly describes a model that can help you diagnose the nature of an actual or potential performance gap.
The Behavioral Engineering Model
Thomas Gilbert, one of the pioneers of human performance technology, published a book in entitled, “Human Competence: Engineering Worthy Performance;” in it he describes his Behavioral Engineering Model (BEM).
The BEM begins by essentially asking, ‘Is the performance problem a result of the individual, or their environment?’ In other words, is the person the problem, or is it the organization?
Once you have determined the nature of the problem, it looks at three areas that can impact the performance, creating a total of six categories:
- Information – Environmentally speaking, do individuals have the data (expectations, feedback) they need to do what you want? Individually speaking, do they have the knowledge/skills/abilities to perform?
- Instrumentation – Environmentally, do people have the instruments (tools) they need to do their jobs? Individually, do they have the capacity to do the job (i.e. are they in the right job)?
- Motivation – Environmentally, are there incentives(rewards)in place that encourage people to do what you want? Individually, do people care (i.e. what are their motives)?
As you can see, by accurately diagnosing the nature of the actual or potential performance gap, you can choose the best solution. In only one category is training the answer. In other cases, it might be changing recruitment practices, tweaking the performance management system, or simply giving people feedback on how they are doing.
In Action
I worked with a nonprofit organization that was implementing an organizational change that impacted how the front line interfaced with their customers. The change represented alterations to policy as well as procedure, and the client and I wanted to ensure that the bases were covered. Rather than dive into designing “new policy” training, we took the time to evaluate the organizational system in light of the BEM categories:
- Looking at the available data, we knew that employees needed information about what was expected of them and how the changes would impact their jobs. This could be communicated in email and followed up in team meetings.
- In terms of instruments, we realized that while sharing information and performing actual training would be important, it was unrealistic to expect that employees would be able to perform as desired right from the start. We decided to create two job aids that would complement the training and provide assistance when speaking with customers.
- When we looked at incentives, we saw that the importance of the change may not be apparent to all, and messaging to that effect needed to be incorporated in the team meetings and training.
- It was obvious that employees would need specific knowledge about the new policy and procedure, in order to perform as desired.
- In terms of capacity, we operated under the assumption that employees were capable of performing as desired. However, during needs assessment key stakeholders did point out that some people might not possess the required assertiveness to implement the policy. Managers were coached on this potential challenge and how they might respond.
- Finally, when looking at motivation, as with capacity, we saw the potential for challenges, and took this into consideration in crafting our messaging – tying the initiative to values such as excellent customer service and good stewardship of public resources.
In this case, training was the answer, but the BEM helped us be more holistic in our instructional design, and helped us see the opportunity for additional methods such as job aids and team meetings.
Your Turn
If you would like to apply the BEM to a performance gap in your organization, I created a quick checklist you can use to get started.
Now What?
Please contact me if you would like to discuss the ideas in this article, or how I can help you diagnose the performance challenges your organization faces.
This post is one in a series that highlights different instructional and performance technology theories — concisely explaining them in a way that can help you put them to work immediately or just enhance your credibility when speaking with colleagues or clients.