Beyond the Training Gap: Needs Analysis, Task Analysis, and Audience Analysis

Get the whole picture from your training analysis process

Great instructional designers know that a one-size-fits-all approach to workplace training is a losing formula. Effective training initiatives don’t simply pop out of thin air—they’re precisely structured to meet the needs of key stakeholders. And where many instructional designers perform a needs analysis to uncover training and performance gaps, you don’t have to stop there.

While a needs analysis may identify where employee performance falls short of expectations, it doesn’t assess the specific tasks that are undertrained or cover how to tailor that training to personalized learning needs. So, what separates the organizations whose assessment data gives them the whole picture from those that only offer a glimpse at the proper training solutions?

To fully understand the training needs of your entire organization, a combination of needs, task, and audience analyses will help your training initiatives close the gap. With all three analysis processes working together—and a fourth minor assessment called instructional context analysis—your training will be more engaging, cost-effective, and resilient.

In this post, learn the basics of common training needs analysis processes, and discover the benefits of orchestrating needs, task, and audience assessments together to work towards a common goal.

Finding the gap with needs analysis assessment

The most common form of training assessment, a needs analysis, determines whether there is a gap between expected and actual employee performance. More precisely, it identifies either knowledge or skill gaps that can be effectively filled with training.

Common questions that a needs analysis can answer:

• Why aren’t employees meeting expected performance levels?
• Is the gap between expected and actual performance due to a lack of knowledge or skill?
• What do employees need to know to achieve expected performance levels?
• Is training the right solution, or is another type of intervention needed?

Benefits of needs analysis assessment

There’s a reason this form of analysis usually comes before the others in this list. By first determining whether training is the right intervention, organizations save time and money by avoiding unnecessary training projects. For example, it could uncover unmet technological needs or an inadequate product—both problems that may require a solution other than training.

Common training opportunities that a needs analysis assessment can uncover:

• Organizational changes employees need to know about
• New product features for employees to get comfortable with
• Tech tools that employees need a refresher course on
• Customer service missteps that have been previously unaddressed

The results of a needs assessment—if an appropriate knowledge or skill gap is identified—form the baseline for the succeeding training efforts, making this an all-important first stop in your training needs assessment journey. Don’t skip it!

Hot tip: Turn to soft-skills training to improve workplace culture, problem-solving, customer service, and employee retention. While it may seem like a lack of motivation is an untrainable problem, it may just be that your employees don’t know how to communicate effectively.

Break it down with a task analysis assessment

Once you’ve identified employees’ knowledge or skill gaps, it’s important to break them down into task-specific processes. A task analysis can successfully take large, complex tasks and divide them into smaller, more easily digestible parts, giving you a better understanding of how to structure your proposed training solutions.

Common questions that a task analysis can answer:

• How often is the task performed?
• Is the task directly related to job performance?
• Is this task performed separately or as part of a larger process?
• What background knowledge is needed to perform the task?
• How complex is the task—how many steps are involved?

Benefits of task analysis assessment

Take a basic task like sending an email. It’s an action that most of us can do automatically. It seems very simple at first glance, but consider the number of steps involved: open the email app, click compose, enter the recipient’s email address, CC all key stakeholders, etc. Four steps in, and we haven’t even covered clear subject lines, proper greetings, or attaching files.

Generally, you want to identify tasks that are high in frequency, complexity, or importance. If a task hits all three markers, you know it’s a high priority. But hitting two of the three, or even just one, that have drastic consequences if not followed—such as the importance of keeping customer information private to avoid costly data breaches—can be enough to implement training solutions.

Hot tip: Use microlearning to break down a simple, complex task into a step-by-step process. This works best for filling quick, focused learning gaps, such as relearning a product feature or reviewing a safety procedure.

Knowing your learner with audience analysis assessment

Also referred to as a learner analysis, an audience analysis studies the target group for job performance training solutions. Who are your learners? What’s their experience level, and how can you shape training to meet them where they are to create a frictionless learning experience? Knowing your audience helps you create more meaningful, relevant, and efficient training.

Common questions that an audience analysis can answer:

• What is the learner’s background knowledge?
• What is the learner’s comfort level with technology?
• What are learner preferences for delivery method (in-person, e-learning, webinar)?
• What are your learner’s traits and abilities?

Benefits of audience analysis assessment

Understanding how to properly engage your unique learners can do wonders for the effectiveness of your training solutions, giving you a clear look at who your learners are and how best to serve their learning needs.

For example, you might be tasked with creating training on how to use software like Adobe InDesign or Canva, but not every employee or department will use it for the same reason. Some may be graphic designers using it to create posters, social media posts, or business cards. Others may be web designers using it to lay out web content. You wouldn’t prescribe the same static course to these two groups of learners.

Audience analysis may also uncover accessibility or translation needs. Catering to learners of all levels and abilities avoids employee frustration and keeps learning relevant, efficient, and effective.

Hot tip: Using branching scenarios in your course design allows you to reach different types of learners within the same course. Additionally, it allows learners to improve decision-making skills relevant to their roles in a low-risk online environment.

Instructional context analysis—understanding the learning environment

While the previous three analysis methods rely on information gathered from employee surveys, observations, or focus groups, instructional context analysis comes from you, the course designer. What it comes down to is setting. Are your learners going to be in a large meeting room, face-to-face with an in-person facilitator? Or will they be in an online training environment? Let’s consider the latter.

Common questions that an instructional context analysis should answer:

• What devices will learners use to access this information?
• Will learners be able to listen to audio if need be?
• What other barriers to learning might there be to overcome?

You might even consider screen size. Learning modules designed for a laptop or desktop have a much larger viewing area than those for mobile devices. Depending on which virtual landscape the training is meant to be delivered in, this can change how you use color, font, text size, and information density per page. Note that a responsive platform like Articulate is designed to work automatically in each of those formats without additional design considerations

Needs, task, and audience analyses: better together

Going beyond the training gap through needs, task, and audience analyses can elevate your training solutions. With a better understanding of the individual tasks involved in filling a knowledge or skill gap, your learners will enjoy more relevant, efficient training. With better analysis, your course content can shine for any learner—whether it’s a new hire first learning the ropes or a veteran revisiting best practices.

Ready to collect and analyze data for a new project? Great news! It doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Read our blog, How to Avoid Needs Analysis Paralysis to learn how to iterate from needs analysis quickly.