| Course | COM 230 Human Resource Management |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 5 |
| Paper type | Training design and evaluation plan |
| Length | About 1,030 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for COM 230 Module 5
Training That Shows Up at the Teller Line: Designing and Evaluating a Universal Banker Program
Student Name
Business Administration Program, Aspen University
COM 230: Human Resource Management
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Training That Shows Up at the Teller Line: Designing and Evaluating a Universal Banker Program
Blue Ridge Community Credit Union's three-year workforce plan depends on retraining seventy current tellers and member service representatives as universal bankers. If the training works, Blue Ridge will have staff who can handle any member need at the counter. If it does not, branches will have people with a new title and old skills. HR director Denise Carter must design a program that changes what people do at work, not only what they know. This paper designs the program and plans its evaluation.
Training Needs
The Module 3 task analysis identified five areas of work. Comparing them with current skills shows different gaps for different groups. Tellers handle cash well but most have never opened an account or explained a loan. Member service representatives open accounts and handle problems but many have not handled cash in years. Almost no one has been trained to teach members to use the mobile app, which is now a fifth of the role. A short skills assessment at the start will place each trainee in the right modules.
What Makes Training Effective
Arthur et al. (2003) conducted a meta-analysis of training effectiveness in organizations, examining effects on four kinds of criteria: reactions, learning, behavior and results. Across studies, training produced solid gains in knowledge, on-the-job conduct and outcomes. Effects varied with the training method and the skill or task trained, and the authors stressed that the choice of method should match the skills being taught. Interpersonal skills, for example, benefited from methods that involve practice rather than lecture alone.
What Makes Training Transfer
Blume et al. (2010) conducted a meta-analysis of the transfer of training, the extent to which learning is applied on the job and maintained over time. Trainee characteristics, including cognitive ability, conscientiousness and motivation, predicted transfer. So did the work environment, particularly support from supervisors and peers. Transfer was harder for open skills, such as leadership or customer interaction, where there is no single right way, than for closed skills with fixed procedures.
Much of the universal banker role involves open skills, such as explaining a loan or teaching an anxious member to use an app. That makes the work environment after training especially important.
The Full Training Cycle
Salas et al. (2012) summarized decades of training research for practitioners, arranging the practices with the best support by what happens before, during and after training. Before training, organizations should conduct a needs analysis and prepare a supportive climate, including telling supervisors what trainees will learn. During training, practices that help include presenting information, demonstrating it, providing practice and giving feedback. After training, organizations should remove obstacles to using new skills, encourage supervisors to reinforce them and evaluate results.
| Design choice | Evidence behind it |
|---|---|
| Modules by skill, assigned by assessment | Needs analysis before training |
| Role plays of loan conversations and app teaching, with feedback | Practice and feedback; method matched to interpersonal skills |
| Practice on a test version of the banking system | Practice in realistic conditions |
| Branch managers briefed before training | Supportive climate before training |
| A branch coach for each trainee for eight weeks after | Supervisor and peer support for transfer |
| Monthly refresher huddles in branches | Maintenance of skills over time |
Evaluation
Judging the program takes four kinds of evidence. Reactions: a short survey after each module. Learning: knowledge tests on products and procedures, and role-play scores. Behavior: branch managers observe each new universal banker with members at four and twelve weeks, using a checklist. Results: branch measures six months later, including the share of members using digital banking, loan applications started in branches and member satisfaction.
Who Teaches
The program draws on Blue Ridge's own people. Loan officers teach the lending module, experienced member service representatives teach account opening and the credit union's two digital banking specialists teach the app module. Each instructor attends a two-day session on running role plays and giving feedback, since Salas and colleagues found that practice helps most when feedback is specific. Using internal instructors keeps examples close to members' real questions and gives experienced staff a development opportunity of their own.
Keeping Branches Open
Seventy trainees cannot leave the branches at once. The program runs in seven cohorts of ten over eighteen months, with no branch losing more than one person at a time. Trainees spend two days a week in training and three in their branch, which also gives them immediate chances to apply what they learn, a pattern that supports transfer. Training time is paid, and branches receive a part-time float employee during each cohort.
Trainees Who Struggle
Some trainees will find parts of the program hard, most often the lending module for tellers who have never discussed credit with a member. Instructors will flag anyone scoring below the passing mark on a module test, and those trainees will repeat the module with the next cohort rather than fall behind. No one loses their current job for failing to complete the program; they remain in their existing role, consistent with the commitment made in Module 3.
The Cost and the Return
The program costs about $210,000 over eighteen months, mostly in paid training time and float staff. Against it, Blue Ridge expects lower turnover among trained staff, faster service and more loan applications started in branches. The six-month results evaluation will show whether the return appears.
Supporting the Organization's Goals
The program supports the workforce plan by preparing current employees for the new role, and it supports the turnover goals in Module 1 by giving tellers a path forward. It also feeds the performance management system in Module 6: the observation checklist used to evaluate behavior after training becomes the starting point for branch managers' coaching conversations, so the skills taught in the program are the same ones managers watch for and reinforce.
Conclusion
Arthur and colleagues show that training works when methods fit skills, Blume and colleagues show that transfer depends on trainees and their environment and Salas and colleagues lay out practices before, during and after training. A program built on those findings, with evaluation beyond satisfaction, gives Blue Ridge universal bankers who use what they learned.
References
Arthur, W., Jr., Bennett, W., Jr., Edens, P. S., & Bell, S. T. (2003). Effectiveness of training in organizations: A meta-analysis of design and evaluation features. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(2), 234-245. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.2.234
Blume, B. D., Ford, J. K., Baldwin, T. T., & Huang, J. L. (2010). Transfer of training: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Management, 36(4), 1065-1105. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206309352880
Salas, E., Tannenbaum, S. I., Kraiger, K., & Smith-Jentsch, K. A. (2012). The science of training and development in organizations: What matters in practice. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 13(2), 74-101. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100612436661
Reading the COM 230 Module 5 assignment instructions
COM 230 Module 5 usually turns to training and development, with students usually laying out a program from needs to evaluation. The classroom's Module 5 directions govern; the credit union and figures here are invented. Assess training needs, noting how they differ across groups of trainees. Set learning objectives. Choose methods based on evidence. Plan for transfer of training to the job. Plan evaluation at several levels. Explain how the program supports the organization's goals, and plan for trainees who struggle. Cite sources in APA 7 form.
Inside the COM 230 Module 5 example
The task analysis from Module 3 shows that current tellers need lending basics and member service representatives need cash procedures, while everyone needs practice teaching members to use the mobile app. Pooling many workplace studies, Arthur, Bennett, Edens and Bell found sizable gains from training across trainee reactions, knowledge, conduct and outcomes, with the size depending on method and skill. Blume, Ford, Baldwin and Huang's Journal of Management meta-analysis found that cognitive ability, conscientiousness, motivation and a supportive work environment predicted transfer. Salas, Tannenbaum, Kraiger and Smith-Jentsch's Psychological Science in the Public Interest review described practices such as needs analysis, a supportive climate, practice with feedback and post-training follow-up. The design table includes modules by skill, role plays with feedback, practice on a test system and a branch coach for each trainee. Evaluation measures trainee reactions, knowledge tests, observed behavior with members and branch results such as loan applications and digital adoption.
Where the marks sit in the COM 230 Module 5 rubric
Training papers earn credit when the design follows from a needs analysis and evidence, and when evaluation goes beyond whether trainees liked the program. This example builds on the Module 3 task analysis, uses Arthur and colleagues to choose methods, uses Blume and colleagues to plan for transfer and draws on Salas and colleagues for the full cycle. The design table makes each choice traceable, and the evaluation plan measures behavior and results. Involving branch managers before and after training addresses the work environment, which research shows matters for transfer. Practical details, such as cohorts that keep branches staffed and a plan for trainees who struggle, show the program could actually run.
Common COM 230 Module 5 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Training papers often describe course content without explaining how people will use it on the job. Plan for transfer: practice, feedback, manager support and follow-up. Another weakness is evaluating only with satisfaction surveys; measure learning, behavior and results too. Base the design on a needs analysis rather than assumptions. Choose methods that fit the skills, such as role plays for interpersonal skills. Involve managers before and after training. Finally, connect the program's results to the organization's goals. Work out how training will be scheduled without leaving the workplace short of staff.
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COM 230 Module 5 questions, answered
What does COM 230 Module 5 usually ask for?
Aspen's COM 230 usually turns to training and development in this module, so designing a training program and planning its evaluation is typical. Check your classroom prompt.
Does workplace training work?
Yes, on average. Arthur and colleagues found solid gains in what people know, how they act and what they achieve, though the size depends on method and skill.
What helps training transfer to the job?
Blume and colleagues found that trainee ability, conscientiousness and motivation, along with a supportive work environment, predicted transfer.
Where can I find a free COM 230 Module 5 sample paper?
The example above designs and plans evaluation of a universal banker training program at a credit union.
How should training be evaluated?
Look past whether trainees enjoyed it: check what they learned, whether they act differently at work and whether the business moved.