The learning curve continues and the trainer will gradually reduce the sup-
port, and follow up less and less. If the trainer must leave the student, they pro-
vide someone who can support the student in their absence. The students should
never be given the impression that they’re “on their own.” Initially, when putting
the student on the job, it’s important to stress the expectation that they should
focus on successfully completing the task, meeting the safety and quality goals.
As the student’s rate of speed increases, the focus shifts to meeting the produc-
tivity targets (while maintaining safety and quality). Bear in mind that you are
establishing the foundation for future expectation with these training sessions.
If you have low expectations or do not clearly communicate your expectations,
you will get less than the desired results.
Making a Training Plan and Tracking Performance
Understanding the needs of your area, assessing the resources and skill level
available, and planning for future changes are critical steps. This cannot be left
to chance or done on a “catch as catch can” basis. This is one area where Toyota
made significant improvements to the TWI material. The original material pre-
sented the training plan as simply a “yes or no” for job skills, and determining
dates to complete the training.
Figure 11-2 shows what Toyota calls a Multifunction Worker Training
Timetable (TWI called it a Training Timetable). Because all employees at Toyota
are expected to know and perform multiple jobs, the focus of the plan is geared
toward creating multifunction workers.
The Multifunction Worker Training Timetable is filled out as follows:
- The supervisor completes this section with his or her name, the group or
area, and the date. Planning is usually done during the beginning of the
year, but if you’re starting, use today’s date. - List the names of all employees. If there are more than 10, use additional
sheets. Usually one sheet is completed for each team, which has four to
seven people. - Fill in the process or operation names.
- The ideal number is the number of people who need to be trained on each
job to ensure that the position can always be filled. If there are three oper-
ations that are the same, for example, you’ll need more than three people
trained. For more difficult jobs it’s also better to have more than the min-
imum. The supervisor determines the ideal number for each job. - The circle with four quadrants visually depicts each person’s skill for a
particular job. A blank circle indicates no training has been started.
Chapter 11. Develop Exceptional Team Associates 255