People Management Human Resources Development

Employee training plan templates — 3 training plan examples

September 7, 2022

Offering a strong employee onboarding process as well as ongoing training can help improve employee performance and retention. Employees that are given opportunities to learn new skills, train for leadership roles, and explore new professional interests are more likely to stay with the company. They can also grow into more valuable assets for your business.

Developing an employee training plan is a great way to streamline and organize your employee development initiatives. However, it can be hard to know where to start. To make the process easier, consider using an employee training plan template. Here we’ve outlined a couple of employee training templates and examples.

Why you need an employee training plan

Employee training plans detail how employee training programs will be conducted. They help organizations keep the training process organized by making it clear what training activities will be completed, who will be responsible for each step of the training process, and how the effectiveness of the training will be measured.

They’re also a great tool for ensuring that all training activities and outcomes are documented. Documenting training activities can be helpful for performance management. It allows managers to better understand gaps in employees’ skills and keep track of what has been done to address any of those gaps or weak areas thus far. In some cases, employee training plans can also be used as performance improvement plans. Documentation is also useful for tracking required training and continuing education.

What to include in an employee training plan

Regardless of what type of training plan you are creating or which template you choose there are a few key pieces of information that you should always include.

Training materials required. You’ll want to consider what materials will be required for the training activities. This can also include technical requirements. For example, if you are creating a sales training plan you’ll need to make sure that everyone participating has login information and access to the company’s CRM system and other sales tools that will be utilized.
Training method. There are many different types of employee training. A good employee training plan often combines multiple training types and delivery methods to provide a well-rounded learning experience.
Intended audience. In many cases, organizations need to have multiple versions of their employee training programs to address the needs of different audiences.
Timeline. Estimate how long the training plan will take to complete. Some training plans such as new hire training plans or performance improvement plans can have longer timelines such as 3 or 6 months.
Training leaders or supervisors. Who will be in charge of carrying out the training? This can be the person leading the training session or course. However, many training activities are structured as more of an independent study or online self-paced learning. In this case, it is still a good idea to designate a person or department that will act as the point person for questions that may come up throughout the training. You can also list any other relevant stakeholders who will be supporting or overseeing the process.
Learning objectives. What do you want learners to take away from the training activity? List the new skills or core competencies you hope to have employees develop through the training program.
Success metrics. What do you hope to achieve with this training plan and how will you measure it?

In addition to considering the above items, you may also want to spend some time identifying the training needs and employee, team, or overall employee population. A training needs assessment can help organizations create an employee training plan based on the team or employees’ job duties and any current skill gaps. These skill gaps can be identified in performance reviews or self-assessments. Then, you can build your training plan around the individual employees’ needs.

General employee training plan template

Here is an example of a basic employee training plan template. This training plan template can be adapted to a wide range of training initiatives including onboarding training, performance improvement planning, leadership development training, and more.

Blank general employee training plan template

Employee Name:
Job Title:
Department:
Manager:
Training Program start date:
Training Purpose:

*Training Activity*	*Delivery Method*	*Training Manager*	*Timeline*	*Desired Outcomes*

Additional notes:

Success metrics:

Example of a completed employee training plan template

Employee Name: David Smith
Job Title: Customer Service Representative
Department: Customer Support
Manager: Thomas Belden
Training Program start date: 6/05/22
Training Purpose: To prepare the employee for a leadership role.

Training Activity	Delivery Method	Training Manager	Timeline	Learning Objectives
Problem Solving for Leaders	Group training session	Regional Manager	4-week training course to be completed by 7/15/22	Practice problem-solving and complete exercises that mimic common leadership scenarios that require problem-solving or decision-making.
Communication Skills for Managers	Group training session	Customer Support Manager	8-week training course to be completed by 9/30/22	Develop the skills necessary to communicate with a team in a leadership capacity.
Implicit Bias training	3rd party eLearning training course	Independent study. Questions directed to HR Manager	1-hour training to be completed by 7/30/22	Learn what implicit bias is and the role it can play in workplace decisions. Understand how to identify and manage your own implicit biases.
Sexual Harassment Training for Managers	eLearning training course	Human Resources team	2-hour training to be completed by 6/30/22	Understand the types of sexual harassment and how to identify and prevent them in the workplace.

Additional notes: N/A
Success metrics: Demonstrate proficiency in communication and problem-solving skills. Earn certificates of completion in both online courses with a satisfactory score.

New hire training plan template

The general employee training plan template above can be used for new hires. However many organizations spread their onboarding process and training objectives out across the first 90 days (often also considered the probationary period) and prefer a training plan format that separates the goals out by different milestones.

The new employee training plan template below is also a great way to not only keep the training process organized, but also to facilitate conversations during various employee check-ins. Many businesses have check-ins scheduled at the 30-day, 60-day, and 90-day marks to check in with employees on their training progress and see how they are adapting to their new teams and roles.

Blank new hire training plan template

Employee Name:
Job Title:
Department:
Manager:
Start date:

First Week
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status

Comments:

First 30 days
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status

Comments:

First 60 days
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status

Comments:

First 90 days
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status

Comments:

Completion Date:

Example of a completed new hire training plan template

Employee Name: John Smith
Job Title: Sales Development Representative
Department: Sales
Manager: Joseph Turner
Start date: 8/1/22

First Week
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status
HR Training	In-person one-on-one	HR Manager	Onboarding Forms, log-in for payroll system	8/2/22	Completed
Product Overview	Videos	Self-paced. Videos provided by Product Team	Training videos	8/3/22	Completed
Live Product Demo	Webinar	Product Team	N/A	8/4/22	Completed
Company Policy Training	Document Review	Self-paced with questions directed to the HR team	Employee Handbook	8/4/22	Completed
Sales Department Orientation	In-person one-on-one	Sales Manager	Sales deck	8/1/22	Completed
CRM Training	eLearning	Sales Manager	CRM login, access to CRM vendor training course	8/5/22	Completed

Comments: All HR forms and first-week training requirements completed.

First 30 days
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status
Competitor Training	In-person one-on-one	Sales Manager	Links to competitors	8/10/22	Completed
Sales Technique Training	In-person one-on-one	Sales Manager	N/A	8/17/22	Completed
Sales Scenario Roleplay	In-person one-on-one	Sales Manager	Ideal Customer Case Examples	8/19/22	Completed
Job Shadowing with Senior Sales Rep	Job shadowing	Sr. Sales Rep – Kevin Leahan	N/A	8/26/22	Completed

Comments: At the 30-day check-in, John reported that he felt ready to start taking the lead on more sales initiatives after shadowing and performing sales support tasks for Kevin.

First 60 days
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status
Complete first sales calls and review recordings with Sales Manager	In-person one-on-one	Sales Manager	Recordings of sales calls	9/16/22	Completed
Engage in mentoring sessions with Sr. Sales Rep	In-person one-on-one	Sr. Sales Rep – Kevin Leahan	N/A	9/30/22	Completed
Meet with manager food 60-day review	Performance review	Sales Manager	Employee self-assessment	9/30/22	Completed

Comments: Review of initial sales calls showed a need for improved training and mentorship on sales negotiation.

First 90 days
Training Topic/Task	Training Method	Trainer	Materials Needed	Expected Completion Date	Status
Quarterly product update/refresher	Group training session	Product Lead	N/A	10/30/22	Completed
Create proposed performance goals for next quarter	Independent activity	Employee	List of overall business goals	10/30/22	Completed
Meet with manager food 90-day review	Performance review	Sales Manager	Employee self-assessment	10/31/22	Completed

Comments: Employee has satisfactorily completed all training activities.

Completion Date: 11/1/2022

Employee training plan evaluation template

It’s also a good idea to conduct some post-training feedback from employees to understand how the training program can be improved next time. This can also help you find out if any additional training opportunities are required after completion of the initial plan. Every employee has different learning styles and training needs so even if the training program was well-designed and reasonably paced, some employees may still need additional training or resources.

These are examples of some questions that may be helpful to ask after training. Of course, due to the wide variety of training purposes and formats, you’ll want to adjust the list to fit the training that the employee or team received.

Employee training plan feedback survey example

Trainee Name:
Training Date:
Training Activity:
Training Manager:

How would you rate your overall training experience on a scale of 1-5?
How would you rate your trainer?
Were the learning objectives clearly defined?
Did your trainer seem knowledgeable about the topic that they were teaching?
Was the trainer able to answer all of your questions?
Did you find the training course content engaging?
Do you feel that the pace of the training was appropriate? What would you like to have spent more time on?
Did this training make you feel better prepared for your current or future role?
Did you have ample opportunities to practice the skills that you were learning?
Which of the training delivery methods did you prefer (independent learning, group sessions, one-on-one sessions, etc)?
Did you feel supported throughout the training process?
Were there any training activities that were confusing or hard to follow?
Did you feel that the training was relevant to your needs?
For virtual training activities, did you experience any challenges with the virtual call quality or the technical systems utilized?
Did you find the training activities interactive enough?
Was the format of the e-learning course(s) easy to navigate?
Would you recommend this training to a coworker?
Were you provided with all of the training materials that you needed to complete the training activities?
Is there anything that you feel you need additional training on?
Do you have any suggestions for how future training could be improved?