Level-Three Training Evaluation: The Coast Guard's Method and Design

It is axiomatic that evaluation plays a major role in all phases of the systematic approach to improving human performance. Implementing performance interventions without following up through evaluation means that positive results, though hoped for, cannot be directly verified. In such a case, an organization may train, create job aids, buy new equipment or institute any number of other interventions without the means to determine whether these "investments" actually improved performance and provided a reasonable "return." Because training is unquestionably among its more resource-intensive and pervasive interventions, the Coast Guard recently analyzed the evaluation of training to establish policies and procedures to ensure that its training efforts are effective. This paper describes the Coast Guard's newly implemented training evaluation policy and associated responsibilities and infrastructure.