| Abstract: | Using the evaluation research strategy (Geroy & Wright, 1988) as a guideline, the authors conducted a needs assessment with 280 support staff, faculty, and administrators at a mid–sized community college. We taught the nominal group technique (Delbecq & Van de Ven, 1971) to representatives from each of these three groups. These representatives facilitated the participation of virtually all employees at the college in identifying a prioritized list of items that would enable these persons to “do their jobs better.” Analysis of the suggested performance improvement solutions utilized the performance technology model (Gilbert, 1978) and indicated that the solutions fell into five categories of intervention: high–yield training, direction and flow of information, resources, performance incentives, and medium–yield training. This combination of models and methods provided the decision makers with data that refocused their vision from planning professional development training to planning for performance improvement. These data represented needs, not wants, and enabled them to recognize the importance of addressing both training and non–training options. |
