Content, timing, logistics… nothing should be left to chance.

Interview Abdelkrim Sekkak, HR Director of Shell Group Morocco.

Monitoring the evolution of the company's internal and external environment, evaluating employees, identifying skills…, defining training needs is a long process.

Like subsidiaries of multinationals or some large local groups, the Shell Group in Morocco has included training on its list of priorities. Technical or managerial, several disciplines are offered to the staff. Abdelkrim Sekkak, HR Director of the group, explains how their programs are prepared.

1. How do you define your training needs?
Training needs are of two types: individual and collective.
Individual actions come from two different and closely linked sources. It is the result of performance management and short and long-term career management.
In the case of performance management, the evaluation interview allows the evaluated employee and their hierarchical manager to realize the individual objectives achieved and those that could not be. When a gap is observed, it must lead to a training action.
In career management, each executive in the company, from their integration, is required to establish a career plan (which, in the case of Shell Morocco, spans at least 3 years). Then, at the annual review of this career plan with their hierarchical manager, they outline their current skills, their future career wishes, and the necessary actions to achieve them. Among these actions, there are certainly training courses.
Collective needs are linked to the implementation of company projects, such as the launch of a new product, the implementation of a new process…

2. What logic does your choice of training actions follow?
Training actions are chosen to meet the needs of staff members to carry out their tasks in their respective positions.
There are several ways to set up training, I can mention four:

• Training type “course”, in a classroom or virtually (e-learning);
• Training in accompaniment or coaching by a person with more experience;
• Training through direct professional experience, by assigning personnel to specific projects to learn during their implementation;
• Use of reference material such as books, useful publications…
• The most widespread form is the organization of face-to-face courses or e-learning, or by accompaniment (coaching).

In the case of our group, we recommend a mix of the four methods whenever possible. Now, the choice of training is based on a Shell University database that offers a wide range of standard training courses, both technical and managerial. We supplement this panel with specific local training through renowned firms (such as training related to legislation and the market). These firms obviously follow a qualification process to meet the required training standards.

3. Do you prefer internal or external training?
We cannot really talk about preference, but rather choice, in order to provide training in the best possible way and with maximum efficiency. Sometimes, it is more judicious to provide internal training, for example, to share existing expertise within the company. We also use the internal training method for cost considerations. As for external training, it allows us to acquire added value in certain areas.

4. What types of training do you favor (technical, managerial, personal development…)?
In principle, there must be a balance between technical and managerial aspects in training, a balance that depends on the position held. We will see more leadership training for managers, while it will be the opposite for experts. It is a specialist's job to achieve this balance, and that is why we have dedicated training managers and use the term “training engineering”.
In parallel, personal development is very important, because in addition to being an essential element of motivation (self-realization), it allows for evolution within the organization, regardless of the career path (expert or manager).

5. How do you ensure the evaluation and monitoring of training actions?
We carry out a hot evaluation through questionnaires distributed at the end of each training session, but also a cold evaluation, through the skills assessment carried out by managers on a biannual basis.
As for skills acquired, training monitoring is jointly ensured by the human resources department, via training managers, and hierarchical managers who ensure throughout the year that it runs smoothly, and as already mentioned during annual reviews (annual performance evaluation or career management interview)
Practically, through the attendance list, we monitor the participants, which provides us with a training performance indicator, which is the number of training days per person and per department. On the other hand, the hot training evaluations, which are sent to managers, allow us to correct the situation and validate the effectiveness of the training with the participants. This information makes it possible to implement the necessary actions to manage training actions.

6. You have surely had failures, what are the most significant ones?
From experience, there are many points on which we must be vigilant regarding training.
It is necessary to avoid repeating training that would not exactly meet the need expressed by the participants, due to a lack of communication with the trainer or because of a need. The success of training sessions lies in the details. In addition to ensuring good content and using a good trainer, the organization must also be perfect in terms of location, timing, and logistics.

Brahim Habriche. 

Published on September 28, 2011.

Posted online on October 1, 2011.

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