# Find out whether training will actually fix a performance problem

A performance consulting plan to diagnose a training request, uncover the real cause, and recommend training or something better.

- Topic: Learning & Teaching
- Framework: Few-Shot
- Level: Standard
- Tags: Analyze, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/find-out-whether-training-will-actually-fix-a-performance-problem

## Prompt

```text
Help me respond to a training request by diagnosing whether training is the right fix.

**The request as it was given to me:** [e.g. "Can you run a customer service course for the call center?"]
**Who asked and why now:** [REQUESTER and trigger]
**The business problem or metric:** [e.g. "complaint rate up 20% this quarter"]
**What I know about the people involved:** [roles, tenure, recent changes]
**Deadline or pressure:** [DETAILS]

Use a performance consulting approach (similar to action mapping or Gilbert's Behavior Engineering Model):
1. Restate the business goal as a measurable result.
2. Identify what people need to do differently on the job to reach it.
3. For each behavior, test the likely causes: lack of skill or knowledge, unclear expectations, missing feedback, poor tools or processes, conflicting incentives, workload, or motivation. Only a skill or knowledge gap is fixed by training.

Return:
1. Questions to ask the requester in a 30-minute intake conversation, in order.
2. A short list of data or people I should check before agreeing to build anything.
3. A diagnosis table: Behavior | Likely cause | Evidence needed | Best solution (training, job aid, process fix, manager action, other).
4. A recommendation I can share with the requester, including what training can and cannot achieve here.
5. A polite, non-defensive script for redirecting the request if training is not the answer.
```

## What to fill in

- REQUESTER and trigger
- e.g. "complaint rate up 20% this quarter"
- roles, tenure, recent changes
- DETAILS

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.