Should we forget training evaluation models? The economic impact of external training in the construction SMEs
The way in which SMEs assess the effectiveness of outsourced training has been the subject of little empirical work. However, as highlighted in the European CVTS (Continual Vocational Traning Survey) surveys, SME managers pay close attention to the effects of training and declare that they are engaged in measures to assess its impact. The literature has mainly focused on the tools deployed in large companies, often based on Kirkpatrick’s approach, but the practices of SMEs in this area remain largely unknown. The purpose of our article is to shed light on the methods of evaluating outsourced training in SMEs. To this end, a qualitative study was conducted with managers of SMEs in Building and Public Works industry. Our results indicate that the evaluation practices of SMEs are not homogeneous. They vary according to the objectives assigned to training on the one hand and the internal characteristics of companies on the other. At the end of the analysis, three evaluation methods were thus identified and characterized: remediation, adaptation and projection. Our conclusions invite us to rethink the way to support SMEs in their training projects based on an evaluation model called COLDEI.