Welcome to the last in our series about learning evaluation

models! In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explain everything you

need to know about the Anderson Model of Learning Evaluation,
known as Anderson's Value of Learning Model. We’ll explain how it
works, how it differs from other models and what it has to offer. Our
guide will give you a better understanding of this unique
model and show you the benefits of applying it within your
organization.   

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll be discussing things like:  

1. What is the Anderson model of learning evaluation?

2. How does the Anderson model of learning evaluation work?
3. Example of the Anderson model in action
4. How practical and feasible is the Anderson Value of Learning
Model?
5. What are the advantages of the Anderson Value of Learning
Model?
6. What are the limitations of the Anderson Value of Learning
Model?
7. Conclusion

Let’s get to it!  

1. What is the Anderson model of learning

evaluation?
The Anderson model of learning evaluation is a unique three-stage
learning evaluation cycle that is designed to be applied at an
organizational level. While other training evaluation models focus
on specific learning interventions, Anderson’s model is more
concerned with aligning the training goals with
the organization’s strategic goals.  

The Anderson model was first published by the Chartered Institute

of Personnel and Development in 2006 as the ‘Anderson’s Value of
Learning Model’. As a relative newcomer to the training evaluation
industry, the Anderson model distinguishes itself by focusing on the
two areas that organizations frequently struggle with.  

These are:  

 Conducting evaluations 
  Gathering evidence 

The Anderson model of learning evaluation was inspired by a study

into learning and development benchmarking by Brandon
Hall. This study found that while 73 percent of organizations
have learning strategies that are aligned to their business goals,
their expectations for training programs were not so closely
aligned.  

For example, suppose that the training department of a car

manufacturer initiates a program designed to improve the sales
team’s performance without making similar efforts to
raise manufacturing productivity. This would lead to longer waiting
times and may actually hurt the business if the sales team
increase sales without being able to deliver cars in time.  

Anderson's Value of Learning model is focused on addressing

issues such as these. It is aimed at an organization’s management
and intended to align training with strategic priorities. 

  

2. How does the Anderson model of learning

evaluation work?
Anderson’s Value of Learning model helps to align an
organization’s training programs with its strategic priorities. It does
this by focusing on the evaluation of learning strategy, rather than
the outcome of individual programs.  

Anderson’s model is a three-stage cycle that helps an organization

determine the best training strategy for their needs.  

The three stages are:  

Stage 1: Determine the current alignment of training against

strategic priorities for the organization. 

Stage 2:  Use a range of methods to assess and evaluate the

contribution of learning. 
Stage 3: Establish the most relevant approaches for your
organization.  

The most relevant approach for any given organization will depend
on its stakeholders’ goals and values. Anderson’s model suggests
four categories of measure, as follows: 

 Emphasis on the short-term benefits 

 Emphasis on long-term benefits 
 Senior management trust in learning contribution 

 The organization requires learning value metrics

3. Example of the Anderson model in action

To better understand how Anderson’s model works in practice, we’ll
use the example of a phone manufacturing company to show the
model in action.  

Stage 1: Determine the current alignment of training against

strategic priorities for the organization. During this stage, the
manufacturing company would review its training programs and
determine whether they were in alignment with its strategic goals.
For example, if its training programs were focused on improving
sales, you would expect its strategic priorities to be increasing
manufacturing productivity to meet increased sales. A sales training
initiative that wasn’t backed up by a productivity initiative would
lead to delayed waiting times and could harm the business.
Therefore the first stage of the Anderson model is to check for
training and strategic alignment. 

Stage 2:  Use a range of methods to assess and evaluate the

contribution of learning. 
In common with other training evaluation models, the most
challenging aspect of Anderson’s model is determining the
contribution of training and learning to the business goal. Using the
example of a phone manufacturer implementing a sales training
program, you could study shipments data and see whether the
training had an impact on the number of products being shipped.
This could be linked to the sales training and used to assign a
monetary value to the impact that the training had.  

Stage 3: Establish the most relevant approaches for your

organization.  
The third stage of Anderson’s model outlines four specific areas
of evaluation. These are:  

 Return on Investment Measures  

 Return on Expectation Measures  
 Benchmark and Capacity Measures 
 Learning Function Measures 

Let's look at each of these areas in greater detail: 

Return on Investment Measures  

This includes the cost of the learning programs compared with the
company’s bottom line.  

Return on Expectation Measures  

This looks at whether the expectations of the training have been
met.  

Benchmark and Capacity Measures 

This looks at how the organization is doing relative to others.  

Learning Function Measures 

This studies how efficient is the program in your business 

Following the Anderson’s model, practitioners would use the areas

of evaluation to determine the best approach. The phone
manufacturer in our example may be more interested in return on
investment (ROI) measures and therefore focus on this metric. They
would compare the cost of the training program with the impact on
the company’s sales data to determine the ROI of the training
program.  

4. How practical and feasible is the Anderson

Value of Learning Model?
By looking at both the Return on Investment (ROI) and Return on
Expectations (ROE), it is clear that Anderson’s Value of Learning
Model emphasizes the importance of aligning training and learning
with an organization’s strategic priorities above all else. The
obvious question is; how practical and feasible is this approach?

To answer this, we need to begin from the understanding that the

Anderson Value of Learning Model is based on the hypothesis that
when it comes to training evaluation, one size does not fit all. As
the mode focuses on the evaluation of training strategy, rather than
on individual training programs, it assumes that a variety of
instructional approaches and strategies will be implemented.
Therefore, the model’s three-step evaluation cycle addresses the
extent to which the training provided value overall, as opposed to
which specific training programs were successful or unsuccessful.

The model was conceived as a way of addressing two main

challenges:

 The Evaluation Challenge

 The Value Challenge

Developed in 2006, the Anderson Model is a relative newcomer to

the world of training evaluation. The Evaluation Challenge referred
to the fact that many organizations felt it was challenging to
evaluate training effectiveness. In other words, they had
experimented with other approaches such as the Kirkpatrick Model
or the Phillips ROI model and had experienced difficulties in
applying these models effectively. The challenging aspects of using
these evaluation models stemmed from the costs or complexities of
implementing them in the workplace and the difficulties in obtaining
useful results from the data.

The Value Challenges referred to the fact that organization leaders

often require evidence that a specific learning or training program
had provided value. Identifying this value can prove difficult as can
deploying resources in a cost-effective manner.

When viewed in this light, the Anderson Value of Learning Model is

more practical and feasible than other learning models. As the
three-stage cycle is intended to be applied at an organization level,
it is arguably more practical than other evaluation models that
address the specific learning taking place.

5. What are the advantages of the Anderson

Value of Learning Model?
The Anderson Value of Learning Model provides a number of clear
advantages over other evaluation models. However, these
advantages must be viewed with an understanding of how different
this model is to other approaches. Overall, there are three main
advantages of this model
  No ‘One-size-fits-all’
 Alignment of learning function with strategic priorities
 Addresses evaluation and value challenges

Let’s look more closely at these three advantages of the Anderson

Model.

No ‘One-size-fits-all’
The main advantage of the Anderson Value of Learning Model is that
it embraces the concept that adopting a ‘one-size-fits-all’ to training
isn’t productive or feasible. This marks it out among other learning
evaluation models. Unlike other evaluation models that are looking
at training at an instructional level, the Anderson model is focused
squarely on the overall learning strategy and the extent to which
this is aligned with an organization’s strategic priorities.

This Anderson Model is built on the hypothesis that no single

training method or course will meet the needs of all learners.
Organizations will need to experiment with a range of approaches to
learning journeys in order to meet the needs of their employees. For
example, the Anderson Value of Learning Model can be used by any
organization no matter which learning model they use. The focus is
on whether the learning helps the organization meets its strategic
objectives.

Alignment of learning function with strategic priorities

The second main advantage of Anderson Value of Learning Model is
that it is applied at an organization level. It looks at the extent to
which the training and learning programs are helping an
organization meet its strategic priorities. For example, if an
organization's goal is to boost it’s ROI, the Anderson Value of
Learning Model will tell you whether the training helps support that
goal. If there is a misalignment, the model can help an organization
decide upon a better instructional approach, such as training that
helps boost ROI.

Addresses Evaluation and Value challenges

The third main advantage of the Anderson Value of Learning Model
is that it helps an organization address the two main challenges we
discussed before – the Evaluation Challenge and the Value
challenge. The Anderson model is arguably less challenging to apply
than other evaluation models as it isn’t focused on individual
training programs. Therefore there is less need for the same level of
in-depth data collection and evaluation as other evaluation models
call for.

The Anderson Value of Learning Model also helps address the Value
challenge, which is the difficulty that many organizations face when
collecting data to prove the value of a training course or learning
journey. Whereas other models call for the collection of vast
quantities of data (to link training with ROI, for example) the
Anderson Value of Learning Model is looking at training at an
organization level and taking a broader approach to evaluation.

6. What are the limitations of the Anderson Value of Learning

Model?
Despite the numerous advantages of this approach to learning
evaluation, the Anderson Value of Learning Model has a number of
limitations that set it apart from other training evaluation models. In
the main, there are two main limitations that we can briefly look at
here:

 Limited depth
 Limited direction on direct learning evaluation
 

Let’s discuss these two areas in more detail:

Limited depth
The main limitation of the Anderson Value of Learning Model is that
it only gives an organization a high-level evaluation of the
effectiveness of their training programs. Arguably this makes it
simpler and cheaper to apply, but it also means that the model
lacks the depth that you get from other evaluation models.

For example, other learning models such as the Kirkpatrick model,

go into far greater detail about whether a training program worked
and what went right or what went wrong. The Kirkpatrick model will
tell a company which aspect of the training was successful and
which part of the process requires improvement. By contrast, the
Anderson Value of Learning Model provides limited insight into
aspects of individual training programs.

This limitation of the Andreson model of learning evaluation will be

clear for any organization looking for ways to identify the most
effective training program. As the Anderson model takes a broad
approach, an organization that uses it cannot identify which training
programs were effective and which were not. By looking at training
in its entirety, the Anderson model takes a holistic approach that
doesn’t account for the success or failure of individual training
programs.

Limited direction on direct learning evaluation

As the Anderson Model isn’t an in-depth analysis of individual
training programs, its second main limitation is that it doesn’t give
specific direction about how to evaluate each learning initiative or
learning journey. While the model does encourage the use of
different evaluation approaches, it provides little direction on the
‘how’ and ‘what’ of assessment.

With the Anderson Model, the focus is squarely on whether an

organization’s training programs, as a whole, are aligned with its
strategic objectives. This gives limited direction on how to directly
evaluate specific training programs. According to the Anderson
model, an organization must combine multiple evaluation
approaches (such as the Kirkpatrick Model) in conjunction with the
Anderson Value of Learning model, in order to establish whether the
strategic priorities are being met.

7. Conclusion
Anderson’s model of training evaluation offers many benefits over
other training evaluation models. As it is designed to be applied at
an organization level, it is less complex to implement than other
types of learning evaluation models. Given its focus on alignment of
the strategic priorities and learning strategy of an organization, the
Anderson Model is arguable more practical and feasible to
implement than other evaluation models. However, in practice, the
Anderson model must be combined with other evaluation models
(such as the Kirkpatrick model) to provide a holistic picture of the
value that a training program or learning journey is bringing to the
organization.

 If you're ready to find out how Kodo Survey can help you evaluate
the effectiveness of your training programs and learning
journeys, request a demo with one of our experts today.  

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