The development of a Web-based training component of an orientation program for newly hired automobile sales consultants

Organizations face increasing competition in today's global economy. One such industry especially challenged is the U.S. automotive industry. Effective and efficient orientation of new sales consultants trained to meet the demands of today's customers in a global market place is a necessity for U.S. automobile dealerships who wish to remain competitive. The purpose of this study was to design, develop, and validate the Web-based-training (WBT) component of a redesigned, blended learning, orientation program for newly hired automobile sales consultants using minimal resources. The study used a developmental research methodology with formative and summative committees to complete and validate the WBT portion of a sales consultant orientation program. A formative committee, consisting of a cross-functional team of dealership employees, met in a series of meetings over 6 weeks to develop and design the WBT program and program learning delivery process. Seven of the 12 orientation program tasks were identified by the committee as best trained via Web-based learning. Of the existing WBT courses, 29 were selected for inclusion in the WBT portion of the revised dealership orientation program. A summative committee, consisting of external industry experts, used an industry-wide perspective to consider the potential usefulness of the WBT program for automobile sales consultants. The external summative committee unanimously agreed that the WBT program has potential usefulness. The use of WBT for a majority of key performance tasks for newly hired automobile sales consultants may provide the opportunity for dealerships to provide required training at a modest cost in an effective manner.