skill acquisition business plan

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A 6-Step Skill Acquisition Strategy for Success

Strategic skill acquisition initiatives can increase revenues and reduce attrition. Simply put, they help companies recruit today for tomorrow’s roles.

Organizations often resort to hiring new employees when talent problems arise, but it is not always an optimal solution. It is often expensive, time consuming, and disruptive. For instance, a study by Center for American Progress found that hiring a new employee to replace a lost one can cost up to 213 percent of the previous one’s salary. Therefore, in the current digital economy, it makes sense for companies to focus on a skill acquisition strategy that retains employees rather than a policy of constantly hiring new employees.

Intangible aspects such as recruiting components, onboarding, lost productivity/engagement, customer service, and cultural impact often are unacknowledged. A WorkTrends.com study found that one in every three employees wants to change jobs within the first six months. However, upskilling can positively influence employee retention and motivation.

For companies embedded with modern technologies, such a strategy also can help them capitalize on industry trends and adopt preemptive measures for future developments. Anticipating skill needs in the knowledge economy can enhance a company’s reputation as an attractive workplace, and that makes it vital for success.

Today’s workforce is dominated by Millennials, a group that wants to add value and deliver impact. Rather than fancy perks at the office, this generation is more concerned with job satisfaction and career advancement. A skills acquisition strategy, thus, can cater to such aspirations and motivate Millennials to stay longer and work harder.

When it comes to skill acquisition, companies must decide which skills to impart and how. This requires intricate planning and choosing the right training partner. This is a costly process, but it ultimately costs less than hiring a new employee for every role. These six steps can shape an effective process.

The 6-Step Skill Acquisition Process

1. Weigh Skills Deficit Vs. Potential

Before beginning, organizations should determine which skills need to be developed and where the gaps lie with existing employees. Locating these gaps and filling them with trending skills can boost morale and loyalty. It also can result in reduced recruitment costs. To determine if a company needs training, hiring, or a mix, it needs to ask itself:

• What skills are needed?
• Can these skills be incorporated into the skillsets of current employees?
• Can skills be taught to multiple employees?
• If so, which of these skills are needed the most?

2. Assess Comprehensive Process Goals

An organization that sets and pursues clear training objectives from the beginning reaps the greatest benefits. Such objectives ensure that training is conducted with the long-term vision of the company in mind, and that its ROI is measurable. This also aids in teambuilding and the standardization of processes/skills. The goals need to indicate:

• Key skills to be taught
• Outcomes of these skills
• Merging skills with company objectives
• Effect on billing and profits

3. Choose Specialist Training Providers

Training processes can benefit from the expertise provided by specialist vendors. While pinpointing an ideal trainer based on courses, methodologies, and price is an arduous task, it is profitable in the long term. Some key aspects to remember are:

• The vendor’s core competency
• The dominant training model
• Course structure and assessments
• Real-world instructors and updated material
• Tracking and certification availability

4. Incentivize Training for Impact and Adoption

Successful training needs to engage a larger audience. Some employees are self-motivated, while others require incentives in order to partake in training processes. The best incentive programs enhance performance levels by 44 percent and don’t have to be expensive or monetary in nature to succeed. Some common examples of good incentives are:

• Public praise and completion certifications
• Networking events and graduation ceremonies
• Gift cards or corporate branded gear
• Paid time off or flex-time options
• Job promotions (or avoiding penalties for non-completion)

5. Measure Collective Results

No training mandate is complete without accurate measurement of results. With the right tracking mechanism in place, progress can be tracked, obstacles can be monitored, and success can be celebrated. Most vendors provide detailed monitoring dashboards to calculate ROI and share feedback. This is especially necessary for larger organizations. Some of the metrics to measure are:

• Course engagement and experience
• Meeting point of learnings and preset objectives
• Behavioral change in employees and company
• Improved long-term productivity, retention, revenue, and morale

6. Predict Future Roles and Prepare Employees

The end goal of training is to set up companies for a future in which they can predict industry trends and future opportunities for their employees. Filling roles internally with adequately skilled employees already on the payroll is indicative of a well-oiled machine. Strategic skill acquisition initiatives can increase revenues and reduce attrition massively. Simply put, it allows companies to recruit today for tomorrow’s roles.

Skill Training Is an Investment, Not an Expense

With strategic training programs, companies can nurture relevant skills that meet immediate and future needs. While this process requires hiring trainers, building modules, and measuring progress, the immediate and long-term benefits outweigh any demands on resources, such as time and money. Armed with e-learning and virtual classrooms that make flexible training possible, employees now can be trained anytime and anywhere. Ultimately, companies need to start viewing skill training as a crucial investment and not a frivolous expense in order to succeed.

Krishna Kumar, founder and CEO of Simplilearn, reimagined education for future working professionals. Kumar strongly feels that technology can be used to make learning more accessible and to personalize the learner experience. An entrepreneur at heart, Kumar believes in continual improvement and the need to stay focused on achieving goals. This remains the guiding philosophy at Simplilearn. What started in 2009 as a blog in Bangalore, India, has transformed into the multinational e-learning company, Simplilearn, one of the largest digital economy training providers in the world today. Simplilearn has a blended learning approach and combines online classes, live virtual classrooms, projects, and teaching support. Before Simplilearn, Kumar was the co-founder and COO at software product company TechUnified, which he exited in 2007 after selling it to a publicly held company. He started his career as a software engineer with Infosys and has a Bachelor of Engineering degree from NIT, Surathkal, India.

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• A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan
• Post author: Ane
• Post published: July 29, 2020
• Post category: BUSINESS-PLAN-AND-FEASIBILITY-STUDY / Business Tips / C.A.C. INCORPORATION
• Post comments: 0 Comments

A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan – We present here for you a sample of the Skill Acquisition Centre business plan applicable to Nigeria. In fact, this is a business plan for a vocational training institute. It gives you all the details you require as a business plan for starting a training institute. In other words, it’s a must-read for a business plan for youth empowerment. Read more about A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan here.

It presents a Skill Acquisition Business Plan with three Years of Financial reports. So, if you are interested in raising funds to either kick-start or expand your vocational center, you will need this post as a template. In fact, it’s a must-read for everyone intending to start a Vocational School & Training Centre.

The Uses of this proposal:A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Table of Contents

This Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan can be used for government proposals. It’s also good as a start-up road map. And when you are into a competition, please resort to this post. In fact, this particular model which is automatically generated by a world-class business plan software gives you all the details you need. Therefore, there is a comprehensive monthly and annual analysis for three years. Buy a copy today by contacting us.

Complete Skill Acquisition & Consults:

This is a firm of skill acquisition, fashion designers and beauty modeling enterprise consultants based in Abuja. We parade the most efficient and large-scale fashion design and beauty modeling skill acquisition in Abuja.  As you know skills and motivation is for proper functioning in society and contribution to the economy. The importance of acquiring entrepreneurial skills includes Self-employment, income generation and self-satisfaction/passion.

Our Service Offering: A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Furthermore, among our service offerings include

• Hair Styling (Unisex) – This is an important part of the health and beauty industry. They are responsible for cutting and styling clients’ hair.
• Fashion Designing – Style and design go hand in hand in making our clothes.

Furthermore, are;

• Makeup Artistry – Your look matters. So we work on your look here.
• Event Planning – We plan and educate you to learn how to do this.
• Electrical Repairs – If you need this skill, you are well come.
• Home Cleaning – Cleaning services are both for home and industrial.
• Arts and Crafts – Talent plays a great role here.

NOTE: For each of these business ideas, there is a suitable business plan. You can contact us for any., or a combination of them.

Problem to Solve @ A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Furthermore, we help you develop and support your services to start and maintain existing businesses. In fact, that is to help you develop your business ideas properly and follow statutory guidelines in running your businesses. So, we aid them in incorporating and plan their business operations.

Our solution:

In addition, we make every effort to ascertain the initial capital investment required. Then we help ascertain their fixed assets, and working capital. And personnel cost. In fact, these will lead us to forecast for turnover cost of sales, income statement, and balance sheet.

Marketing Activities: A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Furthermore, we will use our website to create serious awareness of our services. Our marketing banner will be spread around the major markets in Abuja. In fact, we will distribute over 500 flyers and ensure announcements are made for our services in social media.

Sales channels:

As a matter of fact, we have so schedule our sales channels to go through;

• customer offices
• Online Marketing
• Social Media

Target Market

Competition: This is very important for us. This is because in addition to fellow acquisition centres, there are also of alternative services.

Current alternatives – A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

In fact, the competitive landscape for our services is not so severe.  However, there is these competition from freelance consultants. The direct competitors we have are other consultants who equally organize for SMEs and NDE’s training. At any rate, most of them are not professional artisans. In fact, our challenges are how to figure out approaches to outcompete these alternative service providers.

Our advantages:

Furthermore, we have identified great advantages over our other competitors and alternatives. This is because our office is easily accessible to our local clients. In fact, our work is easier and faster. Our service products are of better tasting, longer lasting, and is backed by better customer service. In fact, our business plan model is a specialized solution that is better for our particular group of customers. 

Execution: Marketing & Sales For A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Marketing plan:.

Our marketing strategy is going to be all-embracing. Therefore, there is going to be all kinds of marketing activities that will attract customers. In fact, we are investing in signage, and physical and digital advertising. Others are going to be by email newsletters, search engine optimization, social media outreach, TV and radio commercials. As a matter of fact, their related expenses are included in our forecast.

Sales Plan – A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

On the other hand, we have a definite plan on how to actualize our sales forecast. Our focus is going to turn those prospects who express interest in our services through visiting our office to paying customers. Then, those who sign up for our newsletter and those who ask for estimates equally into paying customers. By this we will not only have enough customers who desire our products and services but also persons who need to acquire skills through our facility.

Operations – Locations & Facilities – A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

In this regard, our office is located at MOPOL Checking point, Nyagwa. This is a popular location in Abuja. In fact, this location is of great advantage to our business. This is because it’s easily accessible. In fact, we get a lot of vehicle or foot traffic passing by. Another fact is that our target customers are heavily represented in this neighborhood’s demographics.

On this too, we have recently acquired world-class state of arts machines and tolls capable of the automatic production of goods and services. This will certainly promote skill acquisition of our learning students.

In addition, the CAC platforms for business registration is of great help to us. Again, is the SMEDAN business plan development software which is available for all upcoming entrepreneurs. On the other hand, NDE recently floated automatic systems to facilitate skill acquisitions.

Furthermore, we apply most cashless applications in receiving and making payments. In fact, online payment is the order of the day.

Equipment & Tools

Furthermore, tools for vocational training include technical training equipment and automotive education equipment.  Therefore, the major equipment needed for our services include sewing machines, designing machines, wood craft machines, lap tops, etc. These are among our installed facility.

Milestones & Metrics

Milestones table for a sample skill acquisition centre business plan.

Key metrics

In this regard. our major target is to get at certain level of traffic on our website. In addition is the ability to convert a reasonable percentage of those visitors into customers. This increase in turnover will enable us keep at least N2, 000,000 monthly as cash in our bank account.

Company Overview: A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Ownership & structure.

Complete Skill Acquisition & Consults is a firm of skill acquisition, fashion designers and beauty modeling enterprise consultants based in Abuja.

The firm was incorporate 15th December, 2016. The directors are Deacon Ane Nworgu, the Managing Partner. Others are Miss Gift Enyinnaya the secretary, and Mr King Enyinnaya our third director. Complete Skill Acquisition & Consults (CSAC) is an enterprise.

Company history

Furthermore, this firm was started by Deacon Ane Nworgu who is a Fashion designer. After retirement from Industrial Consultants International Limited, (ICIL Ltd) as head of skill acquisition department in 2015, it became imperative that I start this office to render professional services to members of the public.

In addition, there has been a lot of collaborations with other collegue on most of these professional services. As a matter of fact, since the inception of this firm in 2016, it has done a lot of skill acquisition and event management for individuals and organisations. In fact most of these clients come through our company website – http://completefmc.com

Management team for A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Our management team is made up of Deacon Ane Nworgu, the managing partners. Others are Miss. Gift Enyinnay our secretary and Mr. King Enyinnaya our ICT  expert. A key staff member is Mr. Henry who is our Marketing/Admin officer.

In addition, Barrister Dacid Oguadimma has been of immense help to us. Others are Mr. Victor a fellow auditor and Mr. Enang who manages our incorporatiin processes.

Financial Plan Forecast for A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

Key assumptions.

Furthermore, our revenue projection is based on past results. Others are from market research. In fact, based on the number of readers who visit our website recently, our estimates are reliable. Therefore, we expect an annual growth of 10% from this year 2020. Our key hires has been those involved in our CAC incorporation processes which also constitute our notable expenses. The level of profit we expect to generate this year is high.

Personnel Cost Analysis:

Personnel Cost Chart

Direct Cost Analysis:

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COMPLETE FULL MARKS CONSULTANTS (CFMC) LIMITED:

Finally, CFMC LTD is a firm of chartered accountants, and management consultants. Professionally, we are trained for business counselling. Furthermore, as accredited consultants with CAC, SMEDAN and other government agencies, we handle your statutory licensing and registrations.

OUR CONTACTS For A Sample Skill Acquisition Centre Business Plan

+234 8034347851 and 09053130518, or email us at [email protected]

In fact, I need to thank you for reading through. You can bookmark this page for updates. But then, this is time to think of helping a brother, sister or friend. Let them know what we can do for them. You can do this by sharing this post. Like us on our Facebook for updates.

CONTINUE READING HERE

Deacon Anekperechi Nworgu, a seasoned economist who transitioned into a chartered accountant, auditor, tax practitioner, and business consultant, brings with him a wealth of industry expertise spanning over 37 years.

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Skill Acquisition Business Plan with 3 Years Financial Projections

Skill development is a means to harness the human resource potential of a region by equipping an individual or the existing members of the workforce with marketable skills through vocational or technical training to meet industry requirements. It emphasizes demand-driven systems for skill acquisition.

Skill is very important in the life of every human being. The reason why many technicians earn more than some university graduates is that the technicians acquire more practical skills than the theories, unlike the graduates who were fed with theoretical experiences while in the universities. Skill acquisition is the ability to be trained on a particular task or function and becomes expert in it.

With the increasing population and the high rate of unemployment among youths, experts are suggesting that youths should be trained in different skills acquisition/ vocational programme.

As a company or an individual, you can offer a unique array of integrated Onsight vocational & skill acquisition training services through the human capacity building.

It depends on your capacity, you can offer a flexible training programme. You can engage expert and pay them for facilitating on your behalf.

The importance of skill acquisition cannot be overemphasized. Today government is giving support to many business hubs that are involved in vocational training or youth empowerment.

The government in the past and presence has initiated many programmes like:

Youth Enterprise With Innovation in Nigeria (YOUWIN)

Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P)

Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS)

Youth Entrepreneur Support Program (YES-P)

Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agencies (SMEDAN)

The National Directorate of Employment (NDE)

The government also supports companies that are involved in capacity building with funds and other support for them to better position themselves to provide quality training and capacity building programmes.

You can do e-training. Training people using the digital format like online training, video, audio, and ebook.

If you are interested in raising funds to either kickstart or expand your vocational centre, you will need a well-prepared business plan for that purpose.

To help you source for funds, we have developed a standard skill acquisition business plan with 3 years financial projections.

Our standard skill acquisition business plan comes with 3 years financial analysis that includes sales projections, income statements, balance sheets, breakeven analysis, cash flow among others.

The business plan is developed to help you save money, time and energy and most importantly, raise fund to kickstart or scale your business up. Why waste time and energy to write a business plan that will take a couple of months to complete yet you won’t still get it right? Why not get our already developed standard skill acquisition business plan with 3 years financial analysis and make some changes to suit your needs?

When you get our standard skill acquisition business plan with 3 years analysis, what you need to do is to change the name, contact details, company details, founders details and other info to suit your need and present it to anyone (bank, investor, grant competition etc).

The standard skill acquisition business plan is in MS words and the financial is in excel. so that you can deliver to your inbox immediately and you can easily change it to suit your needs.

NOTE: if you don’t like an already developed business plan (generic) and you need a tailor-made and a unique business plan to be developed for your business,  kindly click here to check the different packages we have.

Details About The Business Plan

Released/Last Updated Date : November 2018

Format:  MS Words and Excel(3 financial analysis)

Take a look at the table of content:

1)      Table of Contents

2)      Executive Summary:  The summary includes introduction, products and services description, marketing and sales among others

3)      Company Overview : this includes

• Mission Statement
• History and Current Status
• Markets and Products
• Keys to success

4)      Product or Service description.

5)       Industry and Market Analysis

• Introduction
• Industry analysis
• Market analysis
• Customer analysis
• Competitor analysis
• SWOT Analysis

6)      Marketing Strategy

• Target Market Strategy
• Product/Service Strategy
• Pricing Strategy
• Distribution Strategy
• Advertising and Promotion Strategy
• Sales Strategy
• Marketing and Sales Forecasts

7)      Operations

• Operations Strategy
• The scope of Operations
• Operating Expenses

8)      Development

• Development Strategy
• Development Timeline
• Development Expenses

9)      Management

• Company Organization
• Management Team
• Administrative Expenses

10)   Summary of Financials

• Financial Assumptions
• Financial Forecasts
• Projected Cash Flow
• Income Statements

iii.      Balance sheet

• Profit and loss
• Profit Margin, chart etc
• Financial Risks

11)   Appendices

Support for Product/Service Description (e.g., diagrams, pictures, etc.)

Financial Statements

• Income Statement [3 years]
• Balance Sheets [3 years]
• Cash Flow Statements [3 years]
• Ratio Analysis [3 years]
• Other supporting financial statements

How to Access This standard skill acquisition business plan with 3 years financial analysis

This standard skill acquisition business plan with 3 years financial analysis should cost you N20,000, but you are not going to give you for that amount. But for today and for a limited time, we will give you for Only  N7,000.

How to Pay and Access The Business Plan

Method one – Online Payment

Pay online using credit or debit card and download the documents immediately.

Click here to pay online now and download immediately

Method Two – Bank Deposit, Internet/ATM Transfer/Mobile Money etc

You can access the documents by paying cash or doing bank/internet transfer or ATM transfer to any of the following accounts below:

AFTER PAYMENT: Please text or email your name, phone number, payment details and your email address to 07031542324 or [email protected] and your standard skill acquisition business plan will be sent to you

OTHER STANDARD BUSINESS PLANS

If you need already developed plans, check the ones we have developed below:

WHAT CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING

I want to say a big thank you for the business plan you sent. The plan is rich and detailed and professionally developed as explained on your web page. In fact the plan worth more than price. I have gone through the financial template and I have made some changes to suit my needs and would present it to my banker next. Am I going to present it together with the financial template or should I only present the business plan?

I have gone through the financial template and I have made some changes to suit my needs and would present it to my banker next. Am I going to present it together with the financial template or should I only present the business plan?

Can I also send it for you to help me review the financial before I submit?

Mrs. Esther Enudi

If you have any question, don’t hesitate to call me on 07031542324

07031542324

utibeman(@)gmail.com

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How To Create a Skills Acquisition Plan

by Natasha Westover | Apr 13, 2020 | natashawestover | 0 comments

It’s sounds really easy to point out the importance of acquiring skills throughout your career but why do so many of us lose sight of this important aspect at some point in careers?

I’ve had many periods in my career where thinking about the skills I was working on was furthest from my mind. Why? When the logic of this makes so much sense? There are many reasons:

• I was too busy doing the day job
• I was having too much fun or too depressed to care
• I thought my employer would simply take care of it for me
• I assumed just by doing the job I would naturally gain skiils

I could carry on the list above but you get the gist! Besides, I now value skill acquisition so much, it’s difficult to cast my mind back to these days and think about the ‘old me’.

In the last 2 years, I’ve worked as a six figure Finance Director, an interim CEO and Senior Fundraiser for a charity, and a change consultant. I moved into recruitment and I’m also a Trustee of a charity.

The fact is, I didn’t just get to do these roles on a whim, I have 20 years business and finance experience under my belt, but I could have easily stayed in a pure finance role rather than branch out. I’m able to try new things because I worked out the skills in finance and how to transfer them to other areas, organisations and industries.

I’ve put on my learner hat (often feeling like a fool!) and got curious about things that interest me.

I’ve learned to be able to understand my skills (even the new ones I’m acquiring) and then work out my elevator pitch. I’ve learned to listen to what an organisation needs, what they value, and quickly help them understand how my skills fill their gap.

But life wasn’t always like this. I found a career in finance very structured and linear, so I didn’t develop wider business and leadership skills early in my career. I only developed them when I needed them – not something I would recommend! – but I got there in the end.

Personally, I value a good sense of security with a feeling of variety and exploration. The first 10-15 years of my career were massively structured and the last 5 years or so have been filled with variety. Both are of value, and both I would highly recommend, because both serve me well.

And this is one of the key words which drives a lot of what I do – ‘to serve’. I reached a point in my career where I stepped closer to these words and started using them regularly in my vocabulary. These simple words unlocked everything for me and lead me to a healthy place of skills acquisition mindset.

Where to start?

I’m at a point in my career where I’m actually enjoying looking back at my pathway from job and job, role to role. Furthermore, I want to document it, because the next time I get stuck and life feels heavy, I want this blueprint of a pathway to guide me to the next step. Because, every so often, I still need to stop and think about this, to restart the direction for the next few years of my career. So, here it is, broken down in a way that even I will understand on my worst day!

START AT THE BEGINNING OF YOUR STORY

Conduct a skills audit

• Document your career history: literally write down your CV and don’t worry about how many pages it is. Document your roles in each organisation and for how long. Then write down the skills you acquired in each role. Write down your achievements, specifically what you are proudest of, what you really enjoyed and what you absolutely hated.
• Write down the ultimate role you want: describe the role that takes you into retirement – if you plan to retire! Write down everything you know about this role, the industry and the skills you will need to do this role well.

Next – and no real surprise! – compare the skills from both list and identify the gaps. Then look at what you already have under your belt and those you want and need to develop to get your dream job.

The outcome of this process, albeit simple, allows you to be intentional with your skills acquisition plan. It helps identify the next best step but also, in future, will help you recognise a good opportunity when you see it. In times when I have been intentional, my salary has increased alongside my happiness.

Who to serve?

So, now we have our skills list and we know what we also need to acquire. Let’s turn our attention back to ‘serving’ in our career.

Who to serve helps me truly think about the experience I need to get me my dream job. It could be a specific organisation or industry. A large or a small organisation? A for profit or not for profit organisation?

I use the process of:

• Reviewing who I served in the past.
• Identifying who I want to serve in my dream job,

If you can map out the two you can figure out the best nest step. Is the next role going to be good experience in the right sector along with adding the skills you need to acquire? Essentially, with these lists you have a framework in which to base decisions regarding your career.

How to serve?

If there’s one thing I’ve learnt from recruitment, after you pass a few baseline questions of your skills, employers then want to know how you work. How you manage yourself, your team, how you delegate, how you communicate, how you will fit in with their culture?

If you can’t put language around how you do your work, someone else will and it may not serve you. The people who ‘dazzle’ in an interview can clearly breakdown ‘how’ they work.

Tips of finding your style:

Think of your dream job. Think of the person already doing that job. How does that person do that job? How do they lead? How do they communicate? How do they manage their time?

If this is a step too far for you, you can’t quite see it, or you’re not close enough to anyone in that position at the moment, then think about a person you admire in the work plan and really ask yourself why you admire them, why you listen to their opinion, why you value them? Turn these answers into a skill that person holds and add the skill to your list if you need to.

None of this is exact science, you may never get your dream job, you may decide you don’t want it . The point of this exercise is to point your ship in the right direction. Make some progress so you know you gave it a shot. Plan your skills acquisition with your dreams in mind and take the next best step.

Before you go, just one more thing……

Thinking of moving on from your current role? Early in my career I moved on from roles because I wanted the next job title, the next salary increase, the next big name on my CV. However, looking back, I definitely left good training opportunities on the table. By that, I mean there were places where I could have learnt more before leaving. Why is this important? Because, often it’s easier to get a shot at something new – perhaps a new project or piece of work – in a role where you’ve already built trust. Because, no matter what anyone promises you in an interview, you may not have this opportunity so readily available in your next role. Nothing should be assumed! Because, sometimes, when gaining a new skill, it’s easier (less stressful for you) to do it in a place where you already know the business and team.

I often move from role to role even within a small organisation because I want to develop my skills but I also know enough about the organisation to still serve them and add value even when I’m working on something new and learning on the job.

My final thought: Had someone told me at the start of my career that skills acquisition was 100% mine to own, I’m sure I would have planned my career more. I used my intuition and could always see the next best step and was often fast to rectify errors. Knowing I’m responsible for acquiring new skills and taking ownership of that has served me really well over the last few years and I’ve grown in confidence as I progress up the ladder…..along with my salary!

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Skill Acquisition: Definition, Importance, And Strategies

Skill acquisition is the significant factor for building a successful career. Acquiring skills can happen in different ways – by personal experiments in a certain field, by creative search and constant practicing, by repeating some actions automatically without implying any thinking processes.

Skill acquisition in Nigeria is even more important taking into account the levels of unemployment. Let’s try to figure out more about different types of skill acquisition and come up with an approximate list of skill acquisition that will help you to get a job and build a career in Nigeria.

What is skill acquisition

Skill is the ability to acquire practical knowledge in new conditions and on the basis of the abilities and experiences a person had previously. Skill acquisition is the process of the process of mastering skills characterized by applying them in particular situations. It is the possibility to learn.

The entire life is based on skills acquisition, which is the constant process. We are getting involved in the skill acquisition processes from the time we learn how to walk as toddlers. With time, the set of skills just jet more complex.

A skill is an activity, which is developed by a person with time and becomes automatic in terms of performing it. A certain skill can be considered acquired when a person can perform it without thinking about the technique of performing this action or dividing a process into conventional parts.

Importance of skill acquisition

Every person will find personal reasons for skill acquisition . Nevertheless, there are obvious benefit of skill acquisition process and results. To acquire skills means to become an expert in a chosen field. To become an expert means to deliver high-quality work and become a sought-after specialist. Remember the following:

• skill acquisition is not the expense, it is the investment;
• it helps you to adjust to the realities of the employment market;
• you acquire skills that meet immediate requirements;
• you acquire the basis for adjusting for the future needs;
• the possible is flexible and teaches you to be flexible, too;
• experts acquire knowledge, and then they acquire power;
• other people trust experts, and they will trust you;
• experts earn more and have broader career prospects.

Types of skill acquisition

Types of skill acquisition in Nigeria fall under the same classification as they are distinguished globally. There are several theoretical approaches which suggest different strategies of effective skill acquisition. Here are the most popular.

Six-step skill acquisition

• Analyze, compare, and weight your current skill deficit and potential
• Set comprehensive goals for both learning and the expected outcome.
• Choose the trusted training providers with relevant studying programs.
• Intensify the process to increase the impact of adoption.
• Measure the results to define the progress, obstacles, and perspectives.
• Predict the future roles to suit the newly gained skills to the requirements of the job market.

Tim Ferriss’s Approach

Tim Ferriss is a successful entrepreneur and coach, who suggests the following model of four-week skill acquisition process:

• Join two or three teams working in the related topic.
• Read three books on the topic.
• Organize a free training for people with zero experience interested in the same issue.
• Write two or three articles on the topic to magazines or newspapers.
• Join the special interest club to be surrounded by the experts.

The rule of 10,000 hours

According to Malcolm Gladwell, it is necessary to study or practice a certain skill for 10,000 hours to master it. The journalist is certain that the time devoted to studying defines the level of proficiency. However, remember that you may need much less time to become an expert if you work hard.

Dreyfus model of skill acquisition

Dreyfus brothers suggest to divide the process of skill acquisition into five stages, each preparing a person to the next one by improving the current skills.

• Novice: following the rules strictly, to room for exercises.
• Advanced beginner: situational perception, all aspects of the work are viewed as equal.
• Competent: able to handle the overabundance of information and plan the actions.
• Proficient: holistic approach to the situation, setting priorities, recognition the divergence from a standard.
• Expert: intuitive understanding of the situation, using numerous approaches during problem solving process.

Checklist for skill acquisition in Nigeria

1. Technical skills:

• aluminium/metal works;
• construction and repairs;
• electrical installation and supply;
• telecommunication network support.

2. Agricultural skills:

• crop/rice production;
• poultry/goat/cattle farming;
• snail/fish farming;
• watermelon farming etc.

3. Computer skills:

• programming;
• computer & software operation;
• repairs & maintenance;

4. Domestic skills:

• design & fashion;
• jewelry production;
• baking/cooking & catering;
• hairdressing/makeup etc.

5. Creative skills:

• writing, translation;
• video/music production etc.

6. Business skills:

• business training;
• entrepreneurship development;
• digital marketing;
• business improvement etc.
• construction
• development
• information
• maintenance
• programming

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Skill Acquisition

Skill acquisition enables individuals with developmental or behavioral challenges to gain essential skills for independent living and social integration. ABA focuses on breaking down complex skills into smaller, manageable steps and systematically teaching and reinforcing them. By targeting areas such as communication, social interaction, daily living skills, and academic abilities, skill acquisition promotes functional independence. It provides structured and individualized instruction, fostering learning and promoting skill generalization across various settings. Skill acquisition empowers individuals to reach their fullest potential.

These posts, courses and resources cover many of these important topics.

Developing Effective Self-Management Skills in ABA Programs: Strategies and Techniques

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) offers valuable tools for fostering good self-management abilities. Cooper et al. (2020) define self-management as “the personal application of behavior-change tactics that results in a desired change in behavior” (p. 683). ABA has been shown to be helpful in teaching learners how to utilize interventions to impact their own behavior. This crucial step enables learners to develop their independence in a range of circumstances. Increasing autonomy can result in stronger self-esteem and a better quality of life overall.

Fun and Games: How ABA Empowers Play Skills in 3 Steps

Play skills are important for a variety of reasons.  Children learn best through play because play makes learning fun and teaches problem solving skills.  Play skills expand  social interactions  and  reduce challenging behavior  by providing children with  alternative  enjoyable activities to fill their day.  All play involves exploring, being creative and having fun.  There should be no objective posed from the outside (yeah, I mean you).  It’s a child-driven activity.

Unraveling Verbal Operants: Understanding the Building Blocks of Language

Communication is what makes us human. It allows us to allow us to get our needs met, engage with others, build independence, create memories, and develop new skills. Many learners who enter ABA services, lack adequate communication skills. By assessing communication skills by their function and using the principles of ABA, learners can develop the skills they need to communicate effectively.

This post provides an overview to help you understand the verbal operants. Understanding the verbal operants ensures you’re prepared to assess and teach these important components of communication. 

Unlocking Success: 5 ABA Teaching Methods That Will Transform Your Practice!

Unlocking success in any field requires a commitment to learning and growth, and the field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is no exception. As an BCBA, you’re tasked with developing an individualized plan to help your learners achieve their goals. That’s where these 5 ABA teaching methods come in.

By incorporating these evidence-based teaching methods into your practice, you can transform the way you approach teaching and help your learners achieve real progress. ABA teaching methods fall along a continuum from highly structured, contrived teaching methods to less structured and more naturalistic teaching methods.

Course: Choosing Meaningful Skill Acquisition Goals

Many BCBAs rely exclusively on results from standardized assessments to choose goals for their learners. Whether this was how you were taught or if you just don’t have the tools to do better, this course guides you toward making meaningful change for your learners. Learn how to integrate behavioral cusps with assessment results and parent/learner goals and values to create valuable programming that changes lives.

This course is only available through our Master ABA Dojo membership.

Become a member

Behavior Chains: Using Task Analysis for Chaining

Like many things related to behavior, behavior chains exist whether you’re aware of them or not. Understanding how behavior chains work, then using a task analysis to create intentional behavior chains is an effective intervention when working with children with autism.

Understanding Assent and Assent Withdrawal in ABA

We all know that we must get informed consent from parents or caregivers to provide treatment, but are you getting assent from the learner as well?  In the BACB’s Code of Ethics updated for 2022, the BACB requires BCBAs to obtain assent as a part of obtaining informed consent (2.11 Obtaining Informed Consent)

Errorless Learning: Complete Guide

Errorless learning is an effective intervention using prompting to reduce the occurrence of errors, which can be especially beneficial when your learner is easily frustrated when making mistakes. Here are 4 important things you need to know before using this strategy:

• Errorless learning is an antecedent intervention
• There are many advantages and disadvantages
• Errorless learning isn’t appropriate for every learner
• There are 4 steps to implement errorless learning

Data Collection Methods: Continuous vs Discontinuous Measurement in ABA

Applied Behavior Analysis is a science-driven approach to behavior that depends significantly on the accurate collection of data. When collecting data you can choose from a continuous data collection method (frequency, rate, duration, or latency) or a discontinuous data collection method (partial interval, whole interval, or momentary time sampling). How do you know which method is best? This post will tell you!

The Ultimate Guide to the Effective Use of Reinforcers, Reinforcer Assessments and Preference Assessments

Preference assessments and reinforcer assessments increase the likelihood of effective interventions, and they are simple to implement routinely in your ABA program. Reinforcers play a vital role in the success of any ABA behavior reduction or skill acquisition plan. A reinforcer is any stimulus that follows a behavior and makes that behavior more likely to occur in the future. As autistic learners often have unique interests and may respond differently to social reinforcers, you must intentionally evaluate reinforcers used in your interventions.

Should I Use Natural Environment Teaching (NET) or Discrete Trial Training (DTT)?

Choosing the right teaching format directly impacts the success of your clients. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) provides a wealth of resources and interventions, so how do you choose the right one? Two common interventions utilized by professionals include Natural Environment Teaching (NET) and Discrete Trial Training (DTT). While research supports both methodologies, choose carefully based on the needs of your client.

What is Pivotal Response Training (PRT)?

Pivotal Response Training (PRT) focuses on improving skills in 4 pivotal areas that, once learned, help the child acquire other skills more rapidly. These areas are:

• Multiple cues
• Self-management

This post goes into detail for each area of learning.

Token Economy: Examples and Applications in ABA

Token economy is a reinforcement strategy where generalized reinforcers (tokens) are exchanged for backup reinforcers (something the learner wants). Research shows that this intervention is effective across environments including home, school, and in-patient programs. Due to its versatility, it’s important to consider how you might include a token economy in your plan. This post includes examples to give you ideas.

Prompt Hierarchy: A New Perspective

Using prompts is an effective approach for teaching new skills and reducing challenging behaviors. However, fading prompts is a critical piece of using this intervention effectively. Although professionals often refer to this prompt hierarchy as one sequence of prompts that can be followed in ascending or descending order of intrusiveness, in reality, there are 3 distinct hierarchies. Prompts from one hierarchy may naturally be included during prompt fading when using one of the other hierarchies. This post explains more.

Functional Communication Training (FCT): The Most Important Intervention In Your ABA Toolbox

Functional Communication Training (FCT) is one of the most important interventions within the field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). It aims to teach learners how to use communication as a means of getting their needs met. To effectively work in the field of ABA, especially if you work with autistic learners or other learners with communication delays, you have to understand how to use this powerful tool. If you’re not using this intervention, your learners are missing life-changing opportunities.

Generalization: The Key to Meaningful Programming in ABA

Generalization is a critical aspect of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), particularly for BCBAs working with autistic learners as these learners may not generalize skills without an intentional plan. Ensuring long-term success and positive outcomes for these learners relies on their ability to apply acquired skills and behaviors in various settings and situations beyond the teaching environment (i.e. clinic or home).

Generality is one of the 7 dimensions of ABA and is a vital component of your ABA program. If your learner fails to use skills across different settings and with different people, what you taught them is of no real value.

Creating a Meaningful Skill Acquisition Program in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)

Creating a Meaningful Skill Acquisition Program in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is crucial to client success. They are the foundation for building independence, problem solving, and creativity. Skill acquisition programs are also essential for teaching the skills learner’s need to reduce maladaptive behavior.

How to Conduct and Document an Initial Assessment for ABA Services

You passed the exam and secured your dream job. Then the doubt sets in. You don’t know how to actually do anything you learned in school. If this sounds like you, you’re not alone.

Despite fieldwork experience, many new BCBAs feel unprepared to perform the duties of a BCBA. Some agencies offer mentorship for new BCBAs but the reality of clinical work, especially for insurance-funded services, is there just isn’t enough time or resources to offer the support they actually need.

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Functions of Behavior

Understanding the function of a behavior is a cornerstone of Applied Behavior Analysis. 

*All images are models, not individuals with autism.

Why does Julia grab a toy from her brother?  Is it to gain access to the toy?  Or maybe it's to access Mom's attention? 

When you can identify the function of the behavior, you can limit reinforcement for the undesired behavior and work to teach a functionally equivalent replacement behavior. 

This questionnaire is designed to help you consider when a behavior is most likely to occur. There are 9 groups of 6 possibilities.  In each of the 9 groups, select the option that best describes the target behavior.  The results will show you a likely function of the behavior.  You can retake the questionnaire to see you you get the same results.

While questionnaires are a useful tool, they should supplement (not replace) other ABA strategies including collection ABC data.

Click New Entry to begin. To update a record double click in the table or click one time and hit the Edit button (to pop up the data entry window).

To filter on a behavior, select the behavior name from the drop down (you may select multiple clients from the list). If you’re entering data for a new client you will need to refresh this page to update your filter options.

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ABA 101: Skill Acquisition Plans

• May 15, 2024

In Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy, ensuring the best outcome for clients involves a structured approach. One crucial element in this approach is the skill acquisition plan. SAPs are unique roadmaps built to guide learners on a journey toward mastering new skills and behaviors . From enhancing communication abilities to fostering social interactions, they provide a structured framework for achieving meaningful progress for children with autism.

Who Implements Skill Acquisition Plans?

Skill acquisition plans are typically developed and implemented by Board-Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) or Board-Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts (BCaBAs) . These professionals have undergone rigorous training and certification to design effective interventions based on behavior analysis principles.

To create meaningful skill acquisition plans, BCBAs often conduct both indirect and direct assessments to understand behaviors, strengths, and areas needing improvement. Indirect assessments involve gathering information through interviews, surveys, and existing records, while direct assessments involve direct observation and measurement of behavior in real-life settings. By blending these two assessment methods, BCBAs can tailor skill acquisition plans to meet the unique needs of each individual.

Elements of a Skill Acquisition Plan

Crafting skill acquisition plans entails several vital components, each carefully structured to facilitate effective learning outcomes. The key elements of skill acquisition plans include:

• Target skills : The plan identifies specific skills that the client needs to learn or improve upon based on their individual needs, assessment results, and treatment goals.
• Objective and measurable goals : Each target skill is accompanied by clear and measurable goals. These goals define what the client should be able to do upon mastering the skill and are stated in observable and measurable terms to track progress accurately.
• Teaching strategies : The plan outlines the teaching methods and strategies that the therapist will use to teach each target skill. This may include techniques such as discrete trial training, naturalistic teaching, task analysis, prompting and fading, shaping, and reinforcement strategies.
• Prompting procedures : The plan details how prompts will assist the client in learning the target skills. This includes the types of prompts (e.g., verbal, gestural, physical), prompt fading procedures, and prompt hierarchy.
• Reinforcement strategies : The plan specifies the reinforcement strategies to motivate and reward the client for demonstrating the target skills. These may include preferred items, activities, or social praise to reinforce desired behaviors.
• Criteria for mastery : It is crucial to establish criteria benchmarks for determining when a client has mastered a target skill. Mastery criteria are typically based on the client’s performance and may include accuracy, independence, and consistency.
• Generalization and maintenance : To ensure that learned behaviors extend beyond therapy sessions, skill acquisition plans prioritize generalization and maintenance. Stimulus and response generalization teach clients to respond to various stimuli that share common characteristics and generate a variety of responses to a given stimulus or situation. The goal is to enable clients to apply learned skills in real-life situations and maintain them over time.
• Collaboration and communication : The plan may include information about collaboration and communication among team members involved in implementing the plan. This ensures everyone is on the same page and working together to support the client’s progress.

Skills Targeted in Skill Acquisition Plans

Skill acquisition plans in ABA therapy encompass various skills across various domains, all aimed at enhancing independence and overall quality of life. Commonly targeted skills include:

• Communication skills : Expressive and receptive language, conversation skills, and nonverbal communication.
• Social skills : Initiating and maintaining social interactions, sharing, taking turns, following social cues, and making friends.
• Daily living skills : Personal hygiene, dressing, grooming, eating, cooking, cleaning, and money management.
• Academic skills : Reading, writing, and other educational concepts.
• Motor skills : Gross motor skills (e.g., walking, running) and fine motor skills (e.g., writing, drawing).
• Self-management skills : Self-monitoring, self-regulation, impulse control, and coping strategies.

Reporting on SAPs After Implementation

After implementing skill acquisition plans, it is essential to assess the efficacy of interventions and track progress accurately. Platforms like ABA Matrix, an innovative software solution designed specifically for ABA therapy , streamlines data collection, ensures accuracy, and facilitates comprehensive reporting. By leveraging ABA Matrix, professionals can efficiently document skill acquisition, measure outcomes, and make informed decisions regarding intervention adjustments and future planning.

Skill acquisition plans are crucial in ABA therapy because they provide a structured framework for teaching individuals with developmental or behavioral challenges essential skills necessary for their daily functioning and overall well-being. By providing a structured framework for teaching new skills, these plans empower individuals to reach their full potential. With the right tools and expertise, ABA professionals can make a meaningful difference in the lives of their clients, one skill at a time.

What is Skill Acquisition? Everything to Know

Rahul Gupta

Every person needs to acquire new skills to remain competitive. Learning new things can be a valuable tool for building your career or advancing your job, but learning a new skill or updating old ones can be challenging, especially if you feel like the process could be faster.

Skill acquisition refers to acquiring, developing, and improving specific skills or abilities through learning and practice. It involves acquiring cognitive and physical skills, ranging from essential motor to complex cognitive abilities. It encompasses the steps taken to learn and master a particular skill, starting from the initial stages of learning to the point where the skill becomes automated and can be performed effortlessly.

In this article, I’ll discuss what skill acquisition is, how it differs from other learning processes, why it’s essential, and the three stages of it.

Definition of skill acquisition

Skill acquisition refers to the process of developing a new skill or strengthening an existing one. It includes physical skills like playing the guitar and cognitive skills like learning to speak a new language.

As humans, we constantly strive for improvement, and learning new things can help us feel fulfilled in our daily lives.

See Also: 12 Most Amazing Facts about Digital Marketing

Why is skill acquisition important?

The process of developing skills in some way or another. This could mean gaining new abilities or further fostering the ones you now have. For example: learning a language by going to class four hours per week would be considered skill acquisition because the student was going to language class four hours a week, which helps them acquire their desired skill. When people think about skill development, they often think about it as something that happens when a person spends time working on something like studying for exams, but there are also many other ways it can happen.

Skill acquisition is the method of discovering a new skill.

” Acquisition ” means taking something you already have and adding it to your repertoire , while “ learning ” suggests adapting your existing knowledge base. In other words, acquiring skills means gaining new insights into how people can use their existing skills in different ways and contexts. Skill acquisition involves mental and physical processes ; it also requires motivation from your environment (i.e., training opportunities) and from within yourself (i.e., intrinsic factors such as curiosity about something new).

What is the distinction between skill and skill acquisition?

To put it simply, skill acquisition refers to learning a new skill. A person acquires skills through various ways, such as observation, experience, and instruction . Another way to think about it is becoming skilled at something or learning how to do something. For example, if you’re considering getting into programming or knitting as a hobby, you are acquiring skills in these areas. Sometimes people develop skills by being present during an event requiring those skills. For example, if someone learns to be a babysitter while watching their friend’s kids one weekend, they can learn how to change diapers and feed babies without formal training. A common misconception is that all skills are learned equally , but this isn’t the case. When we learn certain types of information, our brain adapts differently than when we learn others.

The three stages of skill acquisition

Learning refers to the initial stage in which an individual gains new skills. The consolidation stage is when the person practices what they have learned until they become more proficient at it. The maintenance stage occurs when the individual applies their newly acquired skills to a more diverse range of environments to maintain them. 

For example, a student may go through all three stages during the school year; first learning about a subject in class, then consolidating what they have learned by studying for exams or doing homework assignments at home, and finally applying that knowledge to other aspects of life outside of school like playing sports or doing arts & crafts. Skills are developed in these three stages. To take advantage of these opportunities early on and learn how to acquire skills as efficiently as possible, young people need some essential support from parents and educators who can help guide them on how to keep developing and strengthening their skills.

Stage 1: Cognitive Stage

The cognitive stage of skill acquisition begins when an individual recognizes the need for a new skill. The individual will then analyze the skills they already have. This is done in order to determine if the skill can be gotten through self-study or by someone else . If it’s impossible to learn independently, the individual may research whether it’s available as a class at their local community college . An activity plan is made and taken out when the choice has been made.

Stage 2: Associative Stage

In the second stage of skill acquisition, the learner begins associating what they’ve learned with other concepts they already know. They start to see connections between their new knowledge and things from other areas of their lives. This stage can be a little frustrating because it will often take many repetitions for learners to fully understand a concept before it makes sense to other concepts.

Learning to read music requires many repetitions of looking at notation on the page before you can associate what you see with the sounds in your head.

Stage 3: Autonomous Stage

The autonomous stage is when skills are fully earnt . This stage can take a long time because many obstacles are to be overcome . The most common obstacle is experiencing failure , which teaches how to adjust your strategy and tactics if things don’t work out. Another obstacle is the lack of feedback . Feedback comes from three different sources: intrinsic, extrinsic, and vicarious . Intrinsic feedback provides information about one’s actions by themselves or by other people . Extrinsic feedback comes from an external source like social media or television . Vicarious feedback involves observing someone else’s behavior or results without directly participating in those behaviors or having any control over them.

Why is skill acquisition important to students?

Learning new skills will help you develop the career you want. Even if you are unsure what you want to do, taking classes in various subjects will give you experience and allow you to explore different interests. Remember that acquiring skills doesn’t just have to be about schoolwork. You can also learn from your family or friends by working on projects together.

What is skill acquisition and development?

The term skill acquisition refers to acquiring skills for a specific task. It can be used as a verb (to acquire skills) or an adjective (a skillful craftsman). There are three stages to skill acquisition: 1) performance without awareness, 2) conscious competence, and 3) unconscious competence. It’s vital that people develop new skills throughout their lives because it helps them keep up with changes in society and technology.

What are the features of skill acquisition?

1. The most common way of gaining abilities occurs in three phases: early, halfway, and late. 2. Beginning phase abilities are the easiest to advance yet the hardest to dominate. 3. Intermediate stage skills take more effort than early stage skills but do not require as much practice as late stage skills. 4. Late-stage skill acquisition requires the most work and practice but yields the best results overall.

How can I improve my knowledge and skills at work?

There are three stages of skill acquisition: exploration, consolidation, and application. Exploration occurs when you first start learning a new skill. Consolidation is the stage in which you work to master that skill. Application is when you use your skills in different ways. For instance, assume somebody needs to figure out how to cook vegetables. They might explore by trying several vegetables at home and discussing them with friends who cook. Next, they consolidate their cooking knowledge by making dishes for family members or practicing for an upcoming dinner party. Finally, they apply their skills by preparing a dish for an event or cooking alongside another chef.

What is skill acquisition? It’s the process of developing skills. Abilities are through training and experience. There are three cognitive, associative, and autonomous phases of ability securing. In the cognitive stage, you’re taking in information about a skill. In the associative stage, you’re practicing or learning how to perform the skill on your own but still receiving feedback from a teacher or coach.

Skill acquisition is vital because it helps us to be more effective in our jobs and lives. The more skills we have, the better prepared we will be for our future career paths. This article has given you an overview of what skill acquisition is, why it’s essential.

See also: What is a T-Shaped Marketer?

Table of Contents

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How to Put Together a Business Plan for an Acquisition

Kison Patel is the Founder and CEO of DealRoom, a Chicago-based diligence management software that uses Agile principles to innovate and modernize the finance industry. As a former M&A advisor with over a decade of experience, Kison developed DealRoom after seeing first hand a number of deep-seated, industry-wide structural issues and inefficiencies.

What is Acquisition Planning?

Acquisition planning is when the acquirer identifies and builds relationships with potential targets. More specifically, these targets meet the acquirer’s predetermined, strategic criteria.

‍ The strategy behind acquisition planning leads to stronger outcomes for both sides of the deal and must, therefore, be the foundation of acquisition plans.

Acquisition plan templates often include a summary of this overarching strategy, criteria for potential targets, a list of potential targets, timelines, risk management and due diligence materials, as well as integration planning materials.

We at DealRoom work with many companies helping them organize their M&A process . So let's start with the overview.

How to create an acquisition plan

One of the principal errors that many M&A practitioners make before making an acquisition is not putting together a business plan. The business plan is an invaluable asset when planning M&A.

It creates a roadmap for what you’re looking for from a business acquisition , as well as providing reassurance to those funding the deal that the rationale behind it is solid and that the decision to acquire is not being made on a whim.

The format of the business plan for an acquisition has a similar structure to that of a business plan for a startup and includes many of the same sections.

When writing either of these documents, you should be asking yourself ‘does what I’m writing sell the opportunity?’

If the answer to that question is ‘ no ,’ you need a rethink, maybe not just for the document, but perhaps for the acquisition itself.

Having said all that, here’s a typical outline of how a business plan for an acquisition should look:

1. Executive Summary

Even though it comes at the beginning, most how-to guides on business acquisition plans suggest leaving the summary of an acquisition transaction until you’ve written everything else.

While this is pretty sound advice, a good rule of thumb is that, if what you’re proposing is compelling enough, you should have a rough draft of the executive summary in mind before even beginning.

A good executive summary should cover a page and sell the opportunity as best as possible, covering its target market, your strategy and summary financials. This is often the only page that investors read before skipping to the financial projections, so make sure it’s strong.

2. Target Description

This section of acquisition plan outlines the business you’re acquiring and why it’s worth what you’re proposing to pay for it. Be as thorough as possible here. If there are weaknesses that you see in the business, introduce them and talk about how you can iron them out and generate value.

At a minimum, include details such as

• headline financials
• a breakdown of the company’s long-term assets (factory, head office, facilities, stores, etc.) and liabilities
• a SWOT analysis
• corporate structure.

If the company operates in a different segment to your own, show how you can make this work in your favor.

3. Market Overview

A common error when looking at the market overview is to think globally.

Startup investor Peter Thiel refers to this, whimsically noting that someone owning a restaurant could say that they’re entering a trillion dollar industry, when in reality, their market is a five mile radius around the location of the restaurant.

The more granular the detail here, the better.

• How many customers does the target have, and what kind of customers are they?
• Will you lose their business if the current owner moves on?
• What kind of demand is there for the business outside of its current customer base?

4. Sales and Marketing

This section provides an overview of the sales for each of the target’s products and services. It should show their pricing strategy and how it compares to your own, and how the company currently conducts its marketing.

For example, if it uses mailing lists to contact customers, is that something you could leverage for your own products and services?

Or perhaps you feel it’s not investing enough in marketing and that you could increase sales by investing in this area. In either case, outline the ‘quick wins’ that you can exploit here after acquiring the business.

5. Financial History and Projections

When looking for financing for an acquisition, this section is the one which will make or break the deal. Thus, you should be as thorough as possible here, analyzing the target’s past financial performance.

At a minimum, this should involve three years of financial statements and tax returns but five or more is even better.

The analysis should be comprehensive and honest. It should raise issues that may conflict with your own business - for example, different credit arrangements with customers or a significant difference in capital structure.

Once this has been completed, you can look at projections for the business. These projections should tie in everything you’ve written until now; if you plan to increase sales and marketing, this should show in the income statement; if you’re going to use income from the acquired business to pay down debt, this also needs to be accounted for.

There is no right answer for how much your growth projections should be, but it should be justified by the vision that you’ve laid out until now.

An interesting, if potentially complex, sub-section to add to the financial analysis are the gains from synergies and losses from cannibalism that you see emerging from the deal.

Synergies might come from cutting some admin or sales staff or merging sales channels (for example, online or direct mail) after the acquisition.

Cannibalism arises when you’ve got one of your sales reps selling the new, wider product range, and the customer ends up choosing the target’s product over your own.

It’s easy to fall into the proverbial rabbit hole with this section, but it’s still a useful exercise to make you think about where gains (and losses) will be made from the acquisition.

6. Transition Plan

This is typically a brief section that shows how the business will move from the control of the current owners to your own. This is not purely about ownership, however.

It should also detail how current sales relationships, contracts, and intellectual property are dealt with in the transition.

You can minimize the disruptive influence of the acquisition by getting this section right. If there are complex processes at the target company, know who performs them and how this will be dealt with.

Thousands of acquisitions are botched every year by undervaluing seemingly small processes which generate value right across the business.

7. Deal Structure

The topic of deal structure has been covered well elsewhere [link], and these articles can be of assistance when adding this section.

Having put together a failsafe case for acquiring the target company, now you show the financial structure you will use to do so.  

8. Appendices/Supporting Documents

A major difference between writing a business plan for a startup and one for a business acquisition is the variety of supporting documents attached.

At a minimum, this should include copies of tax returns and licenses, but could go into greater depth and show contracts with large customers, auditors’ letters and any other legal documents deemed relevant.

Using a merger and acquisition proposal sample can provide helpful guidance when determining which supporting documents to include.

Download acquisition plan/proposal templates

• Business acquisition proposal sample template
• Acquisition strategy sample template (m&a strategy template)
• Business acquisition plan template

While there is room for some variation in sections of each business plan, one thing every plan should have in common is its ability to convince the reader of the merits of the acquisition. Each section should be detailed and compelling.

If you’re not willing to put in the groundwork on a business plan, an investor is entitled to ask, ‘ why should I give a million dollars to someone who can’t write 20 pages? ’

By spending time on the business plan, and taking a critical perspective, you maximize the chances of your acquisition finding a funder, and simultaneously creating a strategy for the acquisition that primes it for success.

Get your M&A process in order. Use DealRoom as a single source of truth and align your team.

RBT Study Guide Unit C: Skill Acquisition

Skill Acquisition is the most crucial topic for RBT exam prep. Approximately 24 questions come from this topic in the Registered Behavior Technician exam. This section of our free RBT study guide covers the importance of skill acquisition in advanced behavior analysis.

You’ll also learn about essential components of a skill acquisition plan, such as conditioned reinforcers, unconditioned reinforcers, discrete trials, incidental teaching, pivotal response training, etc.

Significance of Skill Acquisition in ABA

In advanced behavior analysis (ABA), people often think it’s only about behavior reduction – but that’s not totally true. There are many more than just reducing interfering behaviors; skill acquisition is integral to ABA.

An RBT’s primary role is to teach new skills to clients. You could teach skills such as – communication, social skills, pre-academic skills, independent living, vocational skills, safety skills, etc.

I hope you understand the significance of skill acquisition in advanced behavior analysis. Let’s discuss the topics mentioned in the RBT task list (Section C):

1. Identify the Essential Components of a Written Skill Acquisition Plan

In a skill acquisition plan, you need to know exactly what skill you’re teaching, what materials you’ll use, and how you’ll teach it.

You also need to determine what happens if someone gets it right or wrong and how they’ll know when they’ve mastered it.

Plus, you have to plan to keep the skill going even after they’ve learned it. These are all the crucial pieces of a skill plan that help ensure learning goes smoothly.

2. Prepare for the Session as Required by the Skill Acquisition Plan

Before a teaching session, get everything ready. Ensure you have everything you need, like books or toys. Set up an excellent place to learn without distractions.

Review your plan so you know what to do. Get your tools ready for keeping track of progress. And don’t forget to have rewards ready for when the person does well.

When you’re set up like this, it helps the teaching session go smoothly and makes learning more accessible for everyone.

3. Use Contingencies of Reinforcement

Contingencies of reinforcement explain how certain behaviors are strengthened or increased by rewards. There are two types: continuous and intermittent reinforcement.

Continuous reinforcement happens when a reward is given every time a behavior occurs. For instance, when clients ask for a toy using picture icons, they get it immediately.

Intermittent reinforcement is when rewards are given only sometimes for a behavior. For example, when children learn to tie their shoes, they might get praised sometimes, but not every time they do it.

Intermittent reinforcement has four types, which tell you how often to reward a behavior.

• Fixed Interval (FI) Schedule of Reinforcement : In a fixed interval (FI) schedule, rewards are given after a set amount of time has passed since the last reward and the behavior occurred. For instance, a child might receive a sticker every 10 minutes they spend reading quietly. This schedule encourages behavior shortly before the reward but may decrease immediately after receiving it.
• Fixed Ratio (FR) Schedule of Reinforcement : In a fixed ratio (FR) schedule of reinforcement, rewards are given after a specific number of times the behavior is performed. For example, if a child receives a sticker for every fifth math problem they solve correctly, that’s a fixed ratio of 1:5. After completing the fifth problem, they get a sticker. This schedule often leads to a high response rate because the person knows they must do the behavior several times to get the reward.
• Variable Interval (VI) Schedule of Reinforcement : In a variable interval (VI) schedule, rewards are given after an unpredictable amount of time has passed since the last reward and the behavior occurred. For example, a child might receive praise for good behavior randomly during the day. This schedule encourages consistent behavior because the person doesn’t know when the reward will come.
• Variable Ratio (VR) Schedule of Reinforcement : In a variable ratio (VR) schedule, rewards are given after an unpredictable number of times the behavior is performed. For example, a child might earn a sticker after solving math problems, but the number of issues required varies. This schedule leads to a high rate of behavior because the person doesn’t know exactly when they’ll get the reward.
• Unconditioned and Conditioned Reinforcement : Unconditioned reinforcement refers to rewards that naturally satisfy basic needs or desires, like food or water. They don’t need to be learned; they’re just naturally rewarding. Conditioned reinforcement, on the other hand, is a reward that someone learns to like because it’s associated with other rewards. For example, if a child gets praised every time they do a chore, they’ll start to like praise as a reward. It’s all about learning what’s rewarding through experience.

4. Implement Discrete-Trial Teaching Procedures

Discrete-trial teaching (DTT) breaks down learning into small, manageable parts. It involves clear instructions, prompting, and reinforcement for correct responses.

For instance, a teacher might present a task, prompt the learner to respond, and reinforce a correct answer.

DTT effectively teaches specific skills like colors, shapes, or letters. It’s structured and repetitive, making it suitable for learners with autism or developmental delays.

5. Implement Naturalistic Teaching Procedures

Naturalistic or incidental teaching capitalizes on everyday situations to teach skills in a learner’s natural environment.

It involves following the learner’s interests and using teachable moments to introduce and reinforce skills.

For example, during playtime, a teacher might encourage a child to request toys or label objects, reinforcing communication skills in a natural context.

Naturalistic teaching fosters spontaneous learning and generalization of skills across settings, promoting meaningful and functional outcomes for the learner.

6. Implement Task Analyzed Chaining Procedures

Chaining is a task that involves breaking down complex skills into smaller, manageable steps. Each step is taught individually, and once mastered, it’s linked to the next step until the entire skill is learned.

For instance, teaching a child to brush their teeth involves breaking the task into steps like picking up the toothbrush, applying toothpaste, brushing each tooth, and rinsing.

Chaining ensures each step is mastered before moving to the next, gradually building towards independent skill performance. It’s effective for teaching sequential tasks like dressing or making a sandwich.

• Total Task Chaining Procedure : Total task chaining teaches the entire skill in one go, perfect for learners who can do all steps with little help. For instance, teaching sandwich-making involves guiding the learner from start to finish, with prompts and rewards as needed. It promotes independence and ensures the learner can complete the task accurately.
• Forward Chaining Procedure : Forward chaining teaches skills step by step, starting from the first step and progressing to the last. For example, in teaching tooth brushing, the learner begins by picking up the toothbrush and gradually learns each subsequent step. It builds mastery and confidence by focusing on mastering one step at a time before moving to the next.
• Backward Chaining Procedure : Backward chaining teaches skills by starting from the last step and working backward to the first. For instance, in teaching dressing skills, the learner starts by completing the final step, like zipping a zipper, while the instructor assists with the preceding steps. It builds confidence by ensuring the learner masters the final step before progressing to earlier ones.

7. Implement Discrimination Training

Discrimination training teaches learners to differentiate between two or more stimuli or situations and respond appropriately to each.

For example, a child might learn to distinguish between red and blue cards and touch the red card when asked for it.

Initially, prompts and reinforcement help the learner understand the difference. As training progresses, prompts are faded, and correct responses are reinforced consistently.

Discrimination training is crucial for recognizing letters, colors, or social cues.

8. Implement Stimulus Control Transfer Procedures

Stimulus control transfer procedures help learners respond accurately to new or changed cues. This involves gradually replacing prompts or cues used during teaching with new ones naturally occurring in the environment.

For example, a child initially learns to touch a picture card when prompted by a teacher’s gesture. Over time, the teacher fades their gesture, and the child learns to respond to the picture card alone. This promotes independence and generalization of skills.

9. Implement Prompt and Prompt Fading Procedures

Prompting involves helping learners perform a desired behavior. Initially, prompts are explicit and may include verbal instructions, gestures, or physical guidance.

As learners become more proficient, prompts gradually fade, reducing their intensity or frequency.

For example, a teacher might initially guide a child’s hand to complete a puzzle but gradually withdraw physical assistance as the child becomes more independent. Prompt fading encourages skill mastery and promotes independence.

Gestural Prompts : Gestural prompts use hand or body movements to guide learners’ behavior. For instance, a teacher might point to indicate a choice or demonstrate a hand motion for an action. They’re effective for visual learners and can be gradually reduced as independence grows.

Verbal Prompts : Verbal prompts use spoken cues to guide behavior, like giving directions or hints. They can be adjusted in clarity and reduced as the learner improves.

10. Implement Generalization and Maintenance Procedures

Generalization and maintenance procedures ensure that learners can use newly acquired skills in various settings and over time.

This involves teaching skills in different environments, with different materials, and with different people to promote generalization.

Additionally, periodic review sessions and reinforcement schedules help maintain skills over time, ensuring continued proficiency.

For example, a child may learn to tie their shoes at home, school, and in the park, with occasional practice sessions to reinforce the skill.

11. Implement Shaping Procedures

Shaping procedures involve gradually molding a desired behavior by reinforcing successive approximations toward the target behavior. This means rewarding steps that are closer and closer to the final goal.

For example, if teaching a child to write neatly, you might start by praising any attempt to hold the pencil correctly and gradually reinforce finer movements until the writing is legible.

Shaping breaks complex skills into manageable steps, fostering skill development through positive reinforcement.

12. Implement Token Economy Procedures

Token economy procedures involve using tokens or symbols as rewards for desired behaviors. These tokens can be exchanged for preferred items, activities, or privileges.

For example, a child earns tokens for completing tasks or demonstrating appropriate behaviors, and they can later exchange these tokens for extra playtime or a favorite snack.

Token economies promote positive behavior by providing immediate rewards and can be tailored to individual preferences and goals.

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Skill Acquisition Plan

Individual planning

Here at ABAI we take a three-pronged approach to assessment of your child’s abilities to identify areas of need for a skill acquisition plan. ABAI clinicians start by getting to know you and your child through observations and both formal and informal interviews . We listen carefully to parents and guardians to learn what skills are most important for their child to know in order to increase their success in their home, school, and community environments. Our clinicians will also administer an age-appropriate standardized assessment for each of the five developmental domains: 1) Communication, 2) Cognitive, 3) Social/Emotional, 4) Motor Functions, and 5) Adaptive Living Skills. Last, we review any available documentation relevant to your child’s development. This includes, but is not limited to, school records, psychological assessment, speech/language assessments, occupational therapy assessments, and physical therapy assessments. We are particularly eager to collaborate with all of your child’s teachers and therapists to help facilitate growth and generalization of skills.

In addition, we also plan for behavior reduction when necessary. If your child has a challenging behavior that interferes with his or her ability to participate in daily activities such as in school, at home, or in the community; ABAI clinicians will write Behavior Analytic behavior plans to teach alternate, more appropriate behaviors to improve your child’s success.

What is included in a skill acquisition plan?

A skill acquisition plan includes a description of the target skill being taught, materials needed for teaching, strategies to be used, the consequences for correct or incorrect responding, mastery criteria, reinforcement strategies, and a plan for generalization and maintenance.

Contact ABA Institute Inc. today for a Skill Acquisition Plan.

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• Australas J Ultrasound Med
• v.17(4); 2014 Nov

The key to using a learning or skill acquisition plan

Delwyn nicholls.

1 Faculty of Medicine Nursing and Health Science, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

2 Sydney Ultrasound for Women, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Linda Sweet

Sue campbell westerway.

3 Northern Women's Imaging, Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia

4 Australian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine, Crows Nest, New South Wales, Australia

Annie Gibbins

A learning plan is a tool to guide the development of knowledge, skills and professional attitudes required for practice. A learning plan is an ideal tool for both supervisors and mentors to guide the process of teaching and learning a medical ultrasound examination. A good learning plan will state the learning goal, identify the learning activities and resources needed to achieve this goal, and highlight the outcome measures, which when achieved indicate the goal has been accomplished. A skill acquisition plan provides a framework for task acquisition and skill stratification; and is an extension of the application of the student learning plan. One unique feature of a skill acquisition plan is it requires the tutor to first undertake a task analysis. The task steps are progressively learnt in sequence, termed scaffolding. The skills to develop and use a learning or skill acquisition plan are also learnt, but are an integral component to the ultrasound tutors skill set. This paper will provide an outline of how to use and apply a learning and skill acquisition plan. We will review how these tools can be personalised to each student and skill teaching environment.

Introduction

A learning plan is a tool that guides the development of knowledge, skills and professional attitudes required for practice. A learning plan is an ideal tool for both supervisors and mentors to guide the process of teaching and learning to perform a medical ultrasound examination. A good learning plan will state the learning goal, identify the learning activities and resources beneficial to achieve the goal, and highlight the outcome measures, which when achieved indicate the goal has been accomplished. A professional practice learning plan is premised on adult learning principles. Adult learners are self‐directed, learn through experience, and require an understanding as to how and why the information is relevant to their immediate learning outcomes. 1 The benefits of using and applying adult learning theories to teaching events include improved learner commitment and better achievement of learning outcomes. 2 In the context of medical ultrasound, a learning plan is collaborative, centred on the student and outlines the pathway by which the goals can be achieved. This allows the student to be self‐directed and pace their own learning to achieve the requisite outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to outline what a learning plan is and how it can be used to define, document and target goal achievement in medical ultrasound imaging. We also provide examples of learning plans applied to acquisition of the skills needed in medical ultrasound imaging.

What is a learning plan?

A learning plan is an explicit and transparent document that itemises the measurable learning goal or objective, 3 identifies learning strategies and resources to develop the knowledge, skills or professional attitudes required for clinical practice, and specifies what it is the learner must know, do or apply in order to accomplish the goal. A clear and concise learning plan guides both learner and tutor through the required process to achieve the learning goal.

Knowledge of how to develop learning plans for your learners and apply a learning plan to your clinical environment is a useful skill for a supervisor or mentor to acquire. These skills when developed, allow the supervisor to determine if using a learning plan is the most appropriate tool for the educational context. To assist this decision making process, it is first necessary to have a good understanding of the curriculum required by any credentialing body to achieve certification. The knowledge, skills and professional attitudes required to achieve competence form the goal posts for your learners' achievements. The individual learning needs and goals that arise as a result of knowledge of curricular content, should underpin the activities and outcome measures recorded in an individualised learning plan.

Identifying the learning need

The first step when using a learning plan requires the learner or tutor to identify the learning need. This is an important step to ensure the learning need is required and refined, so the planned activities are relevant to the learning need, and the learning strategy and format is appropriate for the learners experience and context. 4 The learning need should be explicitly outlined and linked to learning objectives, assessment hurdles (university clinical assessment) such as credentialing or competency criteria, or a personal education objective. Alternatively, the learning need may be identified after discussion with the learner, viewing a log book, observing a skill performance or based on patient or professional practice feedback. Each of these scenarios require the tutor to ascertain what is the student's current level of knowledge or skill (prior learning) and what is the required level to achieve competence; a process also known as a gap analysis. 5 The learning need(s) are determined from this well‐thought‐through outcome disparity. After identifying a learning need, an action plan is constructed to work towards achieving the identified outcome or goal. 4 Learning plans should highlight and build upon a learner's prior learning. This is an important adult learning principle which both acknowledges and capitalises on historical experiences, knowledge and skills. 6

Figure 1 is an example of a learning plan which contains a learning need relevant to the learner's area of expertise and stage of learning. In this case, the learning need is to acquire, document and measure the amniotic fluid index (AFI) for an Obstetrics and Gynaecology (O&G) registrar, undertaking the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) In‐Hospital clinical assessment of trainee competence. 7

An example of a learning plan to achieve a learning need or goal (used with permission from ASUM).

Writing a learning objective

A learning need is a yet to be achieved dimension of knowledge, skill or attitude 4 required to exhibit safe practice. 8 After identifying the learning need, it should be restated as a learning objective or goal that becomes measurable. A learning objective is a written statement outlining the goal you wish the learner to achieve. Learning objectives contain a verb and focus on one of three areas; knowledge, skills and professional practice attitudes. A learning objective must be measurable. 3 When the objective is not capable of being quantified, either the goal is both too large and unwieldy, or a learning plan is not applicable in this clinical context. Where the objective is not measurable because the task is too large, this can be rectified by breaking the task down into smaller tasks, 9 continuing this process until the objective becomes measurable. 3

Effective learning objectives should be SMART. 10 A familiar acronym, SMART, highlights that a well written learning objective should be specific (S), detailed and straight forward, measurable (M) as it quantifies the goal, achievable (A) as it has the ability to be accomplished, realistic (R) as the resources to achieve the goal are available and achieved in an appropriate time frame (T). 10 Writing a SMART learning objective is an acquired tutor skill that is aided by the use of educational tools to assist the writing process.

Blooms' taxonomy 4 and Millers' pyramid 4 are useful tools to develop written learning objectives. Millers' triangle (shown in Figure 2 ) depicts the hierarchy of skills from knowing the theory applicable to performing the skill, through to achieving skill mastery. With advancing skill expertise the verbs to define the outcomes for each skill hierarchy change. A tool that classifies verbs according to the learning domain is Bloom's taxonomy. Key words are listed and categorised to describe behaviours required of the learner, which are linked to either the cognitive domain (knowledge), psychomotor domain (skills) or professional practice domain (attitudes). Table 1 provides some examples relevant to medical ultrasound practice to assist tutors writing SMART objectives.

Millers' Skill triangle (Dent and Harden 2009, p.19) depicting skill acquisitions from ‘knows what’ to ‘mastery’. Behavioural verbs can be linked to the skill stage ‘knows how’ to ‘mastery’. Knows what is declarative knowledge linked to the skill and a knowledge verb would be used to assess learner cognition of the task.

Verbs to describe core behaviours applicable to medical ultrasound imaging adapted from Dent and Harden 2009 p.18.

Selecting the required learning strategies and resources

A learning strategy is a series of planned activities to support attainment of the learning outcome. They may be teacher or learner centred, ideally based on the learning style of the learner, and should be the most appropriate activities to achieve the outcome. 11 , 12 A learning plan preferably incorporates a wide range of adult learning activities including self‐directed learning, experiential learning, and reflective practice which combine to create a holistic learning experience. 8 Learning strategies should be written using specific words such as review, identify, perform, describe, construct and apply, to describe behavior. 13 The activities to build the knowledge and skills required to guide achievement of the learning outcome mirror these key words.

The resources required to support the learning outcome should mirror the learning strategies. The resources to accomplish a learning strategy are reliant upon tutor sonographers, resources and technology. In medical ultrasound imaging they may include criteria charts, policy documents, professional practice standards, recognised general and specialist text books, and interesting and accessible electronic learning aides and documents. The sequencing and incorporation of some or all of these types of resources are important decisions for the development of the learning plan, and will be based on the individual learner needs.

Documenting the outcome measures to identify goal achievement

A learning plan should clearly state outcome measures that identify student goals have been achieved. The outcome measures are linked to the educational behaviours specified in the learning strategies. They refer to defined activities or formative and summative assessments, which denote goal achievement when completed by the learner. For example, learner measurement of amniotic fluid index (AFI) measurement approximates tutor acquired AFI. Using this example, a misaligned outcome measure includes asking the learner to acquire and measure a single deepest pocket of amniotic fluid. This was not the specified learning goal in this example. Furthermore, there were no assigned learning strategies to support this skill outcome such as, the student will be able to describe the appropriate clinical context to acquire, measure and document a single deepest pocket of amniotic fluid in third trimester.

A learning plan provides a visual timeline of the depth and breadth of chronicled hurdles and achievements, and the time span to achieve the learning goals. Regular review of learner achievements provides feedback on learner progress and provides an opportunity to suggest further educational interventions when required. This record becomes a useful inventory of clinical progress, in particular when multiple tutors are involved in a learner's clinical skill development. A learning plan in this clinical context, has the potential to make adult learners accountable for their progress, and moves the responsibility of achieving learning outcomes from the tutors to the learner.

Skill acquisition plan

A skill acquisition plan provides a framework for skill acquisition and skill stratification; and is an extension of the application of the student learning plan. One unique feature of a skill acquisition plan is it requires the tutor to first undertake a task analysis. 9 , 15 This is a process where a skill is broken down into steps. 15 Subsequent to identifying the skill steps, they are learned in a stepped progression of tasks, termed scaffolding. 16 Scaffolding is an important teaching tenet to enable a learners' progression from simple to complex skill acquisition. In Figure 3 , the skill acquisition plan provides a suggested framework and plan for a learner to acquire and develop the skills to perform a breast scan. A skill acquisition plan involves the tutor using formal and informal aides to assist development of scanning skills. 17 Informal aides include thick walled balloons filled with 1–2 cups of viscous scanning gel and tied tightly and formed in a shape to resemble an ellipse. Scanning over a phantom with curved edges develops important scanning skills required to perform a breast scan. Skill acquisition plans provide a task development timeline and tangible hurdles to accomplish. A skill acquisition plan is but one tool to assist skill development.

Skill acquisition plan provides a suggested articulation for s novice sonographer (adapted from ASUM learning plan).

A learning plan is one tool to manage an adult learner's clinical education thoroughfare in their discipline. Using a learning or skill acquisition plan is a straight forward process once the learning need is known. When the learning need is restated as a measurable and SMART objective, 10 a learning or skill acquisition plan is a suitable instrument to use to realise the learning goal. The skills to develop, and use a learning or skill acquisition plan are also learned, but are an integral component to the ultrasound tutor's skill set.

Competing Interests

None Identified