When we talk about job training, we often think first about newly hired employees. However, in practice, over 80% of on-the-job training is delivered to people who are already part of the organization. This training is usually driven by the need to develop new competencies, respond to customer complaints, adapt to process changes, or support new product launches.
Why Existing Employees Need Structured Training
In many industrial environments, the training of experienced operators receives significantly less attention than it deserves. There is a common belief that if someone already knows the company, they will easily manage a new role or process on their own. In reality, this assumption is often false. Lack of structured training can lead to quality issues, safety incidents, or inefficiencies.
That’s why Training Within Industry (TWI) is just as important for experienced employees as it is for new hires.
Training Employees – New vs Existing
The Role of TWI in Training Employees
The TWI methodology ensures that every employee receives complete, standardized knowledge about:
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Safety requirements
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Quality standards
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Proper work methods
What’s more, each person practices the job under the supervision of an instructor, ensuring they can perform tasks correctly and confidently. This practical, repeatable approach is one of the strongest advantages of TWI-based training.
Building Flexibility Through Multi-Skilling
An essential benefit of TWI training is the ability to build multi-skilled (polyvalent) teams. This flexibility helps maintain production continuity, improve responsiveness to changes, and reduce dependency on specific individuals. By developing skills across multiple positions, organizations become more agile and resilient.
Summary – Training Employees
In many companies, on-the-job training is still seen mainly as part of onboarding new employees. Yet, industry data shows that the majority of such training—over 80%—is delivered to existing staff. Neglecting structured instruction for experienced workers can lead to lower quality, safety risks, and inefficiencies.
Implementing the TWI Job Instruction method helps companies systematize training for all employees, regardless of their experience level. It ensures that everyone learns the correct, safe, and efficient way to perform their tasks—directly from a qualified instructor.
As a result, companies build a culture of learning, operational stability, and adaptability to change.
Training Within Industry and Lean Management Practitioner.
He is a lecturer at the WSB University in Wrocław. He is the author and co-author of several pieces of literature on the TWI program.
He is a managing partner in the LeanTrix company and a master Trainer for Europe. Additionally, he is involved in projects such as eTWI System and Lean Community
He has run projects for: Lotte Wedel, Danone, Kompania Piwowarska, eobuwie.pl, Arvato, Whirlpool, B / S / H, Geberit, RECARO, Tenneco, Sumitomo Electric, Stadler, Vesuvius Poland
