The gap analysis is intended to help you determine the difference between the organization’s current state and the desired statement. This difference is defined as the gap and it helps to focus attention on the actual problem and how/whether it is impacting the organization. Keep in mind that the gap analysis most often highlights multiple gaps between the organization’s actual performance and its desired performance and be on the lookout for multiple gaps that you will then need to prioritize. The gap analysis is then followed by a cause analysis, which seeks to determine WHY the gap has occurred. This step is heavily dependent on all of your previous analyses (e.g., organizational, environmental, gap). Throughout the process, you MUST avoid assumptions – your analysis of the cause must be justified in terms of the factors that you’ve described, NOT on your internal opinions or beliefs. Assumptions can be the ruin of an HPT project.

As with Part 1, the length of Part 1 will vary greatly according to the organization’s size and complexity. At a bare minimum, this portion of the report will likely be 3-5 pages in length. However, keep in mind that, in order to select the most appropriate intervention(s)/solution(s) later in the process, more detail is again better than less information at this stage. You are free to add additional subheadings to organize Part 2; however, at a minimum, you should have the following sections:

•Gap Analysis.

•Cause Analysis ?Environmental/Organizational Factors.

?Individual/Worker or Stakeholder Factors