Human Resources Chapter 7

Training & Development (T&D)

The chapter is basically about why and how employees and employers should update the
training facilities within a company. i.e. a load of bullshit that we already know…

Job Security: Implies security in one job, often with one company.
Career security: Requires developing marketable skills & expertise that help ensure
employment within a range of careers.
Human resource development (HRD): A major HRM function that consists not only of
T&D but also individual career planning and development activities and performance
appraisal (AP more detailed in next chapter).
Training & Development (T&D): The heart of continuous effort designed to improve
employee competency and organizational performance.
 As customers are demanding higher quality, lower costs, and faster cycle
times, firms, in order to meet these requirements, must continually improve
their overall performance. Rapid advance in technology and improved
processes have been important factors in helping businesses meet this
challenge.
 Learning organization: A firm that recognises the critical importance of
continuous performance related T&D and takes appropriate action. Such a
firm views training as a strategic investment rather than a budgeted cost.
o Formal training: training activity that is planned structured and
occurs when people are called away from their workstations to
participate in it.
o Free agent learners: seek development on their own.
TRAINING RANKS IN THE TOP 3 BENEFITS THAT EMPLOYEES WANT FROM
THEIR EMPLOYERS & THEY SEARCH FOR FIRMS THAT WILL GIVE THEM
THE TOOLS TO ADVANCE IN THEIR PROFESIONS.

Organizational change and T&D: the primary challenge of T&D is to anticipate change
and to respond proactively to it.
 Prominent changes affecting T&D:
o Organization structure such as mergers, acquisitions, rapid
growth…
o Technology
o Educational level of employees
o Competitive pressures
o Changes in HR
o Increased emphasis on learning organisations
Factors influencing T&D:
 Top management support: For T&D programs to be successful, leadership
support at the top is a requirement. Without top management support, this
program will not succeed. The best is for executives to take part in the training
and provide the needed resources.
  Commitment from specialists & generalists: The primary responsibility for
T&D lies with line managers, from the president and chairman of the board on
down.
 Technological advances: the computer and the internet, in particular, are
dramatically affecting the conduct of all business functions.
 Organisation complexity
 Learning styles: T&D involves knowledge and skill acquisition. Employees
at all levels must continuously upgrade their expertise.
 Other HR functions: if recruitment and selection efforts attract only
marginally qualified workers, a firm will need extensive T&D programs.
Organisations with competitive pay systems will attract more employees that
will require less training.

The T&D process: Once the need for change is recognised and the factors that affect
T&D considered, the process of determining T&D needs begins. In exemplary
organisations there is a close link between the firm’s strategic mission and the objectives
of the T&D program.
 Just in time training: is provided anytime, anywhere in the world and just
when it is needed. Very good as global competition has dramatically increased
the need for efficiency.
 Recognising that T&D must be a non stop process, firms must provide
training initiatives that address several critical requirements:
o To guide individual employees in planning and managing their
careers.
o To help managers coach and mentor employees
o To help managers and employees deal with change.
Determining T&D needs:
 Organisational analysis
 Task analysis
 Person analysis
Establishing T&D objectives: without clear and concise objectives, designing a
meaningful T&D program wouldn’t be possible. See p.209 for an example of purposes
and objectives. The purpose is always established first, and then the specific objectives
should leave little or no doubt about what the training should accomplish.
T&D methods:
 Classroom programs: advantage is the interaction and having one instructor
that conveys a lot of information in a short period of time.
 Mentoring and coaching: Mentoring is an approach to advising for creating a
practical relationship to enhance individual career, personal, and professional
growth and development. Coaching is often considered as a responsibility of
the immediate boss, and provides assistance much as a mentor.
o Prevalence of mentoring coaching: can be formal or may develop
an informal basis.
o Mentoring/coaching for women and minorities
o Specific roles
 o Potential problems
o Reverse monitoring: is a process where older employees learn
from younger employees.
 Case study
 Videotapes
 Role playing
 Apprenticeship training
 Vestibule training: is a combination of classroom instruction and the on-the-
job training.
 Simulations: utilizes devices or programs replicating tasks away from the job
site.
 Business games
 In-basket-training: a simulation in which the participant is asked to establish
priorities for and then handle a number of business papers such as
memoranda, reports and telephone messages, that would tipically cross a
manager’s desk.
 Distance learning and videoconferencing
 Computer based training
 Virtual reality
 E-learning
 On the job training
 Job rotation
 Internships
Management development: learning experiences provided by an organisation for the
purpose of upgrading skills & knowledge required in current & future managerial
positions.
 Significance development: it is imperative that managers keep up with the
latest developments in their respective fields and at the same time manage an
ever-changing workforce operating in a dynamic environment.
 Need for personal commitment
 Development programs: in-house vs. outsourced
o Outside:
 An outside perspective
 New viewpoints
 Exposure to faculty experts and research
 Broader vision
o Inside:
 Training more specific for needs
 Lower costs
 Less time
 Consistent, relevant material
 More control of content and faculty
 Development of organizational culture & teamwork
Orientation: the initial T&D effort for new employees that strives to inform them about
the company, the job and the work group.
 o The employment situation
o Company policies & rules
o Compensation & benefits
o Corporate culture
o Team membership
o Employee development
o Dealing with change
o Socialisation
Special training areas:
 Diversity training: attempts to develop sensitivity among employees about
the unique challenges facing women and minorities and strives to create a
more harmonious working environment.
 English as a second language: shows sensitivity to diversity issues and helps
firms deal with employees in a way that optimises personal work
relationships.
 Ethics: By stressing fair play and a respect for law, they intend to develop a
corporate culture that rewards ethical behaviour. Under federal guidelines,
companies convicted of crimes are eligible for reduced sentences if they have
previously established programs to prevent and detect fraud.
 Telecommuter training: should emphasise effective communication
strategies that permit managers and employees to define job responsibilities
and set goals and job expectations.
 Customer service training
 Conflict resolution
 Teamwork
 Empowerment
 Remedial: focuses on foundation skills such as basic literacy & mathematics.

Implementing T&D programs: A perfectly conceived training program can fail if

management cannot convince the participants of its merits. Participants must believe that
the program has value and will help them achieve their personal and professional goals.
T&D requires more creativity than perhaps any other HR function. Employees might
vigorously avoid change; therefore the training will not work. It might also be difficult to
schedule, and it is also hard to keep records on the knowledge acquired by each
individual.

Evaluating T&D: There is no clear consensus within the training community on how to
determine its value. It is impossible to evaluate the effectiveness of the activity without
clear objectives. And, if you do not collect accurate data and feedback on the
effectiveness of your training programs, you may be wasting money.
 Participants opinions
 Extent of learning: tests before and after training in order to see the
difference
 Behavioural change: people might learn a lot in trainings, however might
never apply what was learned.
  Accomplishment of T&D objectives, ROI
 Benchmarking
 T&D evaluation: difficult but necessary. A company must at least estimate
the effect on performance to show whether the training achieved its desired
purpose.
Career planning & development:
 Career: is a general course that a person chooses to pursue throughout his
working life.
 Career planning: an ongoing process whereby an individual sets career goals
and identifies the means to achieve them.
 Organizational career planning: the planned succession of jobs worked out
by a firm to develop its employees. It helps ensure that a firm improves its
ability to perform by identifying needed capabilities and the type of people
needed to perform in an ever-evolving business environment.
Organization development: the planned process of improving an organization by
developing its structure, systems, and processes to improve effectiveness and achieve
desired goals. Is a major mean of achieving change in the corporate culture. This type of
development is increasingly important as both work and the work force diversify and
change. Even though it does not produce a blueprint for how to do things, it does provide
an adaptive strategy for planning and implementing change and strives for a long term
reinforcement change.
 Survey feedback: a process of collecting data from an organizational unit
through questionnaires, interviews and objective data from other sources such
as records of productivity, turnover, and absenteeism. Normally involves the
following steps:
o Members of the organisation are involved in planning the survey
o All member participate in the survey
o The OD consultant analyses the data, tabulates results, suggests
approaches to diagnosis and trains participants in the feedback
process
o Data feedback usually begins at the top level of the organisation
and flows downward to groups reporting at lower levels
o Feedback meetings to discuss and interpret data.
 Team building: a conscious effort to develop effective workgroups and
cooperative skills throughout the rganisation. It can be the most efficient way
to boost morale, employee retention and company profitability.
 Sensitivity training: an organizational development techcnique that is
designed to help individuals learn how others perceive their behaviour. (also
known as T-group training).