Chapter 4: Training and Development

Introduction

In this chapter, training and developing process for employees is explained and discussed in all respects. First, the fundamental concepts of training and development are presented Then, the importance, objectives, benefits of employee training and development are discussed. The training methods and the techniques are explained. Finally, the training process is described in detail.

The Basic Concepts of Training and Development

Training is needed to provide the crucial task/ job-related skills, techniques, and knowledge. The main aim of training and development is to focus on what’s good for people, rather than chiefly what’s profitable for organizations. Training and development focus on what’s good for the employee, rather than what’s profitable for organizations.

Training

Training is a process which helps the individuals gain knowledge, skills or ability. Training is an organized activity for increasing the personnels’ skills.

Training involves: a two one way process, experts and learners, an organized and systematic activity, certain area of knowledge or skills, improve the performance, improve the current job.

As a result of the training and development process, employees gain knowledge and skill, and they change their behaviour. Now, let’s check what these concepts are:

Knowledge is the cognitive capacity of the organization.

Skill Skills are technical or manual proficiencies which are usually learned or acquired through training. They should be measurable and observable. Skills are classified into three types; technical, human, and conceptual skills as explained below briefly.

Technical skills are occupation related, concrete, and functional.

Human/Social skills refer to the ability to work effectively with a group as a team and to build complementary accomplishment.

Conceptual skills help to see the business/ organization as a whole.

Behavior

Behavior refers to the reaction of the employee to specific situations or conditions at work. As a result of training and development, it is desirable that employees’ behaviour would change observably. Changes in behaviour as planned help to achieve organizational goals.

Development

Development includes employee training on various fields like giving information, gaining skills, changing behaviors, making decisions, solving problems etc. Development is a process providing an individual’s growth in all respects. Development is a long-term educational process and training is part of the ongoing employee development program. Development involves: a process, growth of person, on-going multi-faceted set of activities/ trainings, on theoretical skills and conceptual ideas, enhancement of general knowledge, prepares for future jobs.

Education

Education covers both the teaching and learning of knowledge, behaviour, and competency. It focuses on structuring skills. Education refers to the understanding and interpretation of knowledge. Education involves: a two way process, experts and learners, teaching and learning of knowledge, develops a logical and rational mind, consists of the application of pedagogy, provided only by educational institutions. Concepts of education, training and development are frequently confused because they are so related that these terms are often used synonymously.

Training improves human performance, allows employees to perform their present job in accordance with the required standards using the developing technology.

Education is training people to do a different job. Unlike training, education may not be completely evaluated until the learners move on to their future jobs or tasks.

Development is training people to acquire new horizons, technologies, or viewpoints. It enables leaders to guide their organizations onto new expectations by being proactive rather than reactive.

Training is a scheduled programme improving performance and measurable changes in knowledge, skills, attitude and social behavior of employees. Development broadens an individual’s knowledge, skills and abilities for future responsibilities. Education is a conceptual learning that improves understanding of a subject/theme.

Learning

Learning reshapes the individual’s understanding. The fundamental point in the learning process is to acquire existing knowledge and skills through experience and practice. “Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior”. Learning involves: act or experience, knowledge or skill gained at school, behavioral changes, enhance level of maturity.

Adult Learning

Adult learning is also result-oriented. The adult learner has various goals in mind, by focusing on these goals s/he tries to accomplish his/her objectives in a self-driven manner. Adult learning, often labeled as staff development, manpower development, continuous education , lifelong education is a lifelong process and involves changes.

Orientation

Orientation is not just a first-day activity, but it is a process. New employee orientation is traditionally called induction or organizational socialization . Today, it is called on boarding . Employee orientation involves more than what most people realize. It still provides new employees with the information they need to function. According to Built.com in 2014, the purpose of employee orientation is to: reduce startup-costs, reduce anxiety, reduce employee turnover, save time for supervisor, develop realistic job expectations, develop positive attitudes, develop job satisfaction. An orientation includes information about employee benefits, personnel policies, the daily routine, company organization and operations, safety measures and regulations, and facilities.

The Importance of Training and Developing Employees

There could be many reasons as to why organizations need training and development for their human resources. Some of the most typical ones are given below. Reasons of the need for training and development are to

• provide staff with the necessary knowledge and skills for the right jobs,
• prepare employees to occupy higher positions,
• let them work effectively and efficiently,
• update them with the latest concepts and techniques,
• make the employee’s competence compatible with the organizational needs,
• catch up with technological advances,
• have employee career planning,
• keep up with the changing environment of the organization,
• survive in a competitive environment with welltrained employees.

The Importance of Training and Development

Training is an important activity of Human Resource Management and Development. It is significant for not only the individual but also the organization.

Objectives of Training and Development

The principal objective of the training and development activity is to ensure the availability of a skilled and willing workforce to an organization for the organizational development. The following are the objectives of the training and development process for both the employee and the organization

Objectives for Organizations:

• Enhancing the company’s ability to adopt technological changes
• Adopting economic-social changes
• Adopting regulatory and environmental changes
• Ensuring a well-equipped personnel
• Increasing productivity
• Reducing employee turnover
• Increasing efficiency
• Decreasing the need for supervision
• Gaining a competitive advantage
• Reducing supervision, waste and accidents.

Objectives for Employees:

• Improving knowledge, skills, and behaviours
• Increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of employees
• Preparing employees for higher level responsibilities
• Training employees in the company’s culture
• Increasing employees’ morale
• Developing inter-personal relations
• Stimulating creative thinking
• Improving mental and analytical abilities.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Training and Development

Even the need for training and development is significant, organizations somehow face various problems arising from training programs. Some of them are given below:

• Insufficient training and development facilities
• Not given rewards or awards to trainers/trainees
• Organizing duplicated training programmes
• Inaccurate design of the training course content
• Lack of seriousness on the part of the trainees
• Giving no importance to training programmes
• Failure of the institutes and training programmes

The Approaches to Training and Development

For an effective training and development process, learning is fundamental. A learning theory helps understand how people learn, thereby assisting educators, trainers, and facilitators reflect on their educational practices. The three major prominent learning theories are known as behaviourist, cognitivist and constructivist, though Siemens later developed the connectivism theory as a learning theory for the digital age.

Behaviourist/Behavioral Learning Theory: The main purpose of the behaviourist learning pedagogy is to accomplish the correct behaviour which focuses on achievable learning objectives.

There are two types of conditioning, namely classical and operant conditioning:

1. Classic learning process: This is a process of learning by temporal association in which two events repeatedly occur close together in time and produce the same response. Learning occurs when a natural reflex responds to a stimulus.
2. Operant learning process: If a behavior is rewarded, it is repeated. Within this process, learning has a function of changing the behavior. Changes in behavior are the result of an individual’s response to events that occur in the environment.

Cognitivist Theory: Cognitive theories look beyond behavior to consider how human memory works to promote learning.

Constructivist Learning Theory: In this theory, a learner constructs knowledge through interacting with more knowledgeable others; “learning starts by conversations”. This approach includes situated and active learning, learning by doing, problem-based learning, inquiry-based learning, and cooperative learning.

Connectivist Learning Theory: Connectivism is replacing behaviourism, cognitivism, and constructivism in the digital age.

There are also several other theories underlying training and development:

Reactive Approach: The traditional approaches to training can be generally termed as reactionary, driven by tactical delivery of technical skills. Training is seen as an event oriented activity.

Proactive Approach: In the learning organization, this approach coordinates all learning activities with the corporate business strategy, and it focuses on improving competencies.

Active Learning Approach: The trainees play a leading role in learning. They learn by asking thought questions, searching for answers, and interpreting numerous observations made during the process.

The Methods of Training

There are two main training methods known as on-the-job training and off-the-job training.

On-The-Job Training Method

On-the-job training (OTJ) is also known as direct instruction. It requires direct instruction from the trainer and specialized knowledge from the trainee. It is one of the oldest training methods, and it involves direct instruction. The worker learns by doing the work. A person learns the job by actually doing it in the working environment. Training allows learning the job.

On-The-Job Training Techniques

On-the-job training techniques include job shadowing, job rotation, apprenticeship, coaching, mentoring, internship, job instruction, and few others which are briefly described below.

Job Shadowing: In this technique, one person at workplace shows to another all the aspects of a particular job. It is mostly used for training new employees as part of the introduction process.

Job Rotation: The subject of rotation could be a task, a position or a job rotation. This technique covers employee movement to different types of jobs within the organization.

Coaching: It aims to give the employee the tools which are essential for being successful in his/her job. These tools could be giving constructive feedback, providing performance appraisals or giving chances to learn new skills, such as training or job shadowing.

Mentoring: Mentoring is for managerial employees, and it is used for the development of attitude. It is generally under the responsibility of the senior staff within the organization.

Job Instructional Technique (JIT): It is a structured, step by step, on the job training technique. It enables a trainer to prepare a trainee with an overview of the job.

Committee Assignments: In this training technique, the trainer asks a group of trainees to find a solution to a given organizational problem by discussing the problem.

Apprenticeship Training Technique: In most of the countries, based on regulations, some specified industrial establishments have to provide training for the educated unemployed in their establishments enabling them to get employment.

Internship training: The trainer gives instructions to the trainees by using theoretical and practical ways.

Off-The-Job Training Method

Off-the-job training / formal training / classroom training is another method of training. It is arranged out of the work environment for a defined period. The aim of giving the training outside of the workplace is mainly to focus just on learning. Off-The-Job Training Techniques involve classroom lectures, case studies, incident method, role playing, audio-visual training, simulation, programmed instructions, conferences and seminars, business games university certificate courses and a few more training techniques. Some of them are given below.

Lectures: This is a traditional training method. A large number of employees can be trained at a time. This is suitable for large audiences where participation is not wanted.

Conferences and Seminars: Conferences and seminars are the common methods of training. They are viewed as a type of meeting allowing several experts to discuss on any subject.

Case study: The trainee deals with a given problem or an imaginary issue mostly faced by a business, analyses the case and come up with all possible solutions.

Incident method: The trainer gives incidents to each employee in the training group. Incidents are derived from the actual situations developed in various organizations.

Role playing: It is a development technique. The trainee takes over a role in a given setting and act out behaviours connected with that role.

Business Games: The trainees are divided into groups to talk about activities and functions of an imaginary organization.

Audiovisual Training: This method makes use of audiovisual aids such as television, films, and videos in the training of the employee. It is a cost-effective technique.

Vestibule Training: Under this method, training is provided in a classroom where the actual working situation is created.

Programmed Instructions: This technique is gaining popularity these days. Trainee learns the subject by focusing on logical sequence.

University and College Degrees and Certificate Courses: To suit the needs of the working class, many colleges and universities run part time and evening courses in the areas of finance, accounting, personnel management, marketing and materials management, computer software, etc.

e-Training

e-Learning/Training (Distance learning) is presented through a computer or other electronic devices to the target participants. E-Learning is education and training that is delivered to its “users” through a computer or other electronic devices.

Benefits of e-learning:

• Creating a global workforce
• Managing flat organizations
• Adjusting to employee wants and needs
• Retaining valued workers
• Increasing productivity and profitability
• Flexibility to learn anytime, anywhere
• Reduce travel and related costs
• Making updates easy.

The Process of Training

ADDIE is a widely-used instructional design framework that consists of five phases: Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation. It is a systematic and consistent process that guides individuals through the process of designing and developing effective training activities.

Analyze

An analysis of training needs will identify gaps between the skills the organization needs and the skills the employees already have. The training needs of an organization is identified by the following:

Organizational Analysis: It is basically a systematic study of the organization’s objectives, resources, resource allocation and utilization, growth potential, and its environment.

Task Analysis: In task analysis, the main focus is on the job. It requires the study of various types of skills and training required to perform the job effectively.

Job requirements analysis: The skills and knowledge specified in the appropriate job descriptions are examined.

Manpower/Person Analysis: An individual employee is the focus of this analysis. Specific training needs for the manpower are determined to meet the quality standards needed in accordance with the manpower analysis. These needs include (i) specific areas where employees need training, (ii) the capability of present employees to learn new skills and behaviour, (iii) the time frame for imparting training, and (iv) designing and redesigning of jobs with the introduction of new work methods and technologies.

Design

Designing phase is about planning the whole training program. Training program involves the strategy and planning.

Develop

This is the phase in which the training program is actually created by means of content and materials. Activities/strategies/processes are developed, the trainee and the trainer with the training duration and venue are decided. Training equipment suitable for specific instructional techniques is chosen.

Implement

Implement means providing training by using instructional methods, In this phase actual training activities are accomplished. Registration, logistics, documentation, certificates of participation are dealt with.

Evaluate

Evaluation refers to a systematic process to determine the value of the training programs. Training should be evaluated several times during the process. Employees should be evaluated by comparing their newly acquired skills with the skills defined by the goals of the training program. The most well known frame for classifying the area of evaluation was developed by Kirkpatrick’s, and this model contains four levels of evaluation:

1. Reaction: What are the participants’ reaction to training?
2. Learning: What have participants learned?
3. Behavior: How did participants’ behaviors change?
4. Results: What is the final result of training?