Training and Development

 

Training and development involve improving the effectiveness of organizations and the individuals and teams within them. Training may be viewed as related to immediate changes in organizational effectiveness via organized instruction, while development is related to the progress of longer-term organizational and employee goals. While training and development technically have differing definitions, the two are oftentimes used interchangeably and/or together. Training and development have historically been topics within adult education and applied psychology but have within the last two decades become closely associated with human resources management, talent management, human resources development, instructional design, human factors, and knowledge management.

Training practice and methods

Training and development encompass three main activities: training, education, and development.

The "stakeholders" in training and development are categorized into several classes. The sponsors of training and development are senior managers. The clients of training and development are business planners. Line managers are responsible for coaching, resources, and performance. The participants are those who actually undergo the processes. The facilitators are human resource management staff. And the providers are specialists in the field. Each of these groups has its own agenda and motivations, which sometimes conflict with the agendas and motivations of the others.

Especially in the last couple decades, training has become more trainee-focused, which allows those being trained more flexibility and active learning opportunities. For example, these active learning techniques include exploratory/discovery learning, error management training, guided exploration, and mastery training. Typical projects in the field include executive and supervisory/management development, new-employee orientation, professional-skills training, technical/job training, customer-service training, sales-and-marketing training, and health-and-safety training. Training is particularly critical in high-reliability organizations, which rely on high safety standards to prevent catastrophic damage to employees, equipment, or the environment (e.g. nuclear power plants, operating rooms).

 

It is important to note that all employees require different levels and types of development in order to fulfill their job roles in the organization. All employees need some type(s) of training and development on an ongoing basis to maintain effective performance, adjust to new ways or work, and remain motivated and engaged. The instructional systems design approach (often referred to as ADDIE model) is great for designing effective learning programs  and used for instructional design. Instructional design is the process of designing, developing and delivering learning content. There are 5 phases in the ADDIE model: (1) needs assessment, (2) program design, (3) program development, (4) training delivery or implementation, and (5) evaluation of training.

Analyze - problem identification, (TNA) training needs analysis, target audience determined, stakeholder's needs identified, identify the resources required.

Design - learning intervention/implementation outline and mapped, mapping evaluation methods.

Development - determine delivery method, production of learning product that is in line with design, determine instructional strategies/media/methods, quality evaluation of the learning product, development of communication strategy, development of required technology, development and evaluation of assessments and evaluation tools.

Implement - participation in side-programs, training delivery, learning participation, implementation of a communication plan, evaluation of business, execution of formal evaluations.

Evaluation - (integral part of each step) formal evaluation, continuous learning evaluation, evaluation of business, potential points of improvement.

Many different training methods exist today, including both on and off-the-job methods. On-the-job training methods happen within the organization where employees learn by working alongside co-workers in ways such as coaching, mentorship, internship, apprenticeship, job rotation, job instructional technique (JIT), or by being an understudy To contrast, off-the-job training methods happen outside the organization where employees attend things such as lectures, seminars, and conferences or they take part in simulation exercises like case studies and role-playing. It could also include vestibule, sensitivity or transactional training activities. Other training methods include:

Apprenticeship Training: system of training in which a worker entering the skilled trades is given thorough instruction and experience, both on and off the job, in the practical and theoretical aspects of the work.

Co-operative programs and internship programs: training programs that combine practical, on-the-job experience with formal education. Typically, these programs are offered at colleges and universities.

Classroom instruction: information can be presented in lectures, demonstrations, films, and videotapes or through computer instruction. (This includes vestibule training where trainees are instructed in the operation of equipment.)

Self-Directed Learning: individuals work at their own pace during programmed instruction. Including books, manuals, or computers to break down subject-matter content into highly organized, logical sequences that demand a continuous response on the trainee's part.

Audiovisual: methods used to teach the skills and procedures required for a number of jobs.

Simulation: used when it is not practical or safe to train people on the actual equipment or within the actual work environment.

E-learning: training that uses computer and/or online resources. Such as CBT (computer-based training), videotapes, satellites and broadcast interactive TV/DVD/CD-ROM.

The benefits of training employees are increased productivity and performance in the workplace, uniformity of work processes, reduced supervision and reduced wastage, promoting employees from within, improving organizational structure and designs, boosting morale, better knowledge of policies and organization's goals, improved customer valuation and improved/updated technology. There is significant importance in training as it prepares employees for higher job responsibilities, shows employees they are valued, improves IT and computer processes, and tests the efficiency of new performance management systems. However, some believe training wastes time and money because, in certain cases, real life experience may trump education, and organizations want to spend less, not more.

 

Benefits

Training has been used in organizations for the past several decades. Although training and development requires investments of many types, there are cited benefits to integrating training and development into organizations:

·         Increased productivity and job performance 

·         Skills development 

·         Team development 

·         Decreasing safety-related accidents 

However, if the training and development is not strategic and pointed at specific goals, it can lead to more harm than good. Needs assessments, especially when the training is being conducted on a large-scale, are frequently conducted in order to gauge what needs to be trained, how it should be trained, and how extensively. Needs assessments in the training and development context often reveal employee and management-specific skills to develop (e.g. for new employees), organizational-wide problems to address (e.g. performance issues), adaptations needed to suit changing environments (e.g. new technology), or employee development needs (e.g. career planning). The needs assessment can predict the degree of effectiveness of training and development programs and how closely the needs were met, the execution of the training (i.e. how effective the trainer was), and trainee characteristics (e.g. motivation, cognitive abilities).  Effectiveness of training is typically done on an individual or team-level, with few studies investigating the impacts on organizations.

List of References

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