Training and Development in Evolving Organisations - Term Paper Example

Training and development in evolving organisations Introduction The market conditions and general economic climate in which an evolving organization operates affects the nature and scope of training the organisation can offer and how it develops. The extent of the need for training depends on the skills required by the organisation and the skills with which new recruits come into the organisation. The extent of the provision of training depends on the expertise of the organization and its financial position as training can be provided both internally and externally. An evolving organization may wish to have a highly trained, skilled and developed management and workforce (because it maximizes efficiency and productivity amongst other benefits) but they are restricted by various internal and external constraints. Any training and development programme necessarily has to be conducted within these constraints. This report identifies the characteristics of the current financial climate and labour conditions and the impact this is having on the provision of training and development in evolving organizations. It then goes on to examine the need for training and consider suitable training and development approaches that could be adopted, and the tools that can be used within a new training and development plan. It also includes a critical discussion of the theoretical dimension of alternative learning styles that underpin these approaches. This report is a follow up to the presentation on On-the-Job (OJT) training, also known as ‘Sitting next to Nellie’ to consider alternatives, and with a focus on the call centre industry in the UK. The current financial climate The current financial climate is characterized by a lower liquidity, greater caution in expenditure by organization managers and in many cases a need to cut expenses, greater unemployment, increasing pressure to outsource jobs, and so on. The consequence for training is that many companies are either cutting back on training programmes, eliminating them or making alternatives to costly programmes. It is not only current financial climate but also competition and globalization, which are bringing about changes to how and why training is provided. There are numerous factors that make it essential to provide training yet there are those which impose restrictions. The only thing that is permanent is that the workplace learning system must adapt according to the financial climate and the needs of the organization. In the wider picture, the positive trend regardless has been to acknowledge workplace learning as an important component of lifelong learning. By providing opportunities for workplace learning employers too are able to tailor the skills of workers according to their needs. The provision of training in the UK Call Centre industry About 80,000 people are employed in the UK call centre industry, which comes to just under 3% of its working population. Call centres are a challenging environment in which “a complex mix of people, processes, technology and of course, the general public” (Executives Online) are involved. In this industry, many learn their work by sitting next to Nellie for a period before commencing unaided. So in the UK, OJT is a well established and common practice. According to the Training Agency (1989), “the largest survey ever undertaken in the UK indicated that about half of the total training delivered across all industries and sectors consisted of OJT.” One UK organisation by the name of Wholesale Climate Hire operate “a state of the art call centre with dedicated teams…" They have a special training facility "to brief special teams on account requirements and... monitor, develop and train staff with live systems within the call centre." Their centre "is manned with experienced personnel from our industry... our development programme for new people includes a personal development programme... On the job training and mentoring ensures our staff are fully trained and experienced before handling calls alone." (Wholesale Climate Hire) All their call centre teams are headed by team leaders and everyone has incentives to increase revenue. Formal education alone is insufficient so training for the workplace whether it is conducted within the workplace or outside. So workplace training is necessary. Although new recruits may have the required knowledge, if they have recently left education they will need to build up their experience. Communication and presentation skills for example are usually lacking so need to be developed for working in a business environment. As part of the training programme, “Wherever possible training should be participative and trainees should be encouraged to exchange views, take part in discussions and share ideas and experiences” (acas). Furthermore, "Jacqueline Campbell believes the human touch is often missing when call centre managers approach the thorny issue of improving performance" (Executives Online). The call centre industry like any other industry has its own set of particular skill requirements that can only be met by a suitable training programme of its own. It is not only the right working skills that need to be developed but also the right working attitude. This is important because the call centre industry is highly service oriented. Knowledge can be taught at a distance; skills can be learnt under simulation, but attitudes are observed in person. Attitudes can only transferred through interaction with the trainer by observing and emulating. Gem, offering outsourced customer service solutions, has people with “a special talent for customer focus, business expertise and are comfortable using technology.” They “provide a continuous training program and proactively encourage exchange of ideas from each and every staff member.” They work hard to ensure that their internal staff communication is effective in helping them do their job well. “At gem our culture is reflected in our policy to recruit people primarily on attitude and build the skills required for the job.” Recruitment and training costs have a large bearing on the training that a call centre company can provide. Although OJT is a cost effective programme especially suited for the difficult financial climate we are currently in, there are also other alternatives and complementary solutions for the workforce training needs of call centres. Training and Development Approaches In OJT, training is conducted “on a one-to-one basis and takes place at the workplace” (Newby, 2008). The individual then learns by observing someone else who is experienced at the task, so it is “learning by exposure” (Reid at al, 2004: 254). And, it “is an important way in which people acquire knowledge and skills at work” (CIPD, 2008). The advantage of OJT is that “is an acceptable, proven and virtually free, training scheme” (Caldwell, 1993: 59). Many trainees themselves prefer such active methods by sitting next to Nellie rather than passive learning sitting behind a desk. They get an opportunity to practice tasks by being shown how to do them rather than being told how to do them. In the medical field for example, there is a lot of theory to be learned but jumping from this background to dealing with live patients is ill advised. That is why where human life is at stake, they have to undergo a period of practical OJT and supervision before being allowed to practice medicine unsupervised. The advantages of ‘sitting next to Nellie’ are make it suitable for the call centre industry. It is suited because in call centres, tasks are repetitive and trainees can easily become skilled through constant practice. The trainers too will be keen to pass on their skills as they will be experienced and have “unrivalled knowledge and expertise and the desire and ability to pass it on” (Fenman Training Resources). This way, the trainees are fortunate in getting an opportunity for a “personalized feedback [and] the learning takes place in a familiar environment” (Fastrak Consulting, 1998). Moreover, the opportunity for practice will be immediate and even “before a job is to be performed for real in the workplace” (CIPD) using the same set of actual documents, equipment and tools. On the other hand, by sitting next to Nellie, it is also possible for “unstructured, inefficient and… bad habits” (Fastrak Consulting, 1998) to be passed on, and get only a fragmented picture. This shows how important it is to select trainers carefully. A mixed benefit is that Nellies may be tempted “to add their own improvements to the training process… Either the improvement is not really and improvement and no one should be doing it, or it is a true improvement and all trainers should be doing” (Blair, 2006). This makes it important to monitor and control OJT training programmes. If hiring and training is seen as too costly for the organization at a time when the cost factor is more critical, then outsourcing to another country where labour is cheaper is another option. This has negative consequences for the local economy but it may be a practical solution for struggling organizations as many have done. Call centres are especially popular targets for outsourcing nowadays. The UK government has a ‘hands-off’ policy in this matter (Ahmed, 2004). However, this raises certain quality issues. Training can be provided in both countries given the advanced communications technology, but extra demands are placed on the training programme because usually there is a need for accent and cultural awareness training as well. Some UK call centres have successfully outsourced but some have experienced “huge costs in terms of customer attrition and under performance” (1st Locate, 2005). UK based companies have the advantage of having workers already with the right accent and better informed knowledge of the requirements of UK customers. Hence, they are also easier to train. Recent research (Tynjata, 2007) on workplace learning points out that learning in the two world of formal education and work are moving closer together. For example, UK schools provide for work experience and there is greater cooperation between schools and businesses than before such as through accredited workplace training programmes. Workplace learning can be either formal or informal but according to the same research “differ a lot in how they support learning” (ibid). In Scotland for example, a study by training for call centres varies considerably, and “a majority envisage changes in training in the next two years” (Scottish Enterprise). Their research found that the growth of online learning is significant, and there is also “a greater focus on personal development, and innovation caused by regulatory change” (ibid). Learning Theories The different training and development approaches are based on different learning theories evolved mostly from research in Psychology. They are all aimed at instilling new knowledge and understanding through intellectual processes of learning, and developing specific motor skills but they have important differences in the way they perceive how learning should or does take place and in accordance with socio-cultural and work environments to a lesser or greater degree. These can be broadly grouped into the following: 1. Rationalist 2. Associationist (or Behaviourist) 3. Constructivist 4. Socio-Cultural learning These are all alternative modes of learning but which can be grouped into two paradigms. Hager (2004) recognizes the first ones as standard and dominant paradigms, and socio-cultural learning as a new emerging paradigm. The former are based on traditional understandings of learning processes focusing on how individuals acquire knowledge whereas the latter views knowledge as generated collectively through social interaction and participation. Brain based learning is another new constructivist approach based on latest medical research. Coaching and neurolinguistic programming are also some tools that can be used for workplace learning. The standard paradigms regard knowledge as an object, which is acquired, internalized and owned, whereas in socio-cultural learning, knowledge is seen as being produced and continually reconstructed through the relationships and interactions between people. In the standard paradigm, learning is “isolated in individual minds, expressed verbally, propositional” (Hager, 2001) and distorts judgment. In the emerging paradigm, “the role of action and exercise of judgment [is recognized; and it] positions knowledge in individuals, teams and organizations; and [it] includes propositional, cognitive, conative and affective capacities.” Some of the key differences identified above as grouped into two distinct paradigms and within the context of workplace learning are summarized in the table below. Paradigm Standard Emerging Involvement Individual Collective Focus in work Rational and cognitive aspects Affective and propositional aspects Goal Acquiring knowledge Producing and continually reconstructing knowledge Learning process Isolated Participatory (through social interaction) Work performance Thinking/reflection followed by its application Immediate practice of application with concurrent cognitive learning Importance of socio-cultural and organizational factors Downplayed Central Other developmental approaches that come under social learning include action learning in which individuals learn by doing especially by working in groups to help one another, and situational learning. The latter suits the call industry due to the need for a good understanding of the social and cultural situation when dealing with customers. In short, all social learning approaches have the distinct advantage of being appropriate in a working environment that is itself built around social relationships and the interactions of people. Conclusions The ‘learning by participation’ approach dominates thinking in the emerging paradigm. Thus there is a greater emphasis on social interaction as an aid to learning. These more social types of learning, whether through sitting next to Nellie or otherwise, are more productive and therefore suited to the workplace environment including the service oriented call centre industry. Establishing and strengthening partnership schemes with educational institutions are a good way of providing training with mutual benefit. The student gain experience in a real work environment and the company has another means of providing cost effective training to potential new recruits. Online training is a useful way of reaching out to trainees and is very much possible in this age of the Internet except that it compromises the real place-of-work experience that OJT offers. This however is not a problem for the call centre industry where most of the work will be online anyway and involved dealing with customers at a distance. Outsourcing is an option that does not necessarily mean the whole company has to relocate but could be a useful source of additional call centre agents although the quality issues and the impact this has on training must be considered. What can also be understood from the research is that whilst an OJT may be suitable as in induction into the workplace, there should be ongoing learning processes taking place for an organization to truly evolve. For this the management should ensure that social interaction is taken good advantage of and the principles of collaboration and coordination be put into effective practice. This emphasis on relationships is what emerges as the essential ingredient in socio-cultural learning. Thus organizational structures and processes can also facilitate learning. Even if no training programmes are arranged under the pressure of the current financial climate, concentrating on meetings, action learning and teamwork for example can greatly and automatically keep the organization evolving in terms of productivity and efficiency. References 1st locate. (2005) Customer Service Outsourcing Operations. VoiCentre. http://www.1stlocate.co.uk/CUSTOMER_SERVICE.HTM [6 May, 2009]. ACAS. http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=677. Ahmed, Zubair. (2004) India dismisses outsourcing fears. BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3472491.stm [6 May, 2009]. Blair, Pete. (2006) Technical Training Tips: Tips for Structured On Job Training (OJT). http://www.peteblair.com/tips4.htm.[Apr 18, 2009]. Caldwell, Brian and Carter, Earl M. A. (1993) The Return of the Mentor: Strategies for workplace learning. Routledge. Call Centres Scotland www.scotecon.net/publications/Call%20Centres%20Scotland.pdf CIPD. (2009) On-the-job training. Revised Nov. 2008. http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/lrnanddev/designdelivery/otjtrain.htm. [Apr 18, 2009]. Executives Online. The Executives Online contact centre report. Executives Online Ltd. http://www.executivesonline.co.uk/practice_areas/featured_disciplines/call_centre Fastrak Consulting. (1998) Training to be a publisher. http://www.fastrak-consulting.co.uk/tactix/Features/everyone/every05.htm. [Apr 18, 2009]. Fenman Training Resources. Online course. England. http://www.emagister.co.uk/sitting_next_to_nellie_courses-ec170050626.htm. [Apr 18, 2009]. Gem. http://www.the-gem.com/Page/careers.html. Hager, Paul. (2001) Workplace Judgement and Conceptions of Learning. Journal of Workplace Learning. Volume 13, Number 7-8, pp. 352-359. Hager, P. (2004) The conceptualisation and measurement of learning at work. in Rainbird, H. et al. (eds.) Workplace Learning in Context. London: Routledge pp. 242- 258 . Lee, Tracy et al. (2004) Learning as Work: Teaching and Learning Processes in the Contemporary Work Organisation. Learning as Work Research Paper, No. 2, June 2004. University of Leicester, The Centre for Labour Market Studies. Newby, Peter. (2008) On the Job Training (OJT). Sims Learning Connections. Jul 15, 2008. http://blog.simslearningconnections.com/?p=224. [Apr 18, 2009]. Reid, Margaret A. et al. (2004) Human Resource Development: Beyond Training Interventions. 7th edition. CIPD Publishing. Taylor, Phil. (n.d.) Call Centres in Scotland and Outsourced Competition From India. Scottish Enterprise. Scottish Development International. Scotecon.net. Training Agency, Deloitte Haskins and Sells and IFF Research. (1989) Training in Britain: A study of funding, activity and attitudes: the main report. London: HMSO. Quoted in CIPD. (2009) On-the-job training. Revised Nov. 2008. http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/lrnanddev/designdelivery/otjtrain.htm. [Apr 18, 2009]. Tynjata, Palvi. (2007) Perspectives into learning at the workplace. Educational Research Review. Volume 3, Issue, pp. 130-154. Wholesale Climate Hire. www.executivehireclub.co.uk/hs_11350_wholesale_16pp_final.pdf. Read More