Training and Development in Acquiring Work-related Skills - Essay Example

December 15, 2006 TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT training- developing people Conventional 'training' is required to cover essential work-related skills, techniques and knowledge, and much of this section deals with taking a positive progressive approach to this sort of traditional 'training'. Importantly however, the most effective way to develop people is quite different to conventional skills training, which let's face it most employees regard as a pain in the neck. They'll do it of course, but they won't enjoy it much because it's about work, not about themselves as people. The most effective way to develop people is instead to enable learning and personal development, with all that this implies. So, as soon as you've covered the basic work-related skills training that is much described in this section - focus on enabling learning and development for people as individuals - which extends the range of development way outside traditional work skills and knowledge, and creates far more exciting, liberating, motivational opportunities - for people and for employers. Organisations are facing great pressure to change these days - to facilitate and encourage whole-person development and fulfilment - beyond traditional training. You might not immediately be able to put great new emphasis on 'whole-person development'. Being realistic, corporate attitudes and expectations about what 'training' is and does cannot be changed overnight, and most organisations still see 'training' as being limited to work skills, classrooms and powerpoint presentations. However, if you start imagining and thinking and and talking about concepts and expressions such as: 'enabling learning' 'facilitating meaningful personal development' 'helping people to identify and achieve their own personal potential' then you will surely begin to help the organisation to see and accept these newer ideas about what types of 'learning and development' really work best, in terms of developing employees. There are many different training and development methods. On-the-job training, informal training, classroom training, internal training courses, external training courses, on-the-job coaching, life-coaching, mentoring, training assignments and tasks, skills training, product training, technical training, behavioural development training, role-playing and role-play games and exercises, attitudinal training and development, accredited training and learning, distance learning - all part of the training menu, available to use and apply according to individual training needs and organisational training needs. Training is also available far beyond and outside the classroom. More importantly, training - or learning, to look at it from the trainee's view - is anything offering learning and developmental experience. Training and learning development includes aspects such as: ethics and morality; attitude and behaviour; leadership and determination, as well as skills and knowledge. Development isn't restricted to training - it's anything that helps a person to grow, in ability, skills, confidence, tolerance, commitment, initiative, inter-personal skills, understanding, self-control, motivation and more. If you consider the attributes of really effective people, be they leaders, managers, operators, technicians; any role at all, the important qualities which make good performers special are likely to be attitudinal. Skills and knowledge, and the processes available to people, are no great advantage. What makes people effective and valuable to any organization is their attitude. Attitude includes qualities that require different training and learning methods. Attitude stems from a person's mind-set, belief system, emotional maturity, self-confidence, and experience. These are the greatest training and development challenges faced, and there are better ways of achieving this sort of change and development than putting people in a classroom, or indeed by delivering most sorts of conventional business or skills training, which people see as a chore. This is why training and learning must extend far beyond conventional classroom training courses. Be creative, innovative, and open-minded, and you will discover learning in virtually every new experience, whether for yourself, your team, or your organization. If you want to make a difference, think about what really helps people to change. All supervisors and managers should enable and provide training and development for their people - training develops people, it improves performance, raises morale; training and developing people increases the health and effectiveness of the organization, and the productivity of the business. The leader's ethics and behaviour set the standard for their people's, which determines how productively they use their skills and knowledge. Training is nothing without the motivation to apply it effectively. A strong capability to plan and manage skills training, the acquisition of knowledge, and the development of motivation and attitude, largely determines how well people perform in their jobs. Training - and also enabling learning and personal development - is essential for the organisation. It helps improve quality, customer satisfaction, productivity, morale, management succession, business development and profitability. We do need to start with the essentials, for example induction training for new starters. Induction Training is especially important for new starters. Good induction training ensures new starters are retained, and then settled in quickly and happily to a productive role. Induction training is more than skills training. It's about the basics that seasoned employees all take for granted: what the shifts are; where the notice-board is; what's the routine for holidays, sickness; where's the canteen; what's the dress code; where the toilets are. New employees also need to understand the organisation's mission, goals and philosophy; personnel practices, health and safety rules, and of course the job they're required to do, with clear methods, timescales and expectations. Managers must ensure induction training is properly planned - an induction training plan must be issued to each new employee, so they and everyone else involved can see what's happening and that everything is included. You must prepare and provide a suitable induction plan for each new starter. These induction training principles are necessarily focused on the essential skills and knowledge for a new starter to settle in and to begin to do their job. However there is great advantage in beginning to address personal development needs, wishes, opportunities, particular strengths, abilities, talent, etc., during or very soon after the induction process. The sooner the better. An organisation needs to assess its people's skills training needs - by a variety of methods - and then structure the way that the training and development is to be delivered, and managers and supervisors play a key role in helping this process. People's personal strengths and capabilities - and aims and desires and special talents (current and dormant) - also need to be assessed, so as to understand, and help the person understand, that the opportunities for their development and achievement in the organisation are not limited by the job role, or the skill-set that the organisation inevitably defines for the person. As early as possible, let people know that their job role does not define their potential as a person within or outside the organisation, and, subject to organisational policy, look to develop each person in a meaningful relevant way that they will enjoy and seek, as an individual, beyond the job role, and beyond work requirements. If possible 'top-up' this sort of development through the provision of mentoring and facilitative coaching (drawing out - not putting in), which is very effective in producing excellent people. Mentoring and proper coaching should be used alongside formal structured training anyway, but this type of support can also greatly assist 'whole-person development', especially where the mentor or coach is seen as a role-model for the person's own particular aspirations. It's important that as a manager you understand yourself well before you coach, or train or mentor others: Are your own your own skills adequate Do you need help or training in any important areas necessary to train, coach, mentor others What is your own style How do you you communicate How do you approach tasks What are your motives These all affect the way you see and perform see the training, coaching or mentoring role, and the way that you see and relate to the person that your are coaching, or training, or mentoring. Your aim is to help the other person learn and develop - not to create another version of yourself. When you understand yourself, you understand how you will be perceived, how best to communicate, and how best to help others grow and learn and develop. And it's vital you understand the other person's style and personality too - how they prefer to learn - do they like to read and absorb a lot of detail, do they prefer to be shown, to experience themselves by trial and error Knowing the other person's preferred learning style helps you deliver the training in the most relevant and helpful way. It helps you design activities and tasks that the other person will be more be more comfortable doing, which ensures a better result, quicker. developing people and capabilities Many organizations face the challenge of developing greater confidence, initiative, solutions-finding, and problem-solving capabilities among their people. Organisations need staff at all levels to be more self-sufficient, resourceful, creative and autonomous. This behaviour enables staff can operate at higher strategic level, which makes their organizations more productive and competitive. People's efforts produce bigger results. It's what all organizations strive to achieve. However, while conventional skills training gives people new techniques and methods, it won't develop their maturity, belief, or courage, which is so essential for the development of managerial and strategic capabilities.Again, focus on developing the person, not the skills. Try to see things from the person's (your people's) point of view. Provide learning and experiences that they'd like for their own personal interest, development and fulfilment. Performance and capability are ultimately dependent on people's attitude and emotional maturity. Help them to achieve what they want on a personal level, and this provides a platform for trust, 'emotional contracting' with the organisation, and subsequent skills/process/knowledge development relevant to managing higher responsibilities, roles and teams. Participative workshops work well in beginning this type of attitudinal development. Involve people right from the start. Focus on what they want. You could also use a personal development questionnaire to begin to set the scene and provide examples of 'alternative' learning opportunities. It starts with the person, not the skills. It's about attitude and emotional maturity. The Emotional Intelligence principles and methodologies fit very well with modern approaches to developing people's belief, maturity and attitude. When people develop confidence, integrity, emotionally, they automatically become more proactive, solutions-focused, responsive, etc., which across a whole team has a cumulative effect. So many people at work are simply 'going through the motions', acting in a 'conforming' state, often because they feel insecure, lack confidence to do what they think is right, or are nervous about being bold, whereas boldness is absolutely required for self-sufficiency, initiative, greater responsibility; in fact all of the behaviours that organizations strive to encourage. You can't 'teach' boldness - people have to experience things which enable them to feel bolder, to take risks, and to want to take risks. This means the rewards must be there too, or people have no reason to stick their necks out. And not just the prospect of financial reward. More importantly the Herzberg-type motivators - real extra responsibility, recognition, and involvement in new successful and interesting projects. This is the fuel of people's growth and change. training planning These guidelines essentially deal with conventional work skills training and development. Remember that beyond this, issues of personal development and learning, for life, not just work, are the most significant areas of personal development to focus on. To plan traditional training of work skills and capabilities that links to organizational performance improvement you must first identify the organizational performance needs, gaps, and priorities. These are examples of typical training drivers which give rise to training needs. It is rare to use all of these aspects in determining training needs - select the ones which are most appropriate to your own situation, the drivers which will produce the most productive and cost-effective results, in terms of business performance and people-development: Examples of training:- Customer satisfaction surveys Business performance statistics and reports. Financial reports and ratios. Competitor analysis and comparison, eg SWOT analysis. Management feedback on employee needs, including from appraisals. Training audits, staff assessment centres. Staff feedback on training needs. Director-driven policy and strategic priorities. Legislative pressures. Relevant qualification and certification programmes. Conclusion In the fast-changing circumstances which all the Leading Edge organizations face, the effective management of human capital is vital in order to secure competitive advantage and to provide combination of fit and flexible approach to management. If there is a large disjunction between the aims of the organization and the interpretations of those aims by employees, this may have negative consequences, suggesting that something is amiss with the communication processes and belief formation processes in general. We have seen examples where simple failures of implementation can lead to poor organizational efficiency. However, the gap between rhetoric and reality takes a number of forms and may in certain cases confer important benefits. In order to improve organizational learning and unlearn old habits, some degree of freedom is required for managers to be creative and to stretch the boundaries of customary thinking. Among the Leading Edge companies, building in space for employee discretion is now virtually a norm and the encouragement of risk-taking behaviour is increasingly important. Sometimes, the mismatch between the blueprint and the finished article may illustrate constructive differences, differences which can add to learning and the encouragement of greater exploration. In the end, the themes of this final chapter of dissertation capture the spirit of this endeavour, the belief that the competencies, aspirations, and inspirations of people are central to organizational success. In the reflections we presented they saw the hopes and concerns of employees, the challenges which managers faced, and the true state of policies and systems. In their courage they were prepared not only to face up to reality, but also to share that reality with others. I hope that this spirit of openness and sharing will mark a new step along the development of our understanding of human resource management, that it will lead to a more realistic view of organizational life, and a clearer understanding of the complexities of organizations and the challenges they face. Work Cited ADLER, W. J., and JELINEK, M. (1986). "'Is Organizational Culture Culture-Bound'", Human Resource Management, 25/1 Amazing HR Management. Penbook Publishing House, April 2006, New Delhi. 2006. BOYAZTIS, R. (1982). The Competent Manager. A Model for Effective Performance. New York: John Wiley & Sons. DEVANNA, M. A., FOMBRUN, C. J., TICHY, N. M., and WARREN, L. (1982). "'Strategic Planning and Human Resource Management'", Human Resource Management HENDRY, C., and PETTIGREW, A. (1986). "'The Practice of Strategic Human Resource Management'", Personnel Review "Management Review" Eastern Book Publishing Company, Lucknow. 2006 Read More