What NL&C Needs to Include in a Comprehensive Management Training Program - Case Study Example

Running head: HR Managing Human Resources Full [Insert information here] Managing Human Resources Overview and Description of the Topics that NL&C Needs to Include in a Comprehensive Management Training Program According to the Management Help (2006), the Human Resources Management (HRM) function includes a variety of activities such as determining staffing needs, hiring of employees to fill the needs of the company, recruiting and training the best employees, ensuring they are high performers, dealing with performance issues, and ensuring that personnel and management practices conform to various regulations, managing approach to employee benefits and compensation, employee records and personnel policies, ensure that employees have -- and are aware of -- personnel policies which conform to current regulations. As the newly hired Human Resources Director for the National Lewis and Clark Corporation (NL&C), a 2- year old innovative service organization that has grown from 5 employees to 250 employees, with most of that growth occurring in the past 6 months, the NL&C company president has just come and asked to implement a Comprehensive Management Training Program. The following topics that NL&C needs to include in a Comprehensive Management Training Program are as follows: Seminar Workshop on Recruitment of Employees, Orientation on the Employees Benefits from the Company's Progressive Profit-Sharing Plan, Capability Enhancement Training for Employees in the Management Positions, Orientation Workshop on Collective Bargaining, Harmonization and Team Building Activities and lastly, Leadership Training. Since, as the Human Resources Director, I just joined the organization two months ago, I will make use of the available data, observations and on several areas noticed from the first couple of months with NL&C that need development or redesign in assisting the would-be resource persons in coming up with training modules for each components that are customized to the NL&C. The Human Resources Department was established by the president since the company has grown to the point of needing that department. Hence, the above topics are brainstormed and conceptualized. The Comprehensive Management Training Program should include relevant topics that NL&C needs like this first component which is a Seminar Workshop on Recruitment of Employees. In this training component, the target participants are the human resources workforce as well as the management level that are directly involve in the decision -making when it comes to developing Criteria or Systems in Recruiting Employees. It has been observed that the growth of the organization has been steady and that it is not expected to diminish anytime soon. The recruitment method that can be adopted should conform to the expectations of the top management that the recruiting method that will be developed is fast, reliable and cost-effective to meet the tremendous staffing needs that have been communicated to the Human Resources Director. The next component of the Comprehensive Management Training Program is an Orientation on the Employees Benefits from the Company's Progressive Profit-Sharing Plan. In here, the comparative salary survey that has found its way to the Human Resources Director's desk should be included as one of the points of discussion. A resource person that can facilitate coming up with action plans in order to improve the systems on giving out salaries and benefits should be hired. It is important to address this author's observation and analysis as a Human Resources Director that NL&C's salary and benefits for most positions are far below national averages. The trainer should facilitate the training in such a way to find out if this will, in time, have an effect on the quality of employees attracted to the company. After this training component has been conducted, this author, as Human Resource Manager will determine if the number of informational requests from employees about their benefits will be reduced. This possible decrease in the number of informational requests from employees about their benefits will eventually lead to decrease in the number of instances where much of this author's, Human Resource Manager's productive time was eaten up because of the informational requests received as early as this author's first few weeks in this company, the NL&C. The third component of the Comprehensive Management Training Program can be on Capability Enhancement Training for Employees in the Management Positions. With a company that has grown as quickly as NL&C, the appropriate human resource development training / seminars should be provided to management level staff. In this company, it was found that the quality of people management and customer service practice varies greatly from department to department. The couple of departments that clients and vendors seem to try to avoid interaction with, though the majority of departments seem to naturally excel in the way they treat both business and internal clients, can be provided with training on Effective Frontline Services. An Orientation Workshop on Collective Bargaining, Harmonization and Team Building Activities can be provided as part of the Comprehensive Management Training Program Component IV. Something that the company president recently said makes me think that part of the reason the hiring of a Human Resources Director has to do with the fact that a few terminated employees have filed lawsuits against NL&C in recent months. Based on the paperwork that have been passed from these lawsuits involving claims of both wrongful termination and discrimination, it looks like there are some aspects of human resources that has to be threshed out. Though the treatment of employees in the company seems good overall, there is little documentation on some of the recent terminations. Also, there are no measures in placed that would make the company fully confident that NL&C's defense would stand in court. Since as organizations strive to remain competitive, there is much reliance on the management team and their ability to serve effectively in leadership roles. Managers hold a great deal of responsibility in terms of managing people and processes. Therefore, it is but important to include in the Comprehensive Training Program the training component on Leadership. The Training Delivery / Communication Options The training delivery to be used is participative which simulates real scenarios. This will be a workshop type of training. Experiential learning should be employed in the training components of the Comprehensive Management Training program aimed at maintaining work effectiveness, retaining employees and create organizational success where employee development is critical. Simulate what is happening in the workplace where learning should take place when an employee joins the organization, a promotion occurs, new equipment is installed, or new procedures are introduced. The communication option to be used in the delivery of training should be simple yet effective. Training is not a uniform process to which a single methodology applies. Training function and form vary significantly according to the situation. It can occur during informal, spontaneous interaction, or be formal and structured. This comprehensive management training program should focus on the principles of adult and interactive learning, and should be highly experiential in nature. This type of training program will fit the workforce of the NL&C to refine their training skills. The professional Human Resource staff who regularly conduct training programs and those staff new to the training profession can build a solid foundation of knowledge and skills through this type of training program. Also, this training program will provide comprehensive information and techniques to develop critical competencies. Training activities will focus on the design and approach to facilitate effective delivery of functions and responsibilities. The training materials to be used should assist trainers in enhancing their training presentations with materials that are professionally designed and written. Group facilitation skills of the trainers should be maximized to effect intervention strategies needed to maintain effective group relationships and direct groups towards productive goals. Aside from the evaluation of the Human Resources Directors from available data and observations, a Training Needs Assessment and Evaluation conducted prior to the actual training proper help trainers understand and use selected needs assessment and evaluation tools as part of the design and delivery of training. Issues and Challenges to Consider - Including Suggested Solutions The challenge to have a trained and skilled workforce is the ultimate competitive advantage for any organization. The rapidly expanding base of new information and technologies affects every one of us, from factory floor to business office. No matter how capable or successful an organization is, if staff training and continuing education is overlooked, there will be problems in the organization. The challenge is to get the best value for the training dollars spent by choosing training that suits the needs of the company and least impacts the bottom line. In order to meet the challenge, comprehensive approach to employee development can be adopted. Set goals and reach them. Identifying the needs, developing the right intervention, and delivering a practical, results-oriented solution. Interactive training is designed for the adult learner, requiring involvement in the learning process. Handle specialized workplace challenges with customized group training. Handle challenges specific to the organization. A good approach is to maximize training dollars spent by tailoring content to the organization's explicit situation to produce the results needed. The NL&C should source top-notch trainers who can combine their experiences with the latest in learning techniques for interactive sessions that emphasize skill development and application (RBA Training, 2006). Reference Management Help. 2006. Management Library, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Carter McNamara, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. http://www.managementhelp.org/. RBA Training. 2006. VanDamme Associates, Inc. http:/www. info@rballiance.com Training & Development. Rochester Business Alliance. VanDamme Associates, Inc. http://www.rochesterbusinessalliance.com/scriptcontent/va_custom/va_cm/ContentPageDisplay.cfmContent_ID=51 http://www.msec.org/seminar/catalog/view.aspid=1795. Read More