Developing Yourself - Coursework Example

Developing yourself and others Identification of learning style Using David A Kolbs Experiential Learning Theory to determine our learning styles, it was realized that I have an accommodating learning style (Dessler, 2014 p. 89). The reasoning behind this is that I am very interested in hands-on learning and always have a passion for hands-on experience. I also like involving myself in whatever the organization does, such as strategy formulation, and will be in it till the implementation. I rarely depend on historical facts to make a decision, unless the circumstances of the situation demand the use of such historical facts. I like action oriented careers, in which I will be in the goal settings and implementations. My colleague has a converging learning style. He likes experimenting first on theories and principles before he can apply on real office work. He questions everything he is given to work with and rarely does his work following gut feelings. He is interested in developmental work with innovations such as technology and science. For him, everything has to be tackled with an appropriate solution, and what worked for a single problem may not work for another one unless, it is first tried and tested. He is the kind of person who can come up with manuals to be used in the work, and everybody should use the manual when solving the particular problem. Developmental needs Assessment The developmental needs assessment for me and my colleague was done using a SWOT analysis. SWOT analysis is an analysis that focuses on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (Burrow, 2012 p. 148). The first strength I harbor is that I am a hands-on person, and like doing things the best way in which I think will work out. The market is always dynamic changing from day to day and thus what worked yesterday may not function today. The opportunity I have is that I am a fast learner, and I am also very flexible to change and can thus adapt to any organizational setting. My major weakness lies in the use of standards and formulas. I cannot do a job that requires the use of standards, as I prefer taking shortcuts. The primary threat I harbor is the flooding of the market with people who are whole rounded. The major need is to learn how to use standards and patience in implementation of strategies. My colleague’s strength lies in the ability to use standards and use only those formulas that are tested and tried. His major opportunity lies in the fact that he is still young and in school, and, for this reason, will climb the corporate ladder fast because of the amount of certificates he has. His major weakness is that he is rigid to change, and this may present challenges in the dynamic market environment. The threat he is facing is the same as mine in that the work industry is dynamic, and he may not be able to compete fairly with whole rounded individuals. For this reason, the major developmental need is to learn how to accommodate change, and work with people (Robbins, 2014 p. 224). Barriers to learning The following barriers have been identified as barriers to achieving developmental needs; Social barriers and these include traditions set to be removed; Personal barriers such as conflict of interest, finances, time to learn; Emotional barriers and beliefs; and Workplace barriers such as discrimination and fear of sabotage by managers. How to break the barriers The social barriers can be broken through training that the cultural traditions only hold us back and that letting them go will do no harm. The tradition, that marketers are not good in research, can be demystified by teaching that proper research will not only make marketing easier but will also make the marketer work on informed timelines. Proper planning can break the personal barriers. The learning schedule should be prepared long in advance, and the learner compelled to plan the time and finances to fit the schedule. As for finances, scholarships may be sought, and these will go a long way in relieving the financial burden. On the job, training can also be rolled out, and this will solve the problem with the availability and time (Nkomo, 2013 p. 116). The emotional barrier and beliefs, such as my alienation to gut feeling will be solved once the other problems are solved. Finally, the workplace barriers such as discrimination will be addressed by teaching the entire workplace the benefits of staff development, and that a workplace environment should be united rather than competing. The opportunity to develop should also be open to all people in the organization to avoid it looking discriminative. Development options The best development option for me will be workshops since I am an outgoing person, and I like learning hands on, it may not be possible to make me sit down in a classroom to learn. It is that what is to be learned include practical applications and thus learning them hands on is the best method. This method is also good because it can be on the job, and it can also be done together with other members of the organization that has similar issues. It is noteworthy that this method has a drawback that it is not possible to carry out individual assessment on whether whatever was to be learned has been learned. Another drawback is that it is usually more expensive than in-class training and it also focuses on a single subject. The main advantage is that most of the things are learned practically, giving the learner an opportunity to experience what is to be done during the training. Another training that would suit me is on the job training. On the job training, such as apprenticeship is suitable because it enables me to do things practically, as this is how I learn best. My colleague would prefer e-learning rather than workshops. His learning ability is such that he has to test everything, and he likes dwelling on a subject exhaustively before proceeding to the next topic. As a result, it is noted that he is somebody who will respond well in a classroom environment either through Skype or email. Another option for my colleague would be class training or a scholarship to pursue higher learning. He is somebody who likes to find out more about something, and his desire for knowledge is insatiable. The higher learning can be in an institution that specializes on what he likes doing on a day by day basis. Resources needed The first resource that is suitable for me is job rotation. The gut feeling I have is for jobs such as marketing, and it would be interesting to see how my learning qualities can blend with another department of the organization. One of the threats that I have in the SWOT analysis is the fear of being one-sided and facing competition from persons that are otherwise whole rounded. Job rotation, will, for this reason, expose me to those parts of the organization that are not on my job description, but those that can make me a whole person. For my colleague, resources such as computers and internet are good to boost his development. He likes doing deeper research about things and understanding the underlying principles before executing the same. This will, for this reason, require massive resources such as theories and philosophies behind whatever they are doping. For this reason, another resource will be subscription to online library databases. Development plan This development plan is for my colleague to achieve the learning objective that is to be a whole rounded person and be flexible to change. The first step of the plan is to identify the training objectives, and this is after a determination of the current situation and the desired situation (Mathis, 2014 p. 320). The second step will be to identify the learning points and appropriate learning techniques, and the resources to be utilized with these learning techniques are to be identified, and their availability assured. The learning is then to be rolled out, and constant appraisals are to be done periodically to ensure that the learning process is the way it has been anticipated. Learning log A learning log is a log of activities that are learned by the individual on a day by day basis (Dessler, 2013 p. 109). A learning log will help an individual, together with their supervisor to identify areas that have already been covered, and also areas that are well understood. From these areas, the supervisor and the student can then identify those areas that need in-depth dwelling. References Burrow, J., 2012. Business management. London: Prentice Hall Dessler, G., 2014. Human Resource Management. London: Prentice Hall Mathis, R., 2014. Human Resource Management: Essential Perspectives. NY: Cengage Learning Nkomo, S., 2013. Human Resource Management Applications: Cases, Exercises, Incidents, and Skill Builders. NY: Cengage Learning Robbins, S., 2014. Organizational Behavior. London: Prentice Hall Read More