Human Resource Development - Finnish Bookstore - Case Study Example

Human Resource Development- A Bookshop HR Case Analysis Executive Summary This report seeks to identify how the senior management at the Finnish Bookstore can assess the development needs of their employees. Additionally, the report identifies specific learning strategies and interventions that the management can use in order to ensure that the development needs identified in the assessment phase are met. To establish whether the interventions and strategies identified after the needs analysis are effective, the report identifies and suggests a four-level evaluation method for use at the Finnish Bookstore. Introduction Through the simulation-based programme as indicated in Gibb (2010, pp. 306-307), the Finnish Bookstore has already acknowledged that human resource development is an essential and ongoing process for the organisation. Specifically, and when dealing with diverse customers, the bookstore has done well in equipping its staff with practical skills needed in the effective day-to-day handling of customers. Although an impressive undertaking by all means, the simulation-based programme has an apparent weakness in that it is applied in the same manner to all staff members. This effectively means that the organisation does not recognise the individual differences in the staff that may affect how each of them performs at work. Additionally, it fails to recognise that other factors such as low staff motivation, or inefficient managerial decisions may affect how employees relate with the customers. In order to engage staff members individually; identify their individual strengths and weaknesses; identify interventions and strategies suited for each; and identify other areas in the management that may be affecting how employees perform, this report recommends the use of a human resource development needs investigation (HRDNI), which includes a needs analysis, forming learning strategies and interventions, and developing an evaluation strategy which will measure the effectiveness of the intervention programmes. Theoretically, HRDNI is a process used in identifying gaps between the current happenings or situation in an organisation, and what should be occurring (Mathis & Jackson, 2011, p. 105; Sims, 2006). The HRD needs investigation can take different forms, which include a pro-active analysis; democratic preference; diagnostic audit; or performance deficiency (Delahaye, 2005). The form of investigation that a firm takes depends on the needs of the company. In the Finnish Bookstore’s context, a combination of a deficiency analysis and a proactive analysis is viable for use in current employees and new employees respectively. The Needs Analysis According to Delahaye (2005), a needs analysis is necessary in identifying the specific skills needed in order to improve staff performance and productivity. Additionally, the needs analysis examines the targeted staff members in order to establish their education levels, skills, experiences, personal motivations and attitudes. Some of the commonly used HRD needs investigation methods effective in the analysis phase include interviews, focus groups, questionnaires and company records (Delahaye, 2005). Notably, the method selected for use may differ depending on the desired type of data. For example, focus groups may be more appropriate in cases where the need to develop team skills has been identified. Based on the findings, the overseeing HR personnel can then determine which intervention measure or measures are suitable to improve the employees’ performance and productivity. Through the needs analysis, Kulvisaechana (2006) also observes that an organisation is able to develop measurable knowledge, which is important for the development of performance objectives. In the Finnish Bookstore context, the needs analysis will ensure that any intervention measure decided upon will ultimately serve a business need in the organisation as suggested by Tobey (2005, p. 3). Additionally, the needs assessment may reveal information that the assessor may not have been privy to (Tobey, 2005, p. 3). For example, if the bookstore staffs lack motivation, the assessor may discover that poor pay, long working hours, or poor management skills by their superiors among other probable reasons may need to be worked on. The needs assessment also serves an important purpose of ensuring that intervention measures are designed to replicate the targeted staff members as closely as possible. For example, staff members who have problems communicating with problematic customers may be put in a training programme that seeks to enhance their communication skills, and handling different customers. Ideally, the needs assessment at the Finnish Bookstore should follow the four stages suggested by Tobey (2005, p. 5). The stages involve identifying the business needs of the bookstore; its performance needs; the learning needs of its staff members; and the individual staff member needs. Notably, the learning needs of the staff members and the staff member needs are quite different, as the former refers to needs related to their knowledge and skills, while the latter refers to their expectations in the workplace. A person needs analysis can be used to establish the individual staff member’s needs as suggested by Jackson, Schuler and Warner (2011, p. 284). After all, a person’s competence is based on a combination of observable features (i.e. knowledge and skills) or non-obvious features (i.e. view point of value; self image; character and personality; and self-force/social motivation) (Liu, Duan & Xu, 2005) as seen in the illustration in figure 1 below. Figure 1: The Iceberg Model of Competence Source: Liu, Duan & Xu (2005, p. 293). Specific learning strategies and interventions For firms to realise corporate success, they need to invest in human resource development (Youndt et al., 2004). The Finnish Bookstore is no different and as such, needs to invest in a programme that continuously improves the knowledge, skill and abilities of its workforce as has been suggested by Kulvisaechana (2006, p. 722). Assuming the needs analysis has identified skills gaps in both the managerial and customer-service levels, this report recommends the following learning strategies and interventions: Orientation training: This is an ideal strategy for use when inducting new staff to the organisation. In addition to informing the new employees about what is expected of them while working in the organisation, orientation training can also be used to provide knowledge and skills on gaps identified during the needs analysis. For example, the training can augment the gap that exists between the new employees skills/knowledge and what is expected of them at work. On-the-job training: Mathis and Jackson (2011, p. 109) observe that in addition to on-the-job training being “flexible and relevant to what employees do”, it is also planned, and as such, it is a good training approach to use in relation to addressing identified skills/knowledge gaps. In the case of the Finnish Bookstore, the on-the-job training can be used in the development of team skills, development of leadership skills, and the development of interpersonal skills. Informal training: According to Mathis and Jackson (2011), informal training occurs “through interactions and feedback among employees”. This then means that when encouraged in the work environment, informal training can be a valuable resource for knowledge and skills. As Mathis and Jackson (2011, p. 109) further note, “much of what employees know about their jobs they learn informally from asking questions and getting advice from other employees and their supervisors, rather than from formal training programmes”. In The Finnish Bookstore’s context, the informal training can enhance the development of interpersonal skills and team skills among employees. Teamwork training: In order to satisfy any interpersonal skills gap and team skills gap identified during the needs assessment, The Finnish Bookstore can use teamwork training as reported by Cappelli and Neumark (2001). According to Wall and Wood (2005, p. 430), teamwork training enhances cohesion in the work place especially when it results in knowledge and skills that are specific to the firm and hence difficult to imitate. Wall and Wood (2005, p. 431) further argue that contemporary companies can copy each other’s technologies, but are rarely effective in copying each other’s entire human resource capabilities. Mentoring/Coaching: This form of training may be used where the development of leadership skills is desired. For the Finnish Bookstore’s case, this method is well-suited for the development of leadership skills on the managerial levels since as Boyatzis, Smith and Blaize (2006, p. 8) argue, “leaders experience compassion through coaching the development of others”. This means that leaders are not only able to foster the development of future leaders through mentoring and coaching, but they too benefit by experiencing compassion and understanding what their mentees encounter in the workplace. Notably, mentoring and coaching can take three approaches which include peer mentoring, peer coaching and executive coaching. Peer mentoring create a “safe context for growth”, while peer coaching and executive coaching “helps identify training needs and problem solving approaches with the individual” (Kutilek & Earnest, 2001, para. 6). Already, the Finnish Bookstore is using a live coach in the online programme as indicated in Gibb (2010, p. 307). However, the coaching seems to be focussed on developing team skills and enhancing interpersonal skills among participants. By involving the managers, the programme can also be used in the development if leadership skills as indicated by Boyatzis et al. (2006). Evaluating the efficiency of training After training, this report recommends the use four approaches to evaluating the effectiveness of the intervention programmes. For starters, and as indicated by Tobey (2005, p. 5) the reaction of the staff can tell a lot about whether the intervention programmes were acceptable to them or not. Ideally, employees who feel happy about the learning experience will show it either by putting whatever they learnt into practice, or by remembering what they learnt during training. In the Finnish Bookstore case, questionnaires, focus groups or personal interviews can be used to gauge the level of acceptance that employees show towards the learning strategies or interventions used. The second level of evaluation should include testing (either actively or passively) the skills and knowledge mastery as portrayed by the employees. According to Tobey (2005, p. 5), testing whether the employees have acquired the desired knowledge or skills is essential if the trainer is to establish if indeed the employees learnt anything or what they were supposed to learn during training. The third level of evaluation is related to job performance. Ideally, the staff at the bookstore should register improved performance at work. For example, those who had challenges handling problematic customers should register improvements handling the same customers after attending a communications skills training. Finally, the evaluation should establish whether the business needs of the bookstore are being met (Tobey, 2005). Ideally, meeting the business needs of the Finnish Bookstore should be the ultimate goal for the management and staff. The company should register an improved rate of meeting targets and forecasts, failure to which (assuming that all other marketing aspects have been met), an additional needs assessment should be carried out to determine the hindrances to staff performance. Conclusion Through a needs analysis, the Finnish Bookstore will assess the development needs of its staff. Based on the findings of the analysis, the management of the store can then devise suitable strategies and interventions meant to address the specific development needs. Finally, the bookstore will need to evaluate the efficiency of the strategies and interventions in order to establish if they are indeed having the desired outcomes. Notably, and as indicated earlier in this report, the HRD needs investigation should be a dynamic and ongoing process and this means that the Finnish Bookstore will need to conduct the same regularly if at all it wants to ensure that its human resources has the necessary knowledge, skills and competencies needed to satisfy the ever changing consumer needs. References Boyatzis, R, Smith, M & Blaize, N 2006, ‘Developing sustainable leaders through coaching and compassion’, The Academy of Management and Education, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 8-24. Cappeli, P & Neumark, D 2001, ‘Do high performance work practices improve establishment-level outcomes? Industrial and Labour Relations Review, vol. 54, pp. 737-775. Delahaye, B L 2005, Human resource development: Adult learning and knowledge management, 2nd edn, John Wiley & Sons, Australia Ltd, Qld. Gibb, S 2010, Human resource development, 3rd edn, Palgrave Macmillan, New York. Jackson, S E, Schuler, R S, & Werner, S 2011, Managing human resources, Cengage Learning, London. Kulvisaechana, S 2006, ‘Human capital development in the international organization: rhetoric and reality’, Journal of European Industrial Training, vol. 30, no. 9, pp. 721-734. Kutilek, L M & Earnest, G W 2001, ‘Supporting professional growth through mentoring and coaching’, Journal of Extension, vol. 39, no. 4, viewed 10 May, 2012, Liu, X, Ruan, D & Xu, Y 2005, ‘A study of enterprise human resource competence appraisement’, Journal of Enterprise Information Management, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 289-315. Mathis, R L & Jackson, J H 2011, Human resource management: Essential perspectives, Cengage Learning, London. Sims, R. R 2006, Human resource development: Today and tomorrow, Information Age Publishing, New York. Toby, D 2005, Needs assessment basics: A complete, how-to guide to help you: design effective, on-target training solutions, get support, ensure bottom-line impact, American Society for Training and Development, Alexandria, VA. Wall, T D & Wood, S J 2005, ‘The romance of human resource management and business performance, and the case for big science’, Human Relations, vol. 58, no. 4, pp. 429-462. Youndt, M, Subramaniam, M & Scott, A 2004, ‘Intellectual capital profiles: an examination of investments and returns’, Journal of Management Studies, vol. 41, no. 2, pp. 335-361. Read More