Training And Development 1

Training is an important factor in all firms' business strategy, but firms don't assess the impact of training programmes over the employees all the time. Training is effective only if it produces desired outcome. When the organization is implementing a training programme, there should be an ideal forum on which the evaluation scheme can be built, and assessment of effectiveness of training and development activities can be done. The article elucidates the impact of an effective training programme on the career growth and development of employees. I have also put forward some suggestions for increasing the effectiveness of the training that will help the organization to step into a bright future. Training & Development: A Prologue Intensifying business performance is an expedition, not a destination. The success of business operations depends upon the ups and downs of the employee performances. Hence, the HR managers started looking for the methods to boost the performance and efficiency of its workforce to carry out the work today, and to train them for meeting tomorrow's goals. Training programmes were developed many years ago, but now-a-days, it has become a crucial factor in companies with certain objectives in mind. Training and development practices should boost up performance and develop the skills, knowledge and expertise of the employees. The vital objective of training is to build-up right ability and capability in the labor force so that they can perform to meet the needs, wants and expected returns of the employers.1 The training procedure comprises of three phases: Phase 1: Pre-Training This may also be called as the preparation phase. The process starts with identification of the circumstances requiring more efficient performance. A firm's concern prior to training lies primarily in four areas: Clarifying the precise objectives of training and what the organization expects to make use of the participants after training; selection of appropriate participants; building favorable expectations and inspiration in the participants before training; and planning for any changes that improved task performance requires in addition to training. Next 1 www.workforce.com

* Contributed by: Smitha Das holds Bachelor's Degree in Commerce & MBA with specialization in HR & Marketing from Mahatma Gandhi University. She has about 2 years of research experience in HR & Marketing. Currently working as Research Associate at ICFAI Business School, Kochi, she is in the editorial team involved in publishing professional reference books. She has authored various articles for books &

E-mail this Article

management magazines published by ICFAI University Press. Article posted on August 24, 2008. Post Your Comments

|

E-mail to Friend

|

Want to Contribute

Phase 2: Training During the course of training, participants focus their attention on the new impressions that seem useful, thought-provoking and engaging. There is no guarantee that the participants will in fact learn what they have chosen. But the main reason remains; trainees explore in a training situation what interests them, and a training institution's basic task is to offer the required opportunities. Phase 3: Post-Training This may be called as the "follow up" phase. When the trainees go back to job after attending the training, a practice of adapting change begins for each one who participated. The newly-acquired skills and knowledge undergo modifications to fit the work condition. Participants may find their organizations offering support to use the training and also the support for continuing contact with the training institution. On the other hand, they may step into a quagmire of distrust. More effective behavior of people on the job is the prime objective of the training process conducted by an organization as a whole. Assessment of Training: What is the Need? Corporate, today, spend large amounts of money on imparting training and development practices. But prior to spending such vast amounts, they should analyze the need for conducting training for the workforce. There are chances that firms might make mistakes if they are not assessing the training needs properly. An employee, for sure, requires training when he is found to be not capable enough to meet the goals of the organization, and when there is a gap between the current performance and expected performance. Meagerness in recital occurs due to the lack of sufficient knowledge and expertise, monotonous management, or any other personal and official issues. All these problems spotted can be tackled by providing an effective training programme to the right employee, and at the right point of time.2 Training Effectiveness & its Significance In India, training as an activity has been going on as a distinct field with its own roles, structures and budgets, but it is still young. This field is, however; expanding fast but controversies seem to envelop any attempts to find benefits commensurate with the escalating costs of training. Training has made remarkable contributions to the improvement of all kinds. Training is essential; but doubts arise over its contribution in practice. Complaints are growing over its ineffectiveness and waste. The training apparatus and costs have multiplied but not its benefits. Unhappiness persists and is growing at the working level where the benefits of training should show up most clearly. This disillusionment shows in many ways - reluctance to send the most talented workforce for training, inadequate use of personnel after training, etc.3 With disillusionment mounting in the midst of expansion, training has entered a dangerous phase in its development. Training is neither a panacea for all ills nor is it a waste of time. What is required is an insight into what training can or cannot do, and skill in designing and executing training successfully and cost-effectively.

At the present time, all the organizations give more trust on commercializing their activities. All the firms, in order to continue to exist in the competitive global market and to be effectual, should espouse the most modern technology, i.e., mechanization, computerization and automation. Technical know-how alone, however, does not assure success unless it is sustained by workforce possessing indispensable expertise. Hence, organizations should train the employees to enrich them in the areas of changing technical skills and knowledge from time to time.4 The firms consider its human resources as one of their most precious assets. Training is a valuable assessment device that helps the organizations to improve the performance and skill levels of their employees and to monitor them on continuous basis for effectiveness of human resources. The training should be imparted to all the staff on their specialized areas as well as general areas, irrespective of their position in the company. In the context of globalization, human resource development with proper training to the workforce is required to meet the challenges in future and to win the global competitive advantage. The organizations spend huge amounts of money on imparting training to its employees. So it is very important to evaluate the efficacy of the training programmes conducted so far, and to find out whether the executives are able to implement the skills that they learned in the training and development process.5 Effective Training Programme: Underlying Principles Any training programme, in order to be effective, must have some precise goals and objectives: To enlighten the partakers more about their organization, its aspirations, challenges, and the business background in which it operates. To make the human resources cognizant of the functions of different sections. To train them to be aware of the significance of communication and enthusiasm in their day-today work as a tool for better organizational climate and morale. To see that once they go back after attending training, they feel that they belong to the organization. To ensure that the participants would share their information gained from training with their coworkers. To develop friendship, fellowship, support and trusteeship among trainees. To ensure that technical, managerial, supervisory and human competencies are built-up in the employees on a continuous basis to enable them to perform their current assignments effectively, and also to set them up to execute their future tasks. To put forward the attitude-based training to ensure that a value-based and self-sustained culture is built in the organization. To offer the required training inputs to all employees in a need-based, organized and lucrative manner. The training programmes imparted to the work-force should be of superior standards with a view to develop good working environment, provide work culture inspiration, support attitudinal change, improve interpersonal relationships, reduce accidents, perk-up efficiency, update

knowledge and technology, educate saving and investment habits among employees, create consciousness of work-related health hazards, etc. Also, the training institute should comprise of all types of audio-visual aids, which form the venue for the in-house training and development programmes in the organization.

Employee Training Effectiveness: A Strategic Way to Success - by Smitha Das * Previous Page - 5 The Input-Process-Output Model for an Effective Training Evaluation of Training Effectiveness Evaluation and appraisal of training programme is a necessary practice in any firm as it is an assessment of the total value of a learning event, and not just how far it achieves its learning goals and objectives. Training assessment is about seeking to evaluate whether or not training is, in fact, generating pertinent and appreciated results through proficient and well-managed practices. It is a process of collecting data with which to make decisions about training activities. It, thus, places the episode in a broader outlook and offers information, which is vital for future planning and development. The information acquired by the assessment of the training programme can be used to find out the lags or shortcomings in the training programme, and make successive suggestions and advices for making it more effectual.6 In turn, to categorize areas of assessment, Donald Kirkpatrick7 formed what is still one of the most generally used models. The inquiry, that has to be raised by the management to evaluate the effectiveness of training in each level, is listed below: Stage 1: Response - Were the trainees satisfied, and what is their idea to perform with the skills acquired? Stage 2: Knowledge - Whether and to what extent the talent, awareness and approach of the workforce have changed? Stage 3: Performance - Were the conduct of the workforce improved on the basis of what they have trained for? Stage 4: Outcome - Whether the improvement in the performance has an impact on the desired output of the firm?8 Training Evaluation: How does it Help? The training evaluation and assessment has three main reasons: -

Feedback to help trainers understand the extent to which goals are being met, and the effectiveness of particular learning activities - as an aid to continuous improvement. Control to make sure training policy and practice are allied with managerial objectives and providing lucrative solutions to managerial concerns. Intervention to raise awareness of key issues such as pre-course and post-course briefing and the selection of delegates. The following are the clear advantages of training evaluation: Enhanced value of training programmes. Improved skills and capability of the trainers to associate inputs to outputs. Superior differentiation among training programmes that are worth enough to be retained and those to be dropped. Good incorporation of training provided by the firm and employee improvement. Healthier collaboration between instructors and executives in the growth of workforce. Proof about the contribution that training and development programmes are providing to meet the goals of the firm. Faster inclusion of training needs and managerial goals.9 Evaluation of training effectiveness should not be treated only as a corrective measure for the existing training programmes offered by the organization, but also as a pro-active measure for making future training programmes effective. Today, only those firms are flourishing which became accustomed to the changes in the right time with the right course of action. Only an effective training facilitates in improving the human resource of the organization making them adaptable to changes that take place in their business environment. As the work turn out to be more complicated, the significance of the employee development also raises. However, it is also a process that a firm must place resources to, if it is to uphold workable and talented employees.10

Employee Training Effectiveness: A Strategic Way to Success - by Smitha Das * Previous Page - 8

Training Effectiveness: A Drive to Victory As a result of globalization, business is exerting pressure world wide. All the firms need to reduce production cost and improve operational efficiency. Hence, it is important for all organizations to maintain an efficient workforce for attaining these aims. The firms can develop their employees as talented and knowledgeable workers by means of identifying their insufficiency and lack of knowledge in the required areas, and thereby providing sufficient training and development programmes to fill the gap. The organizational training effectiveness and its evaluation play a crucial role in an organization to decide whether the proposed business upshots are attained or not. An effective training programme is emerging as one of the most vibrant and exhilarating aspect for the firms to solve their managerial and human resource issues, and thereby winning advantage in the competitive market.11