Human Resource Training and Development Essay

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Training and development is crucial to the growth and success of any organization. This paper analyses how training and development can be used as an effective tool to strengthen those skills that an employee needs to improve upon and better perform on the job. Although there is clear evidence that training is positively associated with better job performance, the relationship between performance and training is complex. Several key paradoxes of organizational and employee freedoms and needs are revealed and an evaluation of the specific training and development recommendations is performed.

One of a company's most valuable assets is its employees. The value of human capital cannot be underestimated nor should it. Employees are the backbone of an organization. Ill-equipped and poorly trained employees can lead to organizational failure. Training and development is one of the several ways that organizations help ensure their workers have the requisite skills for today and tomorrow. Understanding how to work through these paradoxes to offer meaningful, effective, comprehensive training and development opportunities is no easy task. However, the management of human capital is filled with paradoxes: everyone agrees in principle that people are essential, yet they are often taken for granted in organizations; people may value freedom very highly, but in the end they work for organizations that significantly reduce it; individuals and organizations need each other, but human happiness and organizational rationality often conflict (Berman, et al. 3). Nevertheless, if organizations truly value human capital and are willing to put forth the time and resources needed to implement programs and policies which support the intellectual, emotional, and professional growth of its employees, it's a big step in the right direction.

David works for the city and is a star performer who frequently irritates his coworkers and managers. For his appraisal, David's supervisor rated him "low" in the interpersonal relations category. Given the fact that David's performance is exceptional, but his interpersonal skills are lacking, should the city provide David with training and development and, if so, which programs and policies might be beneficial to David, his colleagues, and the city?

Training and Development

Training is an essential facet with respect to both the organization as well as the employees. It offers employees better job security as well as providing an opportunity to advance their career. Skills that are acquired by means of training are important assets for the employee, as also the organization. The benefits linked with training endure for a prolonged duration, as the training acquired may only come to be obsolete in the event of a total elimination of the desire for that particular knowledge and set of skills, such as from technological changes.

Training is an invaluable tool for increasing the productivity of an organization. It not only enhances the resourcefulness of employees but also allows them the opportunity to learn the jobs they are given virtually, and conduct them with greater competence. This improves the productivity of not just employees, but of the organization as a whole. Several studies reveal the fruitful impact of providing training on the productivity of employees. As a process, training is one of the most comprehensive techniques for enhancing productivity of employees and communicating the goals of the organization to the workforce (Abdul & Aamer, 2011). This view is also supported by another study that suggests that investment in the training of employees concerning decision making, problem-solving, interpersonal relations, and teamwork has a positive influence on the level of organizational growth, in addition to impacting employee performance (Rohan & Madhumita, 2012). Training positively affects the behavior and working skills of employees, thereby resulting in improvement in their performance, as well as constructive transformations (Davis & Daley, 2008).

Training is the most effective tool for motivation and retention of high quality human resources in an organization (Tippelt & Amoros, 2003; Owens, 2006; Sahinidis & Bouris, 2008). Furthermore, training enhances employee commitment towards the organization and maximizes their potential as well (Groen, 2006). It is a fundamental instrument that influences the accomplishment of the objectives and goals of the organization successfully (Nishitha & Amit, 2010). The prime goal of any organization, however, is the generation of high revenue as well as profit maximization, and the most significant instrument for realizing this motive is an effective and efficient workforce. Therefore, David, being a star performer, and thus a human resource asset to his organization, needs to be effective and efficient. This is only possible if he is provided appropriate development and training, in his case focusing on development of interpersonal skills thereby increasing productivity.

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The interpersonal skills David needs to improve should include are both verbal and non-verbal communications, questioning, listening, social awareness, self-regulation and management, accountability and responsibility and lastly learning to be assertive and not argumentative.

The Type of training best suited for David

Before we decide the type of training best suited for David, we need to classify the types of training being offered. Abdul and Aamer (2011) in their study establish that two major kinds of training techniques are prevalent in organizations, namely, on-the-job training and off-the-job training (Abdul & Aamer, 2011). The training that is provided on-the-job is generally handled by the employee's colleagues, mentors, supervisors and managers. This facilitates employees in adjusting to their jobs and equips them with the relevant skills required for their particular job. It is argued that such training can involve coaching or teaching employees by trainers (more experienced individuals) at the office desk or the bench (Kaufman & Hotchkiss, 2006). It can also comprise group or individual assignments and projects with the aid of managers and team leaders.

As stated by Armstrong, on-the-job coaching is the lone method for development and practice of specific managerial, technical, manual, selling, administrative and team leading skills required by organizations, and has the benefits of immediacy and actuality as individuals work, learn and develop expertise simultaneously. Thus this method can prove to be an effective coaching technique to hone David's social skills in the workplace. However, it is also suggested by Armstrong that this training method poses disadvantages: the guidance-quality and training provided strongly affects the learning effectiveness of the employees (Abdul & Aamer, 2011). There may be many team leaders or managers unskilled at imparting training or disinclined to encourage employees and coach them. Furthermore, reliance upon coworkers, in cases of the "sit-by-me" method of training, poses obvious disadvantages: instructions provided may be lacking, such as written guidelines, and bad habits may be developed and/or perpetuated from such training. The employee being trained may also be distracted by the environment and may find it hard to develop the basic skills required quickly. Therefore, the on-the-job trainers in this case should use the environment to their advantage by allowing David and his co-workers to interact with one another and apply in real time the skills they are newly taught. In order for David and his colleagues to develop higher level interpersonal skill-set, they need to meet this knowledge halfway. They need to train their mind and become comfortable with the idea of questioning and listening and being socially aware. The best way to do that is to apply these skills in real time as soon as they learn them. The workplace therefore becomes an ideal location for David to hone in his skills.

Training harmonizes organizational rationality and human happiness

Essentially, reciprocity maintains that employees will assist the company, because the company assisted them. This is equivalent to the idea that employees feel a "sense of indebtedness" towards their organization. Studies carried out regarding this aspect of commitment reveal that training employees may play a vital role in developing a feeling of indebtedness to the organization (Sahinidis and Bouris, 2008). Thus, such training that is likely to achieve reciprocity in David should be adopted to foster his commitment towards the organization. Given that the training will be carried out in the workplace and David's colleagues will be assisting him hone his skills to a point where these skills become second nature to him, David ought to feel indebted to his organization and the people working with him. This should consequently improve David's behavior with his colleagues.

It is agreed by several scholars that those organizations that impart consistent training to their workforce provide better outcomes as compared to those that do not. When quick and abrupt changes take place in business environments, it is naturally the organizations that possess the best quality personnel that tend to adjust and adapt most efficiently. This was confirmed in a research study that examined training and throughput from the point-of-view of budding organizations (Sahinidis and Bouris, 2008). It was asserted by the researchers that training does, indeed, encourage "spontaneous cooperation" from employees in numerous large organizations.

Furthermore, in the case of fast-paced and continually evolving industries, cooperation that can be obtained via training can reduce the requirement of complicated organizational policies. From the point-of-view of reciprocity, it can be ascertained that the "spontaneous cooperation" arising from training employees is due to their sense of.....

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