Training -developement

TRAINING & DEVELOPEMENT

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Introduction

Since the beginning of the twentieth century and especially after World

War II, training programs have become widespread among organizationsin the United States, involving more and more employees and alsoexpanding in content. In the 1910s, only a few large companies such as

Westinghouse, General Electric, and International Harvester had factoryschools that focused on training technical skills for entry-level workers.By the 1990s, forty percent of the Fortune 500 firms have had a corporate

university or learning center. In recent decades, as the U.S. companies areconfronted with technological changes, domestic social problems and

global economic competition, training programs in organizations havereceived even more attention, touted as almost a panacea fororganizational problem.

The enormous expansion in the content of training programs over timehas now largely been taken for granted. Now people would rarely

question the necessity of training in conversational skills. However, backto the 1920s, the idea that organizations should devote resources to

training employees in such skills would have been regarded as absurd.Such skills clearly were not part of the exact knowledge and methods thatthe employee will use on his particular job or the job just ahead of him.


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Nevertheless, seventy years later, eleven percent of U.S. organizationsdeem communications skills as the most important on their priority listsof training, and many more regard it as highly important. More than three

hundred training organizations specialize in communications training(Training and Development Organizations Directory, 1994).

Previous studies on training have largely focused on the incidence offormal training and the total amount of training offered. This study,

however, draws attention to the enormous expansion in the content oftraining with an emphasis on the rise of personal development training(or popularly known as the "soft skills" training, such as leadership,

teamwork, creativity, conversational skills and time management training).Personal development training can be defined as training programs thataim at improving one's cognitive and behavioral skills in dealing with one

self and others. It is intended to develop one's personal potential and isnot immediately related to the technical aspects of one's job tasks.

Monahan, Meyer and Scott (1994) describe the spread of personaldevelopment training programs based on their survey of and interviewswith more than one hundred organizations in Northern California.

"Training programs became more elaborate; they incorporated, inaddition to technical training for workers and human relations trainingfor supervisors and managers, a widening array of developmental,

personal growth, and self-management courses. Courses of this natureinclude office professionalism, time management, individual contributor

programs, entrepreneur, transacting with people, and applyingintelligence in the workplace, career management, and structuredproblem solving. Courses are also offered on health and personal

well-being, including safe diets, exercise, mental health, injuryprevention, holiday health, stress and nutrition."

Training Excuses


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Training is one element many corporations consider when looking toadvance people and offer promotions. Although many employeesrecognize the high value those in management place on training and

development, some employees are still reluctant to be trained. It is notuncommon to hear excuses regarding why someone has not receivedtraining.

Some people are just comfortable in what they are doing. Some fail to see

the value of training because they really believe that they already know itall. And while that might be true, the knowledge value of training anddevelopment is not the only perk.

Training and development offers more than just increased knowledge. Itoffers the added advantage of networking and drawing from others’

experiences. When you attend a seminar or event with others who havejobs that are much like yours, you have the added benefit of sharing fromlife experience. The seminar notes or the conference leader might not

give you the key nugget you take back and implement in the workplace.Your best piece of advice for the day might come from the peer sitting

beside you.

Another common excuse is that there is not enough money budgeted to

pay for training. Who said that training always carries a heavy enrollmentfee? Training can be free. You can set up meetings with peers who are insimilar positions and ask how they are doing their jobs. Follow someone

for a day to see how he organizes or manages his work and time. Thecost to you is a day out of your normal routine, so the only drawback may

be working a little harder on an assignment to catch up from a day out ofthe office. You usually don’t think twice about taking a day of vacation,so why should a day of training be any different?


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Time is another often-heard excuse when training and development ismentioned. Have you considered that training and development mightactually give you more time? Often the procedures, ideas, short cuts, and

timesaving hints learned in training and development sessions equalmore time in the long run. Have you heard the old saying that you have tospend money to make money? Well, in a sense, the same is true for

training and development. You have to devote some time to training anddevelopment to make you more productive in the long run.

What is Training in terms of organization?

“Transferring information and knowledge to employers and equipping

employers to translate that information and knowledge into practicewith a view to enhancingorganization effectiveness and productivity, and the quality of the

management of people.” It also means that in organizationaldevelopment, the related field of training and development (T & D) deals


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with the design and delivery of workplace learning to improveperformance.

Difference between Training and Learning

There is a big difference:

'Training' implies putting skills into people, when actually we

should be developing people from the inside out, beyondskills, i.e., facilitating learning.

So focus on facilitating learning, not imposing training.

Emotional maturity, integrity, and compassion are moreimportant than skills and processes. If you are in any doubt,

analyze the root causes of your organization's successes andyour failures - they will never be skills and processes.

Enable and encourage the development of the person - in any

way that you can.

Give people choice - we all learn in different ways, and we all

have our own strengths and potential, waiting to be fulfilled.

Talk about learning, not training. Focus on the person, from the inside

out, not the outside in; and offer opportunities for people to develop aspeople in as many ways you can.

A Brief Critique of Previous Approaches to EmployeeTraining

It is a classic question in the training field, first raised by human capitaltheorists, that why firms train their employees. Many attempts have been

made to address this question, but the question of why firms providegeneral-skill training has not been fully understood. There have been twomain theoretical approaches towards employee training, namely, the


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human capital approach and the technology-based approach. The humancapital approach regards training as investment in human capital.Training is provided only when the benefit from productivity gains is

greater than the cost of training. The technology-based approach regardstraining as a skill formation process. According to this approach, theexpanded training in the contemporary period is driven by the rapidly

changing technologies and work reorganization. These two approachesare popular in academic and policy discussions. What they have in

common is that they assume an instrumental logic and technicalrationality behind training decisions. Training is provided because itsatisfies the functional needs of an organization. Studies with these

approaches have largely overlooked the content of employee training, asif all kinds of training programs equally contribute to human capitalaccumulation or skill formation. Moreover, personal development training

becomes a puzzle if viewed from these approaches, because it does notseem to follow from an instrumental logic or technical rationality.

The Puzzle about Personal Development Training

The puzzle about personal development training comes in the following

four ways. First, it is not innately or immediately related to thetechnical aspects of specific job tasks. Second, prior need analysis israrely conducted for such training, despite suggestions to do so in

many training handbooks. Third, organizations and trainers seldomconduct evaluations of behavior or outcome changes brought out bysuch training. Evaluation, when there is one, is often about how one feels

about the training or what one has learned. The evaluation questionnaireis often called a "smile sheet," as trainees often respond happily to the

questions. But the impact of the training remains uncertain. Fourth, therapid expansion of personal development training has taken place in


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the absence of scientific evidence of any link between such training andimprovement in organizational bottom lines.

Core Argument

So, why have organizations increasingly engaged in personaldevelopment training? It is because that the rise of the participatory

citizenship model of organization over time has driven the expansion ofpersonal development training in organizations. This argument is basedon an institutional perspective towards organizations. It is distinct from

previous approaches to training in two ways. First, it recognizes thattraining is not only provided to satisfy functional needs of firms, but is

also shaped by the shared understanding about individuals andorganizations, which is called "organizational model" in this study and isindependent of the functional needs. Second, training decisions are not

only affected by the internal conditions of an organization, but are alsoaffected by the dominant ideologies and practices in the organizationalfield.

Importance of Developing a Role in Training

Developing a national role in training is important for an employers'organization for several reasons.

First, it enables the organization to contribute to the development of a

country's human capital, through its influence on education policies andsystems and training by public training institutions, to better serve


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business needs. It also enables it to influence employers in regard to theneed for them to invest more in training and employee development -which employers should recognize as one key to their competitiveness in

the future.

Second, it provides an important service to members, especially in

industrial relations in respect of which sources of training for employersin developing countries are few. Third, it is an important source of

income provided the organization can deliver relevant quality training.Fourth, it compels its own staff to improve their knowledge without whichthey cannot offer training to enterprises through their own staff. Fifth,

the knowledge required for training increases the quality of other servicesprovided by the organization - policy lobbying, advisory andrepresentation services. Sixth, it contributes to better human relations at

the enterprise level and therefore to better enterprise performance, bymatching corporate goals and people management policies. Finally, it

improves the overall image of the organization and invests it with adegree of professionalism, which can lead to increased membership andinfluence. Many entrepreneurs seem to view employee training and

development as more optional than essential...a viewpoint that can becostly to both short-term profits and long-term progress. The primaryreason training is considered optional by so many business owners is

because it's viewed more as an expense than an investment. This iscompletely understandable when you realize that in many companies,

training and development aren't focused on producing a targeted resultfor the business. As a result, business owners frequently send theirpeople to training courses that seem right and sound good without

knowing what to expect in return. But without measurable results, it'salmost impossible to view training as anything more than an expense.


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Now contrast that approach to one where training's viewed as a capitalinvestment with thoughtful consideration as to how you're going toobtain an acceptable rate of return on your investment. And a good place

to start your "thoughtful consideration" is with a needs analysis. As itrelates to training and development, needs analysis is really an outcomeanalysis--what do you want out of this training? Ask yourself, "What's

going to change in my business or in the behavior or performance of myemployees as a result of this training that's going to help my company?"

Be forewarned: This exercise requires you to take time to think it throughand focus more on your processes than your products.

As you go through this analysis, consider the strengths and weaknessesin your company and try to identify the deficiencies that, when corrected,represent a potential for upside gain in your business. Common areas for

improvement in many companies is helping supervisors better managefor performance. Many people are promoted into managerial positions

because they're technically good at their jobs, but they aren't trained asmanagers to help their subordinates achieve peak performance.Determining your training and development needs based on targeted

results is only the beginning. The next step is to establish a learningdynamic for your company. In today's economy, if your business isn'tlearning, then you're going to fall behind. And a business learns as its

people learn. Your employees are the ones that produce, refine, protect,deliver and manage your products or services every day, year in, year out.

With the rapid pace and international reach of the 21st centurymarketplace, continual learning is critical to your business's continuedsuccess.

To create a learning culture in your business, begin by clearlycommunicating your expectation that employees should take the steps

necessary to hone their skills to stay on top of their professions or fields


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of work. Make sure you support their efforts in this area by supplying theresources they need to accomplish this goal. Second, communicate toyour employees the specific training needs and targeted results you've

established as a result of your needs analysis.

Third, provide a sound introduction and orientation to your company's

culture, including your learning culture, to any new employees you hire.This orientation should introduce employees to your company, and

provide them with proper training in the successful procedures yourcompany's developed and learned over time.

Every successful training and development program also includes acomponent that addresses your current and future leadership needs. Atits core, this component must provide for the systematic identification

and development of your managers in terms of the leadership style thatdrives your business and makes it unique and profitable. Have you spenttime thoughtfully examining the style of leadership that's most successful

in your environment and that you want to promote? What steps are youtaking to develop those important leadership traits in your people?

Financial considerations related to training can be perplexing, but inmost cases, the true budgetary impact depends on how well you manage

the first three components (needs analysis, learning and leadership). Ifyour training is targeted to specific business results, then you're morelikely to be happy with what you spend on training. But if the training

budget isn't related to specific outcomes, then money is more likely to bespent on courses that have no positive impact on the company.

In many organizations, training budgets are solely a function of whetherthe company is enjoying an economic upswing or enduring a downturn.

In good times, companies tend to spend money on training that's notsignificant to the organization, and in bad times, the pendulum swings to


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the other extreme and training is eliminated altogether. In any economicenvironment, the training expense should be determined by the targetedbusiness results you want, not other budget-related factors.

To help counter this tendency, sit down and assess your training anddevelopment needs once or twice a year to identify your needs and

brainstorm how to achieve your desired results effectively and efficiently.

Your employees are your principle business asset. Invest in them

thoughtfully and strategically, and you'll reap rewards that pay off nowand for years to come.

Beyond Training: Training and Development

Training is generally defined as "change in behavior" - yet, how many

trainers and managers forget that, using the term training only asapplicable to "skills training"? What about the human element? What

about those very same people we want to "train"? What about theirindividual beliefs, backgrounds, ideas, needs and aspirations?

In order to achieve long-term results through training, we must broadenour vision to include people development as part of our strategicplanning. Although training covers a broad range of subjects under the

three main categories (skills, attitude, knowledge), using the term"training" without linking it to "development" narrows our concept of the

training function and leads us to failure.

When we limit our thinking, we fall into the trap of:

a. Classifying people into lots and categoriesb. Thinking of "trainees" as robots expected to perform a job function


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c. Dismissing the individual characteristics of people and the rolesthey play

d. Focusing only on "what needs to be done" without adequately

preparing the trainees involved to accept and internalize what isbeing taught.

We are dealing with human thoughts, feelings and reactions which mustbe given equal attention than to the skill itself. We thus create a

double-focus: people development and skills training. These twosimultaneous objectives will give us the right balance and guide ouractions to reach our goal.

To clarify our training and development objectives, and identify ourcriteria for success, we must ask ourselves a few questions:

Do we expect an automatic, faultless job performance?Does attitude count?

Does goodwill count?Do loyalty and dedication count?

Does goal-sharing count?Does motivation count?Do general knowledge and know-how count?

Do people-skills count?Does an inquisitive mind count?Does initiative count?

Does a learning attitude count?Does a sense of responsibility count?

Do team efforts count?Do good work relations count?Does creative input count?

Do we want employees to feel proud of their role and contribution?


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How can we expect such qualities and behavior if we consider and treatour personnel as "skills performers"? However, we could achieve thedesired results if we address the personal development needs of the

employees involved.

When we plan for both "training" and "development", we achieve a proper

balance between the needs of the company and those of the trainees. Thesynergy created takes us to new levels, to a continuing trend of company

growth.

Our consideration of the people involved results in work motivation,

goal-sharing, and a sense of partnership. Not only do theemployee-trainees perform at the desired levels, but they offer to thecompany and its customers their hidden individual gifts and talents, and

this reflects itself in the quality of service. Customers feel and recognizeefficient performance, motivation and team-work. They become loyalcustomers.

We can learn from the case of a small restaurant operator who had

become desperate at the negligent attitude of his servers, resulting incustomer complaints. He decided to seek professional expertise to helphim replace his employees with "motivated, trained" people fresh out of a

waiter's training school.

Following some probing questions it came to light that, besides hourly

pay, he did not offer much to attract and retain loyal and dedicatedemployees. Through professional consultation, he came to realize that

even if he paid higher wages to new "trained" employees, the problemwould persist because employees want more than wages from their workplace. They want:

Organization and professional management


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Information regarding the business and its customersRecognition for their role in the company's successAcknowledgement of their individual capacities and contributions

Positive discipline / fairnessA say in the way the business is run.

The restaurant operator realized that until then he had treated hisemployees as "plate carriers" and this is exactly how they had behaved

and performed. He was ready to change his mode of operation: hediverted his focus to the needs of his employees, re-structured hisorganisation, planned new operational strategies, a human resources

strategy, training and development guidelines, disciplinary rules andregulations.

He communicated and shared these in a meeting with his employees andhanded out the employee handbook prepared for that purpose. He alsoreminded them of their responsibilities towards the business, the

customers, and themselves (taking charge of their own training,development, and work performance). They were more than pleased

when he asked them to express their opinions, make comments andsuggestions.

He was surprised at the immediate transformation that took place. Hebegan receiving excellent reviews from his customers, the employeesworked as a team, their motivation sky-rocketed and he never had to

replace them! All this was accomplished by extending the previousconcept of training to that of training and people development.

Training and Development represents a complete whole that triggers themind, emotions and employees' best work performance. It is not only

business managers and owners who must do this shift in thinking, butHuman Resources Directors and Training Managers (whose title should be


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"Training and Development" Managers). By their actions, they should offera personal example, coaching and guiding all the people in anorganisation to think "beyond training" and invest efforts in people:

Professional developmentPersonal development.

Contrary to what some manager’s think, people do not quit a place ofwork as soon as they have grown personally and professionally through

training and development programs - at least they do not do so for along while. They become loyal to their employer and help him/her grows

business-wise, which offers them more opportunities. They chart theirown course for career advancement within the broader framework oforganizational growth.

Do we not call employees our "human resources asset"? Whatever theirpositions, each expect to be treated as such; when they are, they give

more than their physical presence at work.


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Training & Evaluation

Training

Improving business performance is a journey, not a destination. Businessperformance rises and falls with the ebb and flow of human performances.

HR professionals lead the search for ways to enhance the effectiveness ofemployees in their jobs today and prepare them for tomorrow. Over theyears, training programmes have grown into corporate with these goals

in mind. Training programmes should enhance performance and enrichthe contributions of the workforce. The ultimate goal of training is todevelop appropriate talent in the workforce internally.

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 ishowever; expanding fast but controversy seems to envelop any attemptsto find benefits commensurate with the escalating costs of training.

Training has made significant contributions to development of all kinds.Training is essential; doubts arise over its contribution in practice.

Complaints are growing over its ineffectiveness and waste. The trainingapparatus and costs have multiplied but not its benefits. Dissatisfaction

persists and is growing at the working level where the benefits of trainingshould show up most clearly. This disillusionment shows in many ways –reluctance to send the most promising people for training, inadequate

use of personnel after training etc. With disillusionment mounting in themidst of expansion, training has entered a dangerous phase in itsdevelopment.


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Training is neither a panacea for all ills nor is it a waste of time. What isrequired is an insight into what training can or cannot do and skill indesigning and carrying out training effectively and economically.

The searchlight of inquiry may make the task and challenges stand outtoo starkly, too simply. Using experience with training in India and other

rapidly developing countries has this advantage at similar risk. Thecontribution that training can make to development is needed acutely and

obviously. At the same time, the limited resources available in thesecountries make this contribution hard to come by. These lines are sharplydrawn; on the one hand, no promise can be ignored; on the other, no

waste is permissible.

Much of the training provided today proceeds as if knowledge and action

were directly related. This assumption is itself a striking illustration of thewide gulf that separates the two. On a continuum with personalmaturation and growth at one end and improvement in performance of

predetermined tasks at the other, education lies near the former, andtraining near the later. Focusing training on skill in action makes the task

wide and complex. Training embraces an understanding of the complexprocesses by which various factors that make up a situation interact.

For every training strategy, no matter which, the proper focus right fromthe very outset is on one or more people –on-the-job-in-the-organization – this whole amalgam. Wherever the

focus moves during the training programme, the starting point becomesthe focus again at the end. The difference lies in what people have

learned that they now apply. That difference, in terms of more effectivebehavior is the measure of the efficacy of training.

The training process is made up of three phases:


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Phase 1: Pre-training. This may also be called the preparation phase.The process starts with an understanding of the situation requiring moreeffective behavior. An organization’s concerns before training lie mainly

in four areas: Clarifying the precise objectives of training and the use theorganization expects to make of the participants after training; selectionof suitable participants; building favorable expectations and motivation in

the participants prior to the training; and planning for any changes thatimproved task performance will require in addition to training.

Phase 2: Training. During the course of the training, participants focustheir attention on the new impressions that seem useful, stimulating and

engaging. There is no guarantee that the participants will in fact learnwhat they have chosen. But the main purpose remains: participantsexplore in a training situation what interests them, and a training

institution’s basic task is to provide the necessary opportunities.

Having explored, participants try out some new behavior. If they find the

new behavior useful, they try it again, check it for effectiveness andsatisfaction, try it repeatedly and improve it. Finally, they incorporate this

new facet into their habitual behavior in the training situation. If they donot find it useful, they discard it, try some variant, or discontinuelearning in this direction. The intricate process of selection and testing is

continuous and more or less conscious. It is important that workorganizations meanwhile prepare the conditions for improved

performance by their participants upon their return.

Phase 3: Post-training. This may be called the "follow up" phase. When

training per se concludes, the situation changes. When the participantsreturn back to work from the training, a process of adjustment begins foreveryone involved. The newly learned skills undergo modification to fit

the work situation. Participants may find their organizations offeringencouragement to use the training and also support for continuing


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contact with the training institution. On the other hand, they may stepinto a quagmire of negativity.

More effective behavior of people on the job in the organization is theprimary objective of the training process as a whole. In the simplesttraining process, improvement is a dependent variable, and participants

and organizations independent variables.

The training process has the following major objectives:

1) Improvement in Performance

Training will be an important aid to managers for developing themselvesas well as their subordinates. It is not a substitute for development on the

job, which comes from doing, experiencing, observing, giving andreceiving feedback and coaching. Research has shown that 80% of aperson’s development takes place on the job. However, training can

contribute the vital 20% that makes the difference. Training can bringabout an improvement in a person’s:

Knowledge

Skills

Attitude

Thereby raising his potential to perform better on the job.

2) Growth

Training is also directed towards developing people for higher levels ofresponsibility thereby reducing the need for recruiting people fromoutside. This would have the effect of improving the morale of the

existing employees.

3) Organizational Effectiveness


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In company training provides a means for bringing about organizationaldevelopment. It can be used for strengthening values, building teams,improving inter-group relations and quality of work life. The ultimate

objective of training in the long run is to improve the company’sperformance through people performing better.

Benefits of Training Evaluation

Evaluation has three main purposes:

Feedback to help trainers understand the extent to which objectives are

being met and the effectiveness of particular learning activities – as anaid to continuous improvement

Control to make sure training policy and practice are aligned withorganizational goals and delivering cost-effective solutions toorganizational issues

Intervention to raise awareness of key issues such as pre-course andpost-course briefing and the selection of delegates Evaluation is itself a

learning process. Training which has been planned and delivered isreflected on. Views on how to do it better are formulated and tested .The

outcome may be to:

Abandon the training

Redesign the training – new sequence, new methods, newcontent, new trainer

Redesign the preparation/pre-work – new briefing material, new

pre-course work

Rethink the timing of the training – earlier or later in people’s

career, earlier or later in the training programme, earlier or laterin the company calendar

Leave well alone


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The following are the clear benefits of evaluation:

Improved quality of training activities

Improved ability of the trainers to relate inputs to output

Better discrimination of training activities between those that

are worthy of support and those that should be dropped

Better integration of training offered and on the jobdevelopment

Better co-operation between trainers and line-managers in the

development of staff

Evidence of the contribution that training and development

activities are making to the organization

Closer integration of training aims and organizational objectives

The Way Ahead

The development of learning organizations, working to harness thebrainpower, knowledge and experience of their people, reflects the

fundamental importance of training and learning for those organizationsthat hope to prosper in the new millennium. The rend towards a more"empowering" style of management and an increasing emphasis on

self-development have combined to bring about a move away fromdidactic instruction towards coaching and facilitation and away from"trainer" towards "performance improvement consultant".

In the coming future, the following trends are likely to be seen:

Increased use of virtual reality, the internet and multi-media training


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Emphasis on cross-cultural development

Remote learning to reflect changing patterns of work


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The Training Role

Internal Training

The role of an employers' organization in training has to be viewed fromdifferent perspectives. First and foremost it must be viewed from an

"internal" point of view i.e. the training and development of its own staff.This is essential to the effectiveness of the organization's training

services as well as to the other services it provides members, all of whichfall within the following:

Influencing the legal and policy environment needed for businessgrowth and developmentDirect services to members

This requires that the staff be trained in the areas of the organization's

services and core competencies which may include areas such as:

Industrial relations

Human resource managementOccupational safety and healthInformation analysis and research for:

Influencing the policy environment

Transferring knowledge to members

Undertaking wage and other surveys

Training Services

This objective of training (i.e. to make its other services more effective)

involves mostly the acquisition of knowledge needed for staff to performtheir functions. This is an important pre-requisite to staff undertaking

the second role of an employers' organization in training, which is to


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provide training to members (and sometimes to nonmembers) in areas inwhich they expect services. But unlike in the case of the first objective oftraining earlier referred to, this second role or objective requires not only

knowledge in the areas of training, but also training skills i.e. in trainingtechniques or methodologies. If staff do not develop training skills

They will be able to transfer knowledgeBut not the skills to apply the knowledge to particular situations

which arise in enterprises (productivity is increasingly theapplication of knowledge).

Examples include negotiation, workplace mechanisms to improveworkplace relations and human resource management policies andpractices such as:

Recruitment, selection, inductionPerformance appraisal

Leadership and motivationEmployee retention

Wage and salary determination

The main objectives of this second training role (to provide training to

members) are:

To provide members with the means to address labour - related

problems and issuesTo instill in enterprise managers the skills needed to improve their

management of peopleWhere enterprises have a training department, to train theirpersonnel.


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It follows that the staff of employers' organizations are not themselvespractitioners in people management. They are trainers of those engagedin managing people and, occasionally of other trainers.

Influencing National Policies and Programmes

The third role is one to be discharged at the national level, and involvesinfluencing national educational and skills training policies and schemes.This could be affected in a variety of ways:

Through representation on the policy boards of national training

institutions.Identifying employers' education and skills needs and providingfeed back from employers. Employers' organizations could form

executive training committees within the organization such as theEducation Committee in the Japan Federation of Employers'Associations, the Industrial Education and Training Committee in

the Korean Employers' Federation and the Committee on Manpowerand Development in the Singapore National Employers' Federation.

At the initiative of the New Zealand Employers' Federation theSchool-Industry Links Development Board was established in 1990to strengthen the relationship between secondary schools and

business. Unique pilot programmes were commenced in 1992 on"Teacher Placement in Industry" and "Management Course forSecondary School Principals".

Influencing government, education and training authorities tocorrect inappropriate policies and to commence preparing for the

future education and training needs if HRD policies are to haveimpact.Initiating or promoting teacher education programmes to impart to

them knowledge about the role of business in society, theenvironment needed for business development etc.


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Promoting closer links between employers and educational andtraining institutions.Influencing course content e.g. management course contents to

include more human relations management subjects, and evenbasic management in occupational safety and health andenvironmental management.

Other Roles

A fourth role is for an employers' organization to raise awareness amongemployers of the need for increased investment in the development of

human capital as an essential condition for achieving competiveness.

A fifth role is in the training of personnel or human resource managers,

given the fact that their role still tends to be downgraded relative to othermanagement functions such as finance, marketing and production. Thisrole could also be undertaken through training support given to

professional bodies like an institute of personnel management.

A sixth role for an employers' organization is the provision of advisoryservices to member companies by

Assisting trainers in enterprises to develop or improve theirin-house training programmes, especially in the areas of theemployers' organization's expertise

Upgrading the knowledge of company trainersMaintaining a directory of relevant training programmes/courses

Seventh, an employers' organization should be able to influence theprovision of training incentives to be offered to employers, through the

tax system or training levies. Numerous examples in countries aboundwhich can provide useful ideas to employers' organizations.


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Eight, an employers' organization could develop training material to beused by enterprises for in-house training.

Understanding Employee Drives and Motivations -

The First Step towards Motivation at Work

However large or small a company or business is, it is employees at alllevels that can make or break it. This holds true not only for the peoplewe hire on a regular basis, but also for temporary and contracted workers.

It is as important to research and study the needs, drives, andexpectations of people we hire or employ, and aim at responding to and

satisfying those, as it is with regard to customers.

In actual fact, considering the role each "employee" plays in a company's

success, analyzing and planning an adequate response to employees'motivations deserves first place in the order of business.


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Before going any further, let us shift our approach from grouping peopleunder the generic category of "employee" to individual human beings andterm them as "hired workers" or "working partners". This is what they are.

We must acknowledge them as human beings with individual needs,drives, characteristics, personalities, and acknowledge their contributionto the business success.

Though each person has specific needs, drives, aspirations, and

capabilities, at varying degrees of intensity, people's basic needs are thesame, as illustrated by Abraham Maslow in the following model:

Self-Actualization

Ego

Social Needs

Safety Needs

Physiological Needs

MASLOW'S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS

Maslow explains the Hierarchy of Needs as applied to workers roughly asfollows:

Physiological Needs

Basic physical needs: the ability to acquire food, shelter, clothing andother basics to survive

Safety Needs: a safe and non-threatening work environment, job security,safe equipment and installations


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Social Needs: contact and friendship with fellow-workers, social activitiesand opportunities

Ego: recognition, acknowledgment, rewards

Self-Actualization: realizing one's dreams and potential, reaching theheights of one's gifts and talents.

It is only when these needs are met that workers are morally, emotionally,

and even physically ready to satisfy the needs of the employer and thecustomers.

Worker motivation must also be viewed from two perspectives:

1. Inner drives2. Outer (external) motivators.

A person's inner drives push and propel him/her towards an employer, aparticular job, career, line of study, or other activity (such as travel orrecreation). It is these drives that Maslow delineates in his hierarchy of

needs, and which we must understand and internalize, use as guidelinesin our efforts to help employees feel motivated.

The outer (external) motivators are the mirror image the employer oroutside world offers in response to the inner drives. In order to attract

the "cream of the crop" of available workers, same as in his/her dealingswith customers, the employer not only tries to satisfy these basic needs,but to exceed them - taking into consideration additional extraordinary

needs individual workers have.

Most workers need to:

1. Earn wages that will enable them to pay for basic necessities and

additional luxuries such as the purchase of a home, or travel


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2. Save for and enjoy old age security benefits3. Have medical and other insurance coverage4. Acquire friends at work

5. Win recognition6. Be acknowledged and rewarded for special efforts andcontributions

7. Be able to advance in life and career-wise8. Have opportunities for self-development

9. Improve their skills, knowledge, and know-how10. Demonstrate and use special gifts and abilities11. Realize their ideals.

The employer responds to those needs by offering and providing:

1. Employment2. Adequate pay3. Assistance to workers for their special needs (such as child care

arrangements, transportation, flexible work schedules)4. Job security (to the degree possible)

5. Clear company policies6. Clear and organized work procedures7. A stable, just and fair work environment

8. A safe work environment9. Medical coverage and other benefits

10. An atmosphere of teamwork and cooperation11. Social activities12. Reward and recognition programs

13. Incentive programs14. Open lines of communication (formal and informal)15. Systematic feedback

16. Training and development programs


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17. Opportunities for promotion18. Company/ business information19. Information on customer feedback

20. Sharing of company goals and objectives a21. Information on the market situation and industry22. Future expectations

23. Plans for the future24. Guidance and mentoring.

It is important that the employer discover other extraordinary needsapplicants have before hiring them and know beforehand whether he/she

can satisfy those needs or not. An employee may have:

Family responsibilities and be unable to work shifts, overtime, or

weekendsHeavy financial responsibilities which he/she can meet only byworking at two jobs, leading to exhaustion, "sick leave", and

deficient work performanceA desperate financial need for additional overtime and weekend

remunerationPremature expectations of swift promotions.

Some other needs the employer can expect, for which company policiesshould be planned accordingly:

If the company is in a remote location, all employees will have aneed for more social activities

Many single people look for dates and spouses at workSome women may not be ready to work late shifts unless theemployer provides transportation back home

Some workers may have a problem with drug or alcohol abuse.


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In addition to needs and drives, adult workers have expectations fromtheir employer - they expect:

A knowledgeable, experienced, expert employerClear and fair policies, procedures, and employment practicesBusiness integrity

Clear job descriptionsTwo-way communications

Effective management and supervisionPositive disciplineGood company repute

Good customer relationsCompany survivalOpportunities for personal growth

Company growthA share in the company's success.

Business owners and managers are under constant scrutiny by the peoplethey hire. Adult workers care beyond the salary - they care to know towhom they entrust their fate, reputation, and security. They considertheir work as a major factor that shapes their lives and the lives of thosedear to them. Once they feel confident that the employer and their place

of work is what they wished for and expected, they are ready tocontribute above and beyond "the call of duty".

Most of these needs, expectations and aspirations are unexpressed - it isup to the employer to develop a good system of company

communications, employee relations, training and development that willlead to an environment of openness, cooperation, teamwork, andmotivation that will benefit all the parties involved.

Cross-Training as a motivational and problem-solving Technique


33

Many managers, including human resources directors, mistakenly believethat employee motivation can be won through monetary rewards or otherperks. They learn soon enough that such perks are taken for granted and

that money is not the key to employee motivation. A professional andunified management, in a good work environment, is the basis on whichto build employee motivation.

While high employee turnover reflects on low morale and lack of

motivation, when seen from another angle, the absence of turnoverquickly results in de-motivation since the possibility of motion andforward-motion is taken away from employees. It is against human

nature to remain static, performing the same duties day in, day out,without expectations of change in routine or opportunities foradvancement.

Following a reading or lecture on the subject, managers sometimes

implement "job enrichment" in a misguided manner, adding unrewardedresponsibilities on the shoulders of their supervisors and employees.This results in a feeling of exploitation and has the reverse of the

intended effect.

An effective training technique which results in motivation is

cross-training, when implemented horizontally, upward and downward.Department heads, assistants and employees can cross-train in different

departments or within the department itself. With background support,employees can have one day training in the role of department head("King for the Day"). When a General Manager is away, department heads

can take roles replacing him, which is a form of cross-training.

Cross-training should be carefully planned and presented as a learning

opportunity. It should be incorporated in a hotel's master yearly trainingplan, covering all positions and departments. It should begin with


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supervisory level and filter down to entry-level positions. Housekeepingshould cross-train in Front Office and vice-versa; Front Office inMarketing, Sales, Public Relations, Food & Beverage, Banquets, Security;

Marketing & Sales in Front Office, Food & Beverage, Purchasing; Food &Beverage Service in the Culinary department and vice versa; HumanResources in different departments and vice versa.

This technique achieves the following objectives:

Prevents stagnationOffers a learning and professional development opportunity

Rejuvenates all departmentsImproves understanding of the different departments and the hotelas a whole

Leads to better coordination and teamworkErases differences, enmity and unhealthy competitionIncreases knowledge, know-how, skills and work performance

Improves overall motivationLeads to the sharing of organizational goals and objectives.

Sending people to work in another department at a moment's notice isnot what cross-training is about. This has to be an effective planned

process. Employees must "buy" into the idea, be encouraged to givefeedback and make suggestions for improvement. They become"partners". Departmental communications meetings can be used to share

lessons learned. When employees think "the grass is greener on theother side of the lawn" they soon realize their mistake after exposure to

other departments. They return to their job with a better attitude.

Cross-training can also be used to "shake up" supervisors or employees

who have lapsed into poor performance. Upon being moved to adifferent position or department, albeit temporarily, they hear "warning


35

bells", shape up and usually return to their positions as exemplaryperformers.

Depending on the budget at hand and the objectives to be achieved, thetime for cross-training can vary from one day to a week or more. Detailsmust be coordinated with the "receiving" department head. The trainee is

incorporated within the department's activities for the duration of thecross-training (briefings, meetings, or obligations).

A more sophisticated form of cross-training is job rotation, which usuallyinvolves extended periods (from one month to six months). With job

rotation, the employee's role is of a different nature. He is notconsidered as trainee, but is responsible over certain job functions, forwhich he has to prove himself.

Both cross-training and job rotation create a team of workers who aremore knowledgeable, can easily replace each other when needed and who

gain new confidence regarding their professional expertise. These twotechniques lead to great motivation throughout the company.

Unionized properties face some difficulty in implementing suchtechniques due to the rigidity of Union policies and labor agreements. It

is up to management to win over Unions on this concept and convincethem of the benefits to employees' careers. Union representatives can bemade to understand that company-wide cross-training involves

substantial investment in time, effort and payroll. The benefits, however,are enjoyed by the three main stakeholders: employees, management and

guests. Employees enjoy the rewards of added know-how, skills, careeropportunities and future security due to business success.


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Problems for Employers' Organizations Developing

Training Role

Several reasons account for the problems faced by employers'organizations in training their own staff, and in providing training to

members. They include the following:

Unlike enterprises which can have their staff trained in

management and other training institutions, there are no coursesand training institutions which are geared to the needs ofemployers' organizations. This places a heavy responsibility on

senior staff to train new recruits and on staff to develop themselves.Therefore organizations often rely on the ILO to conduct training

programmes designed to serve the needs of employers'organizations, and to provide staff with study tours to otheremployers' organizations.

Most organizations do not have skilled trainers i.e. persons whohave been trained as trainers.Inadequate training material

Inadequate information/knowledge relating to labor-relatedsubjects needed to attract enterprises to the organization's training

programmes.The economic viability of having full time training staff. Due tofinancial constraints, an employers' organization would generally

have to keep full time training staff to a minimum. Therefore staffwith special skills providing advisory and representation services

should be trained as trainers to enable them to undertake sometraining in their areas of expertise.

Organizational Change


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Conventional organizational change, which typically encompassestraining and development, and 'motivation', mostly fails.

Why? Are the people stupid? Can they not see the need for change? Dothey not realise that if the organization cannot make these changes thenwe will become uncompetitive. We will lose market share. There will be

job cuts. We will eventually go out of business. Can they not see it?Actually probably not. Or more precisely, people look at things in a

different way.

Bosses and organizations still tend to think that people whom are

managed and employed and paid to do a job should do what they're toldto do. We are conditioned from an early age to believe that the way toteach and train, and to motivate people towards changing what they do,

is to tell them, or persuade them. From the experiences at school thepeople are conditioned to believe that skills, knowledge, andexpectations are imposed on or 'put into' people by teachers, and later,

by managers and bosses in the workplace. But just because the boss saysso, doesn't make it so. People today have a different perspective. And

when they think about it, they're bound to.

Imposing new skills and change on people doesn't work because:

It assumes that people's personal aims and wishes and needs arecompletely aligned with those of the organization, or that there is

no need for such alignment, andIt assumes that people want, and can assimilate into their lives,

given all their other priorities, the type of development or changethat the organization deems appropriate for them.

Instead, organizations, managers, bosses and business owners would dobetter to think first about exploring ways to align the aims of the


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business with the needs - total life needs - of their people. Mostpeople who go to work are under no illusion that their main purpose is todo what their manager says, so that the organization can at the end of

the year pay outrageously high rewards to greedy directors, and a big fatdividend to the shareholders. The workers work so that other more giftedor fortunate or aggressive people can profit because of our efforts.

And god help those if they are running a management buyout company,

intent on floating or selling out in the next two-to-five years, making theMBO equity-holders millionaires, and leaving the employees, on whosebacks these scandalous gains have been made, up the creek without a

paddle, at the mercy of the new owners.

How the bloody hell do you expect decent hardworking people to align

with those aims?

It's time for a radical re-think, before they all disappear up their own

backsides...

Fact one:

People will never align with bad aims. Executive greed, exploitation,

environmental damage, inequality, betrayal, false promises aretransparent for all decent folk to see:

"Oh you want me to do this training, and adjust to your changes, so I canmake more money for you and the parasites who feed off this corporation?I've got my own life to lead thanks very much."

And that's if bosses are lucky. Most staff will simply nod and smile

demurely as if in servile acceptance. If they still wore caps they'd doffthem.


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The bosses should re-assess and re-align their organization's aims,beliefs, and integrity - all of it - with their workers. Then they mightbegin to be interested in helping with new skills and change, etc.

Fact two:

People can't just drop everything and 'change', or learn new skills, just

because boss says so. Even if they want to change and learn new skills,they have a whole range of issues that keep them fully occupied for most

of their waking hours. The need for consulting with people is rather agood idea is that it saves boss from his own wrong assumptions.Consulting with people does not mean that organization is in the workers

hand they wouldn't want the corporation if they are paid well. So if thecompany is thinking in this then it is wrong because consulting withpeople gives boss and them a chance to understand the implications and

feasibility of what boss think needs doing. And aside from this,consulting with people, and helping them to see things from both sides

generally throws up some very good ideas for doing things better thanboss could have dreamt of by himself. It helps boss to see from bothsides too.

Fact three:

Organizations commonly say they don't have time to re-assess andre-align their aims and values, etc., or don't have time to consult with

people properly, because the organization is on the edge of a crisis.

Well whose fault is that? Organizations get into crisis because they ignore

facts one and two. Ignoring these facts again will only deepen the crisis.


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Crisis is no excuse for compromising integrity. Crisis is the best reasonto re-align aims and consult with workers. Crisis is wake-up and changethe organization and its purpose - not change the people. When an

organization is in crisis, the people are almost always okay - it'll be theorganizational purpose and aims that stink.

The company should start by looking at their organization's aims andvalues and purposes. What does organization actually seek to do? Whom

does their organization benefit? And whom does it exploit? Who are thewinners, and who are the losers? Does the organization have real integrity?Are they proud of the consequences and implications of what their

organization does? Will the organization be remembered for the goodthat it did? And what do workers say to themselves about the way theirboss is managing change?

Developing the Organization's Training Function


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Pre-requisites

There are certain prerequisites essential to undertaking a training role inrelation to members. Training may be affected in three ways

By the employers' organization's own staffBy external persons or institutions the employers' organization may

contract with to conduct trainingBy a combination of both the above methods, this would usually be

the most practical since it is unrealistic to expect employers’organizations to develop the level of skills needed in all the areasof training.

Even in courses conducted by the organization trainers or resourcepersons can be used for selected subjects to enrich the programme.

Where training is conducted by the staff of the employers' organization itfollows that it must have a comparative advantage in the subject matter

of the training. In order to have that advantage the staff should

Have the requisite knowledge in the subject matterBe trained as trainers, although this is not critical in all cases. Forinstance, conducting courses on the application of the labor laws


42

requires knowledge of the subject matter, and skills in training maynot be particularly critical though undoubtedly useful.Be supported by an up to date information and research base.

The above mentioned pre-requisites underline the two types of trainingan employers' organization might undertake. The first is the transference

of information and knowledge needed by enterprises to make decisionsin labor related areas. This requires the first and third pre-requisites

referred to. However, in order to have an impact on enterprises in themanagement of people, the training needs to go beyondknowledge-transference and demonstrate how to translate the relevant

knowledge into practice. This involves not only a sound information andresearch base and staff with the requisite knowledge, but also staff withtraining skills.

Identifying Areas of Training Specialization

Employers' organizations do not usually offer training in all areas ofmanagement (e.g. general management, finance, and marketing) because

These are specialized areas requiring knowledge in subjectsoutside the mandate of an employers' organization

Such training is provided by other institutions like business schoolsand polytechnics which specially cater to these training needs.

However, in some areas training undertaken by employers' organizationsand other institutions overlap. An example is negotiation skills on which

business education institutions in some countries have highly effectiveprogrammes. Another is human resource management. Therefore it isimportant for employers' organizations to develop an expertise in

training in industrial relations (laws, workplace labor relations practices,wages, and negotiation). It is a subject in which it can develop a


43

comparative advantage, especially since in many countries such trainingis seldom offered by other institutions. Even if other institutions do, theymay lack the practical experience employers' organizations develop if

they provide direct services to members.

An increasingly important target group is the small enterprise sector

which, unlike the large scale sector, usually lacks a human resourcemanager or a training policy and in house training facilities. A special

needs assessment may have to be conducted in this sector as its needstend to differ from those of large and medium scale enterprises. The ILOhas developed the Improve Your Business (IYB) programme, which is a

system of inter-related training packages and supporting materials forproviding owners and managers of small enterprises with training inbasic business management skills.

Establishing Training Priorities

The employers' organization should establish a priority table in respect ofthe areas in which it wishes to

Itself provide the trainingAct only in a subsidiary capacity by, for instance, collaborating with

external institutions or individuals.Provide training material

Some of the areas in which an employers' organization can undertaketraining are:

a. Industrial Relations and Labour Law. This should be a priority as itis the labour relations role which, more than any other,

distinguishes an employers' organization from other employerbodies.


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b. Personnel and Human Resource Management. Training in this areahelps to strengthen personal departments and human resourcemanagement functions. Since one of the main objectives of HRM is

to integrate it with the functions of line managers, HRM trainingshould be made available to all enterprise managers. However,training in this field may require linking up with institutions which

are qualified in this regard, as it is difficult to build a comparativeadvantage without external assistance.

c. Negotiation and negotiation skills. This is important not only forthe conduct of collective bargaining but also for enterprisemanagers in their frequent interactions with their employees and

other enterprises.d. Safety and health. An employers' organization could develop alimited role, such as interpreting relevant laws and training safety

committees in enterprises.e. Productivity. Here a limited role is possible, largely through training

to achieve sound industrial relations and in HRM practices whichpromote productivity improvement. Productivity bargaining andperformance and skills based pay systems are a part of an

employers' organization's mandate directly linked to productivity.f. Supervisory training. This often neglected area of training is animportant means of improving workplace labour relations and

productivity. The ILO has developed a supervisory training modulewhich has been found useful by enterprises.

g. Cross-cultural management training. In the context of increasinginvestment in countries from both within and outside the regionand the apparent proliferation of disputes flowing from

cross-cultural "mismanagement", there is scope for thedevelopment of training programmes for foreign personneldesigned to acquaint them with local practices and cultural factors

relevant to managing local employees. Increasingly, local


45

employees also need to adjust to the management requirementsand styles of foreign companies. Strangely, this has been a muchneglected area of training. However, it requires quite a mastery of

local systems, practices and culture.

Training should not take the form of only collective training programmes

i.e. for personnel from several different enterprises. Considerable impactcan be achieved through the design and conduct of training programmes

for particular enterprises at plant level as it facilitates addressing aparticular enterprise's needs. The latter type of programme also has areasonable chance of attracting senior managers who are in a position to

influence the company's policies.

Equipping the Organization for Training

The organization should equip itself to perform a training role. Amongother things, this involves the followings:

Analyzing the organization's strengths and weaknesses in training

in the light of the needs assessment surveys and identification ofthe areas of training.Training the staff in training skills

Where relevant, studying the management of the training functionof employers' organizations which have developed an excellence intraining

Improving the organization's information/research/knowledge baseDeveloping training courses and materials

Where necessary entering into arrangements with outsideindividuals or institutions to design and/or conduct trainingprogrammes

Appointing a training manager, or at least a person to plan andcoordinate the training


46

Acquisition of the training equipment needed.

As a brief review of terms, training involves an expert working with

learners to transfer to them certain areas of knowledge or skills toimprove in their current jobs. Development is a broad, ongoingmulti-faceted set of activities (training activities among them) to bring

someone or an organization up to another threshold of performance,often to perform some job or new role in the future.

Topics of Employee Training

1) Corporate ethics: This covers the value of good manners, courtesy,consideration, personal décor and good rapport. It also shows why and

how to discourage gossip, controversies, personal work at office, rushjobs etc.

2) Communications: The increasing diversity of today's workforce bringsa wide variety of languages and customs. Right from the way thereceptionist handles a call to how the CEO deals with a customer gives a

glimpse of the image of an organization. Such training encompasses oral,written and presentation skills. It stresses the importance of

communication being clear, concise, concrete and colorful.

3) Career and life planning: A primarily employee-oriented training

objective u undertaken to help employees plan for their lives, career,retirement, redundancy etc. Such training imparts the values of life skillsthat employees need under different and difficult circumstances.


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4) Computer skills: Computer skills are becoming a necessity forconducting administrative and office tasks.

5) Customer service: Increased competition in today's globalmarketplace makes it critical that employees understand and meet theneeds of customers.

6) Diversity: Diversity training usually includes explanation about howpeople have different perspectives and views, and includes techniques to

value diversity

7) Staff management and team building: Such training shows theimportance and benefits of good management and how everyone canachieve more through teamwork.

8) Stress management: Stress is an individual’s response to threats andchallenges in the environment. Manifested physiologically and physically,

it may occur due to role conflict, role ambiguity, role incompatibility, roleoverload or role under load. Stress management techniques are covered

under this objective.

9) Time management: Time management skills covered here showcasethe importance of being specific, delegation and prioritization. They alsoshow how to set measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound goals.

10) Human relations: The increased stresses of today's workplace caninclude misunderstandings and conflict. Training can people to get alongin the workplace. It also includes interpersonal relationship skills

Communication is a two-way exercise and this objective covers theimportance of listening, concentrating, showing empathy and

self-awareness.


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11) Quality initiatives: Initiatives such as Total Quality Management,Quality Circles, benchmarking, etc., require basic training about qualityconcepts, guidelines and standards for quality, etc.

12) Safety: Safety training is critical where working with heavyequipment , hazardous chemicals, repetitive activities, etc., but can also

be useful with practical advice for avoiding assaults, etc.

13) Sexual harassment: Sexual harassment training usually includes

careful description of the organization's policies about sexual harassment,especially about what are inappropriate behaviors.

14) Memory skills: This objective highlights techniques for betterreception, retention and recall through audio and visual learning

techniques. It helps to improve skills by employing all senses, associatingand following systematic review plans.

15) Special skills: Besides the above, organizations also impart specialjob-related skills. These may include technology training, report writing,

technical training, quality assessments etc.

An organization may choose to impart training in any or many of the

objectives mentioned above. But before one invests it is important tochoose a trainer who is good and capable of making a positive differencewith his or her training methodologies. Also organizational training needs

to be undertaken keeping the mission and the vision statement of theorganization in view.


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Benefits from Employee Training and Development

Regardless of the size or type of an industry or business, training canhave a measurable impact on performance and the bottom line.

Research shows that productivity increases while training takes place.A staff who receives formal training can be 230 per cent moreproductive than untrained colleagues who are working in the same role.

Staying competitive is the key to sustainability. Training your staff,keeping them motivated and up-to-date with industry trends and new

technologies is essential to achieving that goal.

Staff benefit too, learning new skills and becoming a valued asset in

any organization. Training brings direct benefits to business and canbe calculated as a return on investment.

High labor productivity increases business output and can open agreater share of the market or expand it by improving products,services and reputations.

Successful training is focused on supporting your business objectives.

Staff retention


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Training increases staff retention which is a significant cost saving, asthe loss of one competent person can be the equivalent of one year'spay and benefits.

In some companies, training programs have reduced staff turnover by70 per cent and led to a return on investment of 7,000 per cent.

Improved quality and productivityTraining that meets both staff and employer needs can increase the

quality and flexibility of a business’s services by fostering:

Accuracy and efficiency

Good work safety practicesBetter customer service.

Most businesses provide on-the-job training, particularly during

induction. Ongoing training almost always shows a positive return oninvestment.

The flow-on effectThe benefits of training in one area can flow through to all levels of an

organisation. Over time, training will boost the bottom line and reducecosts by decreasing:

Wasted time and materialsMaintenance costs of machinery and equipmentWorkplace accidents, leading to lower insurance premiums

Recruitment costs through the internal promotion of skilled staffAbsenteeism.

Staying competitiveBusinesses must continually change their work practices andinfrastructure to stay competitive in a global market. Training staff to

manage the implementation of new technology, work practices andbusiness strategies can also act as a benchmark for future recruitmentand quality assurance practices.


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As well as impacting on business profit margins, training can improve:

Staff morale and satisfaction

'Soft skills' such as inter-staff communication and leadershipTime managementCustomer satisfaction

There are numerous sources of on-line information about training anddevelopment. Several of these sites (they're listed later on in this library)

suggest reasons for supervisors to conduct training among employees.These reasons include:

1. Increased job satisfaction and morale among employees

2. Increased employee motivation

3. Increased efficiencies in processes, resulting in financial gain

4. Increased capacity to adopt new technologies and methods

5. Increased innovation in strategies and products

6. Reduced employee turnover

7. Enhanced company image, e.g., conducting ethics training (not a good

reason for ethics training!)

8. Risk management, e.g., training about sexual harassment, diversity

training

Companies that have a healthy training culture report the following

benefits:

Improved quality

Increased productivity


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Greater flexibility and responsiveness to changeReduced insurance premiumsLess wastage

Reduced maintenance and repair costsGreater commitment from staffHigher staff retention rate

Improved morale.

Perhaps the most important benefit of a healthy training culture is thatthe skills of your staff are formally recognised and that your employeesfeel that their contribution to the company is valued.

Renewed focus on Corporate Training

Upcoming technologies are aimed at making organizational processesmore efficient, but this effort is incomplete without proficient employeeswho are in touch with forthcoming innovations in their companies. Today,

human capital has replaced physical capital as a source of competitiveadvantage for all organisations, big and small; hence there is a renewed

focus on corporate training to create a better, faster and smarterworkforce that will impact business results.

The training industry in India has evolved as a business effectiveness tool.The arena of training has moved on from employee retentionprogrammes to issues like sales training, leadership, relationship

building and increasing production. Sanjeev Duggal, CEO and MD, NIS ofSparta says that, “Training has become a critical business enabler and is

being linked to business outcome. Due to ever-changing marketscenarios and stiff competition, every organisation wants to makeoptimum use of the most critical resource-people-efficiently and

effectively to impact business results.”


53

Uday Kulkarni, Senior Vice-president, Aptech, adds that “There is anincreased awareness relating to the need for corporate training in India. Acertain shift is taking place from a generic to a specific and focused

training approach. As a result, there is a lot more planning and analysisgoing into evolving a training strategy. Human capital is recognized asthe most important resource, and companies are therefore making efforts

to hone it through training.”

"Training has become a been critical business enabler that is beinglinked to business results"

-Sanjeev DuggalCEO & MDNIS Sparta

"Corporate IT training has still not been imbibed as a culture in most

organisations.It is need-based rather than a planned activity"-Jitendra Nair

Vice-presidentKarrox Technologies


54

On the other hand, Jitendra Nair, Vice-president, Karrox Technologies,believes that corporate IT training has still not been imbibed as a culturein most organisations. According to him, it is more need-based rather

than a planned activity. The intensity in the approach is now changingwith good companies dedicating IT training budgets for their IT andend-user staff. In India, corporate training markets are largely active in

the re-skilling space. This is the area where participants are trained onnewer technologies in order to enhance their productivity.”

Nasscom figures indicate that the IT corporate training market isexpected to touch rs. 600 crore by 2010 from the current rs. 210 crore.

Internationally, 80 percent of a training company’s revenue comes fromcorporate training. However, in the Indian market, the revenue figurecould be 50 percent from retail training and the rest from the corporate

segment.

He adds, “The prevailing thrust on public domain/retail training is

primarily due to the disconnect in our academic approach where thelatest technologies are not offered, thus making it necessary for job

aspirants to get trained on their own in order to be job-worthy. Due tohigh competition in the job market space and high aspiration factors, ourstudents generally have the culture of learning before they apply for

jobs.”


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"With the increased utilization of IT in all sectors, intensive training hasbecome essential"-Rajeev Katyal

Senior Vice-President

Enterprise Learning Solutions, NIIT

Specialization in training

Training in India is imparted at all levels—frontline, middle or senior

management—of the organization, but the emphasis is on the frontlinestaff and the senior management. Duggal states, “The training impartedto the frontline staff is skill-based. But the acute shortage of quality

people at the senior level—the people who actually builds and managecompanies—has made investment in training and development animportant tool for the management of the organization.”

Nair is of the view that corporate training is largely happening on thesoftware development, networking and IT security space at different

levels. Specialization training is gaining momentum, and hence delivery istask-oriented rather than theory and science-based, as was in the past.

Rajeev Katyal, Senior Vice-president, Enterprise Learning Solutions, NIIT,believes that with the increased utilization of IT in all sectors, intensivetraining has become essential. Both the government and private sectors

are relying heavily on the training of their employees.

In-house vs. outsource

The kind of training requirement an organization has determines whether

the training is conducted in-house or is outsourced to a third party.Duggal notes, “Training programmes that involve volume and are doneon a consistent basis (like the voice-and-accent training imparted at


56

BPOs) is generally done in-house. But an organization usually involves athird party when there is need for a specialized training programme like amanagement development programme, role-based skill development

programme or outbound programme.”

Corporate preference is generally towards organizations that have good

experience in training corporate personnel. Training students andtraining professionals are different in terms of approach, methodology

and delivery. Trainers have to be highly experienced with a track recordof successful delivery.

Nair explains, “Training programmes are usually in-house where theclient utilizes his own environment and facilities, thereby giving himtraveling and economic benefits. But some organizations outsource their

entire training programmes to qualified and reputed trainingorganizations after due diligence on their credentials, faculties, clientreferences and experience in the business.”

According to Katyal, the choice between outsourcing and in-house

training depends on the nature and need of the organization. IT and BPOcompanies undertake a lot of in-house training, and depending on thekind of specialized training required, they outsource. Government sector

companies mostly choose to outsource. Outsourcing offers the advantageof sourcing scarce talent and the ability to ramp up quickly, whereasin-house training offers greater control.

Matching schedules and providing customized courseware for

customized content is another operational challenge in this segment.

Katyal points out that the challenges which companies face while

undertaking training programmes includes finding locations for trainingin remote areas and an experienced faculty.


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Multiple gains

Training makes an organization well-equipped to keep pace with the

changing dynamics of business. Employees frequently develop a greatersense of self-worth, dignity and well-being as they become morevaluable to the firm and to society. Generally, they receive a greater share

of the material gains due to their increased productivity. These factorsgive them a sense of satisfaction through the achievement of personal

and company goals.

Nair points out that IT-based training programme enable participants to

use software to its fullest potential, thereby cutting down timerequirements and getting the best RoI on the company’s technologydeployments. “Training as a culture also helps corporate HR retain their

people. On the technology side, participants aspire for knowledgeinitiatives. Constant updating on technologies is at most times a goodreason for people to stay longer in an organization.”

He adds, “From a training company perspective, it’s a relationship-based

marketing model and leads to a constant revenue model. It’s an effectiveB2B model for mature IT training companies, and in the process addsvalue to their clients and their own business. Even for their technical staff,

it’s a new scale that they always aspire to reach as a technocrat.”

Who’s Training Whom

Company Corporate Training Clients


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NIS Sparta Coca-Cola, IBM, Maruti, AmericanExpress, Thermax, MahindraFinance, Accenture, APAC,Pantaloon, Godrej & Boyce

Aptech Training Solutions Maruti Udyog, Electrolux Kelvinator,Dabur, Valvoline Cummins, Perfettivan Melle India, National ThermalPower Corporation, Gas AuthorityOf India, Delhi Police, StandardChartered Bank, Indian Oil,Motorola India, ICICI, Bayer,Mahindra & Mahindra, Blue Star, HP,Onida

Karrox Godrej Infotech, Times of India,Reliance Infocomm, RelianceIndustries, Wipro Infotech, TataConsultancy Services, Siemens,Union Bank of India, Infosys, CapGemini, Global Telesystems, SouthEastern Coal Fields, PersistentTechnologies, State Bank of India,HCL, Indian Navy.

Varied approaches

The approach taken for any training programme depends on the client

requirement based on the changing market scenario. It could be specifictraining enhancing one particular skill or it could be a holistic approach

facilitating organizational development taken up to address needs in acompetitive market scenario.

Katyal discusses, “The current requirement for corporate training ismostly related to IT. However, management training, especially at thesupervisory level, is also seeing rising demand these days. One of the

areas for consideration while designing training programmes isincorporating a session on soft skills. (For IT skills, there is enough

material available.) The approach is need-based. This is followed by theappropriate mix of curriculum, faculty skills and infrastructure planning.Usage of right training methodology is essential.”


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Nair adds that the current method being practiced is to conduct atraining-need analysis, and identify the people needing training in avariety of products. On such identification, the technical coordinator will

finalize things like indicative schedules along with the proposed venue.Once the administrative aspects are completed, the technologyimplementation, that is, the delivery of training starts. In the case of a

need-based approach, i.e. an urgent project deployment requiring sometraining, it’s always a holistic approach and is not process-oriented.

An evolving trend

The trend for corporate training is currently evolving in the country, andmore and more organizations are opting for it. Katyal details, “Thecurrent scenario of corporate training looks promising in almost all

sectors. With the government sector going in for capacity building, therise in recruitment in the IT/BPO sector, and companies investing in IT,the need for corporate training is on the rise.”

Nair explains, “In the globalize environment where new products are

hitting the market with great frequency and new technology deploymentshave become a business compulsion in order to enhance productivity andbetter turnaround time, training has become a crucial part of the

technology deployment cycle.”

At last Kulkarni says, “Corporates today have realized that

self-development among employees lead to better RoI for theorganization. Training is essential to keep an organization’s human

capital fit and fine to enable it take on the best in the world—and thensculpt a world-class organization.”


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The State of Training and Development: More Spending, More Scrutiny

As investment in training continues to rise, with resources migratingaway from in-house programs, employers are demanding better

accounting to ensure that their development dollars go toward furtheringstrategic goals and bolstering the bottom line.

Technology and global competition, the two driving forces of economicchange in today’s business world, haven’t bypassed the once-staid worldof training and development. Companies seeking to gain advantage

through better-trained and better-developed workers are employingeverything from e-learning delivery systems to multicultural and polyglottraining solutions. They are hiring chief learning officers to deal with the

increasingly complex field. And they are demanding better accounting ofresults.

Jack Kramer, vice president of global alliances for Sum Total Systems ofMountain View, California, says that every training effort--from the most

sophisticated leadership course to the most basic regulatory compliancetraining module--is being rigorously vetted for more than just content.

"They want to know, ‘What is the financial impact?’ “Kramer says.”‘Have you cut costs? Have you solved compliance issues? Have youassimilated learning into company operations?’ "

Yet despite the focus on efficiency and cost control, overall spending

on training and development continues to raise, a reflection of the factthat companies are ratcheting up the amount of training they require oftheir workers in the ceaseless drive for a competitive edge. Companies

clearly subscribe to the belief that smarter, better-trained workersincrease chances for success.


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"We are seeing spending continue to rise," says Pat Galagan, vicepresident of content for the American Society for Training & Development."The thing we are noticing is that companies are working to get more

efficiency, more effectiveness and better alignment out of training. Itmeans they are doing an enterprise accounting of learning expenditures."

ASTD’s tracking of expenditures shows that the push toward morespending on training and development has been consistent throughout

this decade. According to ASTD’s latest "State of the Industry Report,"issued in December, annual spending on training and development bycompanies and other organizations rose to $955 per employee in 2004

and was projected to reach $1,000 in 2005. In 2000, the total stood at$649. The average number of annual learning hours per employee, whichwas 24 in 2000, reached 32 in 2004 and was projected to hit 34 in 2005.

Training and development budgets now gobble up anywhere from 2.25percent to 3 percent of payrolls.

Where is that money being spent? Despite the rise of outside vendorswho promise to deliver training modules more cheaply, the bulk of

training is still done in-house.

"Organizations tend to outsource things that can be standardized and

keep inside things that are special, unique or have a competitiveadvantage," ASTD’s Galagan says. "Definitely most training is stillinternal."

Still, the amount of training that can be outsourced has yet to peak,

thanks in part to the ever-changing and rising need to meet mandates fortraining in subjects like worker safety or financial reporting. Vendorspredict that their businesses will enjoy years of continued growth.


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According to the ASTD report, in-house training and development isstill by far the place where the most dollars are spent. But it commands ashrinking share. In-house spending declined from 66.8 percent of total

spending in 2000 to a projected 57.4 percent for 2005. At the same time,outsourcing rose from 22.2 percent of total spending in 2000 to aprojected 29.1 percent in 2005. (Tuition reimbursement, the other major

use of training and development money, rose modestly, from 11 percentin 2000 to 13.5 percent in 2005.)

Training In Various Industries

1)Training in News Center

The news industry, traditionally untroubled about staff development, is

taking a new look. In today’s multimedia world, industry leaders feelheightened competition for the best and brightest employees.

Economists predict an acute shortage of “knowledge workers.” Startingsalaries for journalists, stagnant for decades, have begun to creepupward. Industry attrition also is climbing, and an increasingly


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professional journalism workforce wants – and is starting to get – moretraining and mid-career education.

The same information revolution that draws away journalistic talent alsosiphons off the attention of audiences. But a growing body of research,as well as the experience of many news leaders, shows that improving

staff development and training can help news organizations improve thequality of their journalism to keep and even expand audiences.

Benefits include:

1. Journalists with learning and development opportunities stay withorganizations longer. Higher employee retention both saves moneyand strengthens readership.

2. News organizations with strong training and education programsenjoy a greater chance of success in creating newsroom diversity

and reaching wider audiences.

3. A learning newsroom is more likely to have a constructive culture,

increasing performance.

4. Skill, topic and value training all help journalists provide greater

editorial quality.

1. Journalists with learning and development opportunities stay with

organizations longer. Higher employee retention both saves moneyand strengthens readership.

Average turnover across America’s newsrooms, historically lowcompared to other non-manufacturing industries, climbed in the 1990s

as Internet and other opportunities lured many journalists away fromtraditional media. By 2000, newsroom turnover in the newspaper


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industry averaged 15 percent, about the same average found acrossindustry nationally.

“Newspapers feel they are dealing with a mounting crisis in getting andkeeping good people,” the Media Management Center’s ReadershipInstitute reported in 2000. “In countless conversations with newspaper

executives, two themes recur: ‘We’ve got candidates for jobs, but wedon’t seem to be getting the cream of the crop any more,’ and ‘we keep

losing the people we can’t afford to lose.’”

Recruiting and retention challenges are likely to increase. The

middle-aged baby boomers who make up the largest portion of the newsindustry will retire in the first quarter of the 21st century. The workergroup that follows is smaller and less likely to be loyal to any

organization that does not provide challenges and developmentopportunities.

“We are about to face a demographically driven shortfall in labor that willmake the late 1990s seem like a minor irritation,” Anthony Carnevale,

former chairman of the National Commission for Employment Policy, toldBusiness 2.0 magazine in September 2003.

This will worsen what the Readership Institute calls the”hidden” businesscost of turnover, the relationship between high-turnover staffs andhigh-turnover readership.

“Difficulties in recruiting and keeping talented workers come at a time

when levels of readership and share of advertising continue to slowly butsteadily erode. New research shows these issues are linked – that highturnover can depress reader satisfaction, readership and how people

perceive the newspaper’s brand,” the Readership Institute said after itsImpact Study of 100 newspapers.


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“That alone is a compelling opportunity for newspapers to focus ongetting and keeping the best.”

The Readership Institute identifies development and learning activities ascritical to retaining staff and building a dynamic workforce.

Newsrooms do not typically track or report their turnover rates or linkthem to staff development activities. In those that do, however, thereappear clear relationships between staff development and turnover.

The 2002 study “Newsroom Training: Where’s the Investment?”

underscored that improved opportunities for training and developmentwill be critical to the retention of journalists in all media as the economyopens up. Though three in 10 journalists told researchers they received

regular training, an even greater number – a full third of those surveyed– expressed dissatisfaction with training opportunities. The lack oftraining outranked even compensation and lack of opportunities for

promotion among the journalists surveyed.

The survey, co-sponsored by the Council of National JournalismOrganizations and the Knight Foundation, estimated that the newsindustry spends .07 percent of payroll annually on training and staff

development, when industries generally spend three times that amountand some high-performing corporations spend 10 to 20 times thatamount.

2. News organizations with strong training and education programs

enjoy a greater chance of success in creating newsroom diversity andreaching wider audiences.

The news industry hopes to keep and expand its audience in anincreasingly diverse nation, yet it struggles to keep and expand thenumber of women and journalists of color in its newsrooms.


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Journalists of color who leave the profession generally cite a lack ofprofessional challenge and a lack of opportunities for advancement.

Improved training and professional development has been an importantfactor at the relatively few dailies that have achieved racial parity withtheir communities.

Past surveys show journalists of color joined by both women and youngjournalists as being statistically more likely to want to leave a job if it

does not offer a chance to learn and grow. News industry efforts to reachyounger news consumers as well as female consumers also can be

hampered by a lack of training and staff development.

3. A learning newsroom is more likely to have a constructive culture,

increasing performance.

Staff development – investments that enhance an individual’s skills,

knowledge and behavior – strengthens companies by doing more thanreducing turnover.

Organizations with constructive, learning workplace cultures tend to dobetter in the marketplace. In the news industry, Readership Institute

research has stressed that the “defensive” cultures of most newsroomsare a primary obstacle to growing audience.

The Southern Newspaper Publishers Association recently faced both ofthese factors – a constructive need to add training and defensive budgetcuts during the recent recession – and fashioned a creative solution to

increase staff development opportunities for its member newspapers,many of which are the small newsrooms most in need of training.

Inspired by the “Cox Academy,” which provides newsroom training forregional clusters of Cox newspapers, SNPA developed a “traveling


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campus” program to offer weekend training at 20 sites per year,reachable by car by any member.

In 2002, more than 7,600 newspaper employees attended the travelingseminars, nearly as many people in one year as the SNPA foundation hadtrained in the previous 32 years. By the end of 2003, the organization’s

members had pledged $8 million of a $10 million endowment needed topermanently fund the training.

4. Skill, topic and value training all help journalists provide greatereditorial quality.

News industry leaders say they can compete only with relevant, crediblecontent. These key elements of editorial quality – and of any quality

news brand – rely increasingly on the skill, knowledge and ethics of thestaff.

The Readership Institute points to newspaper craft skills such as writing,photography, graphics and page design as keys to increasing reader

satisfaction. Recommending improved technique is one thing, putting itinto place is another. That’s where increased and improved training anddevelopment comes in.

Similarly, news organizations struggle to provide content that is relevantacross a wider audience that includes young people and people of color.

Updating knowledge and expertise – whether it is community knowledgeor specialized knowledge in business, science, health, and law – is

essential to this process. Newsrooms with a high commitment to trainingalready know and practice this. The challenge is to find practical ways toincrease the capacity of newsrooms of all sizes to know and practice it.

Recent events have shown that credibility is a vital yet fragile force in anynews organization. Ongoing training and staff development around


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values and ethics is needed as market forces increase pressure onstandards. Indeed, when journalists say they want training, they refer toall three types – skills, knowledge and ethics.

In newsrooms, journalists consistently say they need more training to dotheir jobs. The national training survey found surprising harmony --

eight in 10 journalists believe they need more training to keep up withchanging demands, and nine in 10 news executives agreed.

2 Training in Call Centers

Top Four blunders in Training

This is big questions that will the Outsourcing Trend continue to survivewith falling training standards?

What's the bottom line? Call Center Employers will regret slashing theirtraining budgets to save a few dollars. For a small investment, employerscan protect themselves and save hundreds of thousands of dollars in

costs. Below are the top four training blunders that many employersmake and later regret.


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Blunder #1: They distribute training policies and that's all they needto do.Distributing a company/induction/training policy is not sufficient to show

workforce that a company has met its legal obligation to train itsworkforce and create an educated work-environment. Also, linemanagers - the people in the trenches and making their daily

employment decisions - are the best hope of creating a energetic &learning workplace. Therefore, it is very important to train the

management staff so they can "spot the issue," recognize a situationinvolving a issue and seek help from HR.

Blunder #2: They fine since they had training six months ago.In order to use training as a defense tool, companies must verify thateach and every worker received training. All companies experience

turnover and absenteeism problems, which undermine trainingeffectiveness. Therefore, companies should receive written or electronic

training verifications and audit those verifications ANNUALLY to ensurelegally defensible training. Compliance training loses significant value ifthe company is not able to present tracking information and

documentation showing that each of their workers received annualtraining. Also, many employers experience the all too common scenariowhere they know they provided training, they know the employee likely

attended the training - but they cannot prove it for lack of documentation.The company shouldn’t make such mistake.

Blunder #3: the company has an HR assistant conduct trainingworkshops.

A company needs to rely on the quality and effectiveness of its training.Otherwise, why do it? Using an in-house trainer can be difficult if theperson lacks expertise or credibility within the organization. The trainer

must be a senior executive or an outside professional to gain the respect


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and attention of the training participants. Also, companies should have aqualified expert conduct the training - a person who can also providetraining testimony in the event the training is ever legally challenged.

Blunder #4: the company always want in-person training rather thanWeb-based and they can't afford it this year.

A blended learning solution (combining in-person and Web-based) is themost comprehensive and effective training solution. However, some

Web-based programs can also be an effective stand-alone solution. Forexample, in-person training costs about 4000 to 5000 per person just

for the training. That does not account for ancillary expenses such astravel costs, staff costs or lost productivity/opportunity costs. In contrast,Web-based training can cost as little as 3000 per person, without any

hidden costs.

The call center employers need to devote energy and resources to their

employees more than ever before in order to maintain a productivelyworkplace amidst this recession and the poor morale pervading the

marketplace.

Conclusion


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The employers should keep in mind these four rules of thumb when

designing the company’s strategy and solution:

Rule #1: Internet technology is the key to a profound revolution in

learning.The effects of Internet technology on employee training are indeedprofound; however, technology - any technology - should be seen as a

tool, not a strategy or final goal. Just because they have good wordprocessing software doesn't mean you write well. Likewise, the Internet

cannot, in and of itself, improve the quality of the learning and thecontent they put on it. The employers need to use Internet technologycombined with high quality, effective learning to maximize learning and

retention levels.

Rule #2: There is an enduring and important role for traditional

classroom instruction.People who believe technology will totally replace great teachers in front

of classrooms of highly motivated learners are as misguided as thosewho believe the Internet is a passing fad. The blended learning solution,i.e., a mixture of classroom and Web-based training is the most effective

and comprehensive learning strategy.

Rule #3: Learning is a continuous, cultural process - not simply a

series of workshops.


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Employees retain about 50% to 60% of what they learn in a formal trainingworkshop. Often, employees forget what they have learned within twomonths of the workshop. Therefore, access and opportunities to learn

should be available to anyone, anywhere, and at any time within anorganization. Organizational learning is as much about what happensoutside formal learning programs as it is about the programs themselves.

Rule #4: Strategy development and implementation are never really

finished.Employers change as their business changes. They adjust it as theirpeople become more skilled and knowledgeable. The employers redefine

it as new technology options become available. And, they constantly testit against the mission and vision of their business, making sure they arealways in alignment.

Due to training there is greater stability, flexibility and capacity forgrowth in an organization. Accidents, scrap and damage to machinery

and equipment can be avoided or minimized through training. Evendissatisfaction, complaints, absenteeism, and turnover can be reduced if

employees are trained well. Future needs of employees will be metthrough training and development programmes. Organizational takefresh diploma holders or graduates as apprentices or management

trainees. They are absorbed after course completion. Training serves asan effective source of recruitment. Training is an investment in HR with a

promise of better returns in future. Though no single training programmeyields all the benefits the organization which devotes itself to trainingand development enhances its HR capabilities and strengthens its

competitive edge. At the same time, the employee’s personal goals arefurthered, generally adding to his or her abilities and value to theemployer. Ultimately, the objectives of the HR department and also of the

organization are also furthered.


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