Developing a Research Agenda on S-OJT

Developing a Research Agenda on S-OJT

Ronald L. JacobsThe Ohio State Universityhttp://www.coe.ohio-state.edu/rjacobs/http://www.coe.ohio-state.edu/paes/wde/default.htmhttp://cete.org

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Agenda

A. Discuss what is a research agenda

B. Discuss my agenda – human competence

C. Describe S-OJTD. Plan an S-OJT research agendaE. Questions and discussion

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The Ohio State University

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Workforce Development and Education

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The Workforce Development and Education section offers an academic degree program emphasizing adult learning, career and technical education, human resource development, and workforce development policy; conducts research on topics in these areas; and provides professional development opportunities to meet the needs of individuals, organizations and government agencies. The WDE section values scholarly research and quality instruction as a means to model and improve theory and professional practice, nationally and internationally. (Adopted, Summer 2003)

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Center on Education andCenter on Education andTraining for EmploymentTraining for Employment

Mission

The Center engages with state, national, and international clients from education, governmental agencies, organized labor, and public and private entities to:

A. Generate and disseminate knowledge useful for understanding workforce development;

B. Develop, implement, and evaluate workforce development programs and policies that are informed by best practices and research;

C. Develop workforce development leaders who serve in a variety of roles and contexts; and,

D. Provide technical assistance in ways that will positively influence the actions of educational professionals, leaders, and scholars involved in developing the current and future global workforce.

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Human Resource Development is the process of improving organizational performance and individual learning through the accomplishments that result from employee development, organization development, and career development programs.

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Research Agenda?

• Faculty influence

• Readings

• Employer

• Other students

• Experience

The set of interests that guide and focus a researcher’s actions.

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Research Agenda?

My research agenda . . .

My research focuses on the nature of human competence and how organizations respond to the changing work expectations of their employees.

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Human Competence

What makes a company successful? Good products? Most advanced technology? Best customer service? All of these are important for success.

None of these are more important than the people who work in the company. It’s the knowledge and skills that people use to do their work. Unfortunately, the needs of organizations are constantly changing.

The challenge for organizations is having the means to help employees update their level of competence – or their relative ability – in the most efficient and effective ways possible (Jacobs, 2002).

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Human Competence

Master The real expert among experts. This person sets standards for others.

Expert One who can do both the routine and non-routine cases of the task.

Experienced Specialist

One who has performed the task repeatedly and can do it with ease.

Specialist One who can reliably perform the task, but this person has limited experience.

Novice One who is new to the task and lacks the ability to perform it.

Jacobs (2002)

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Human Competence

Situations when changes occur in competence:

New-hires: Full-time, Part-time, Temporary Promotion Rotation and transfer Continuous improvement efforts Multi-skilling Technology New products or services Customer requirements

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S-OJT

Structured on-the-job training (S-OJT) was first introduced in the 1980s to help organizations respond to the challenges of the global economy.

S-OJT makes use of the principle that training is most effective when it occurs as close as possible to the work.

Many companies use S-OJT alone or to complement other training approaches, such as classroom training. The following outcomes have been reported:

Reduced training times Lower training costs Improved quality rates Increased development opportunities for

employees

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Delphi – US Operators, Supervisors Reduced the number of wiring errors

Truck Manufacturer – US Production Technicians

Reduced the number of leaky windshields

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Cabin Attendants Provided more relevant customer service training experience

Regional Hospital – US New Supervisors Provided information about the mission and vision faster

Electric Utility – US Supervisors Reduced the number of back injuries among production employees

Apple Computer-iBook - California

High Skilled Assemblers

Reduced training time, fewer assembly errors

Seagate – Singapore Production specialists Reduced number of inspection errors

Petroleum Company - Kuwait New Engineers Reduced time require to complete job rotations

Company Employee Level Results

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S-OJT

S-OJT is the planned process of having an experienced employee train a novice employee on a unit of work at the work setting or a location that closely resembles the work setting (Jacobs, 2003).

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S-OJT

Planned Process – S-OJT is designed using a systems

approach and is viewed as a system.

Experienced Employee – A person who knows the task and

has been qualified as an S-OJT trainer.

Novice Employee – A person who lacks the knowledge and skills to perform a task, has the prerequisites, and is ready to learn.

Work – A specific unit of work within a job. A unit of work is not everything that a person does, but just a small part.

Work setting – This is the location of S-OJT.

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S-OJT Example

New-hire engineers in a refinery setting need to undergo a development process to learn the 31 engineering jobs. Currently, it takes over five years for individuals to complete the development process.

The company seeks to reduce this development time to less than two years if possible, and the learning experiences meet the following criteria:

• Consistent outcomes across all new-hire engineers, approximately 75 per year

• Learning experiences are based on actual work expectations

• Training should be based on best practices, including safety and quality, not just opinions of job incumbents

• Managers should be involved in the process, and held accountable for the training

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1. Decide whether to use S-OJT

2. Analyze the work to be learned

3. Develop S-OJT trainers

4. Prepare the S-OJT modules

5. Deliver the S-OJT

6. Evaluate and troubleshoot the S-OJT

Design Process

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Training Inputs Training Process Training Outputs

• Novice employee

• Experienced employee

• Training location

• Work to be learned

• Technology

• Training performance

• Work performance

• Trainee development

Organizational Setting

S-OJT System

• Get ready to train

• Deliver the S-OJT Module

• Ensure the trainee has learned

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Core Research Questions

Question Is thererelationshipamong variables?

Is one approach better thananother?

Is there a pattern in the data?

What actionsshould be taken?

How can weexplain something?

Purpose ExplorePredict

CompareContrastEvaluate

DescribeUnderstand

ForecastPlan

Theory buildingConceptual framework

Methods Quantitative QuantitativeQualitative

Quantitative Qualitative

QualitativeQuantitative

Meta-analysisQualitative

Usefulness Confirm relationshipsPlan programs

Make decisionsSelect programs

Find issuesFind concernsExplain events

Develop policiesDevelop plans

Plan long-termPredict events

S-OJT Research Agenda

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Training Inputs

Is there a relationshipamongvariables?

Is one approachbetter thananother?

Is there a pattern in thedata?


How can we explain something?

Novice employee

Experienced employee Cho (2003)

Training location

Work to be learned Jacobs (2002)

Technology

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Training Inputs

Novice Employee

a. What levels of employees receive S-OJT?b. What are the experiences of employees?c. What learning styles are best suited for S-OJT?d. Is there a cross-cultural aspect of S-OJT?

Experienced Employee

a. What criteria should be used to select trainers?b. How are trainers prepared?c. Is there a preferred match with employees?

Training Locationa. What are the locations of S-OJT?b. How does location affect transfer?c. What constraints exist in the work setting?

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Training Inputs

Work to be Learned

a. What types of work are best learned through S-OJT?

b. How should work be documented?

Technology

a. How can technology be used with S-OJT?b. Can technology replace the S-OJT trainer?

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Training Process

Is there a relationshipamong variables?



What actions should betaken?


Get readyto train

Deliver the S-OJT module

Lohman (1994)

Ensure the trainee haslearned

Barnard (2005)

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Training Process

Get Ready to Train

a. How do the trainer’s actions affect self-efficacy and readiness?

b. Is there a relationship between trainer’s actions and achievement?

Deliver the S-OJT Module

a. What training steps should be used?b. What components of modules are most critical?c. Do trainees refer to the module as expected?d. What is the nature of trainer-trainee interactions?

Ensure the Trainee Has Learneda. What is the role of follow-up questions?b. Which aspects of the S-OJT ensure transfer?

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Training Outputs

Is there a relationshipamong variables?



What actions should betaken?


Training performance Barnard (2005)

Work performance Jacobs, Jones & Neil (1992)Jacobs (1994)Jacobs (2002)

Jacobs & Hruby (1998)

Trainee development Cushnie (2000)

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Training Efficiency – Does one training approach achieve training outcomes faster, and is the cost less than the value of the training outcomes?

Training Effectiveness – Does one training approach result in better work outcomes, and is the training cost less than the value of the work outcomes?

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Novice

Specialist

Time to Learn

Unstructured OJT

S-OJT Savings in Time

PerformanceLevel Time savings: 4 -

6:1

$ savings: 2 - 8:1

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Work Accomplished Truck windshields installed Sales calls made Machinery on-line Hard disks manufactured

Measured Performance Fewer reworked windshields Higher sales volume Higher machine productivity Lowered scrap rate

Employee learns throughunstructured OJT

Employee learns throughS-OJT

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Organizational ContextIs there a relationshipamongvariables?



What actionsshould betaken?


Priorities of the organization

Relationship with otherinitiatives

Cho (2004)

Alignment with organizational goals

Jacobs (2002)

Alignment with worktrends

Lee (2004)

Boulay & Jacobs (2005)

Unanticipated impactsof S-OJT

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Design Process




What actionsshould betaken?


1. Decide whether to use S-OJT

Liu, Wang & Jacobs

(2005)

2. Analyze the work to be learned

3. Develop S-OJT trainers

4. Prepare the S-OJT modules

5. Deliver the S-OJT

6. Evaluate and

improve the S-OJT

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Your S-OJT Research Agenda

Thank You

Developing a Research Agenda on S-OJT

Ronald L. JacobsThe Ohio State University

Documents

Developing a Research Agenda on S-OJT