Training and Development.docx

Chapter 8 Training and Development 0635000Author Chapter Notes 08636000 This chapter, as the name suggests, is all about training and development. In this chapter, we discuss the importance of training for employees. Training not only saves money in the long run, but it can result in happier, more motivated employees. This chapter is organized by discussing some of the types of training, delivery methods and at the end of the chapter, we provide a framework for how to create an actual training, complete with learning objectives and measurement tools to see if the training was effective. 0635000Section 1 Learning Objective 08636000 1. Explain the four steps involved when training an employee. 0635000Section Notes 08636000 An effective company has training to help employees perform their jobs. Lack of training can result in lost productivity, lost customers, and poor relationships between employees and managers. Steps to training include ensuring an employee orientation is in place. The goals of orientation include reduction in start up costs, reduction of anxiety for the new employee, reduction of employee turnover, time savings for supervisor and co-workers and it’s a way to set expectations. In-house training includes learning opportunities developed by the organization. This training is normally ongoing, and can include ethics training, sexual harassment training, and multiculturalism training. Sometimes mentors are assigned to new employees. A mentor is a trusted, experienced advisor who has direct investment in the development of an employee. A formal mentoring program should become part of the company culture. Mentors are generally chosen based on their experience, personality and willingness. External training includes any type of training that is not performed in house, and is ongoing. Examples include seminars and workshops. 0635000Key Takeaways 08636000 Employee training and development is the framework for helping employees develop their personal and organizational skills, knowledge, and abilities. Training is important to employee retention. ? There are four steps in training that should occur. Employee orientation has the purpose of welcoming new employees into the organization. An effective employee orientation can help reduce start-up costs, reduce anxiety for the employee, reduce turnover, save time for the supervisor and colleagues, and set expectations and attitudes. ? An in-house training program is any type of program in which the training is delivered by someone who works for the company. This could include management or HR. Examples might include sexual harassment training or ethics training. In-house training can also include components specific to a job, such as how to use a specific kind of software. In-house training is normally done as a second and ongoing step in employee development. ? A mentor form of training pairs a new employee with a seasoned employee. This is usually the third step in employee training. A mentor program for training should include a formalized program and process. ? External training is any type of training not performed in-house; part of the last training step, external training can also be ongoing. It can include sending employees to conferences or seminars for leadership development or even paying tuition for a class they want to take. 0635000Exercises and Solutions 08636000 Why do you think some companies do not follow the four training steps? What are the advantages of doing so? Answer: It is likely because they feel they do not have enough time to follow the four training steps. The advantages of following the steps are that you can provide development opportunities to employees and provide important information to new employees. Not training can result in higher turnover and the employee may feel lack of growth in their job with the company. What qualities do you think a mentor should have? List at least five. Answer: Answers will vary, but most mentors should be helpful, friendly, positive, knowledgeable and willing to help. They should be available often to answer questions and be successful in their own career. Have you ever worked with a mentor in a job, at school, or in extracurricular activities? Describe your experience. Answer: Answers will vary. Consider using this question as a small group discussion question. If students have negative feelings about the mentorship they experienced, have them pinpoint why the relationship didn’t work. For example, was it the personality qualities of the mentor? 0635000Extra Discussion Question 08636000 What are the advantages and disadvantages to each of the training types discussed in this chapter? Answer: Orientation: Can be time consuming but can be worth it to help get the new employee off to the right start at the organization. For in-house programs, a disadvantage may be the person giving the training is now knowledgeable in the specific training area needs; however, it can be more cost effective. For mentor programs, finding the right mentors can boost morale and abilities, but sometimes finding the right personality fit can be a challenge. External training can be expensive, but can provide valuable skills needed to perform the job, and skills that no one in-house may have. 0635000Key Terms 08636000 employee training and development The framework used to help employees develop their personal and organizational skills, knowledge, and abilities. employee orientation The process used for welcoming a new employee into the organization. in-house training program Training program used as learning opportunities developed by the organization in which they are used. mentor A trusted and experienced advisor who has direct investment in the development of an employee. external training Any type of training that is not performed in-house, such as seminars or conferences. 0635000Section 2 Learning Objective 08636000 1. Be able to explain and give examples of the types of training that can be offered within an organization. 0635000Section Notes 08636000 The types of training discussed next can be used in all steps in the training process. Technological or technology training is used when employees need to use technology to do their job. Examples might include training on a specific software program the company uses. Quality training refers to familiarizing employees with the means of preventing, detecting and eliminating non-quality items. This type of training would likely be used in a manufacturing setting. Skills training includes proficiencies needed to perform a job. How answer phones, how to assess customer needs or other specific job related components would be included. Soft-skills training includes personality traits, communication, social graces and other skills that are important to the job, but not directly related to the job. Professional training is specific to some industries. For example since tax laws change often, accountants should attend training to get updated on these types of training. People in the medical field sometimes have training as well to keep updated on their certifications. Some organizations work a lot in teams, so team training might be appropriate. Topics in this type of training might include how to handle team conflict. In addition, team training might include team-building activities. For someone who has management potential, the organization may develop training around managerial skills. Safety training is a type of training that occurs to ensure employees are protected from injuries caused by work related accidents. For example, eye safety, evacuation and first aid. 0635000Key Takeaways 08636000 There are several types of training we can provide for employees. In all situations, a variety of training types will be used, depending on the type of job. Technical training addresses software or other programs that employees use while working for the organization. Quality training is a type of training that familiarizes all employees with the means to produce a good quality product. The ISO sets the standard on quality for most production and environmental situations. ISO training can be done in-house or externally. Skills training focuses on the skills that the employee actually needs to know to perform their job. A mentor can help with this kind of training. Soft skills are those that do not relate directly to our job but are important. Soft-skills training may train someone on how to better communicate and negotiate or provide good customer service. Professional training is normally given externally and might be obtaining certification or specific information needed about a profession to perform a job. For example, tax accountants need to be up to date on tax laws; this type of training is often external. Team training is a process that empowers teams to improve decision making, problem solving, and team-development skills. Team training can help improve communication and result in more productive businesses. To get someone ready to take on a management role, managerial training might be given. Safety training is important to make sure an organization is meeting OSHA standards. Safety training can also include disaster planning. 0635000Exercises and Solutions 08636000 1. Which type of training do you think is most important for an administrative assistant? What about for a restaurant server? Explain your answer. Answer: Answers will vary, but skills training and soft-skills training would be important for both types of jobs. For the server, food safety handling might be an important topic as well. 2. Research OSHA. What are some of the new standards and laws it has recently developed? Outline a training plan for the new standards. Answer: As of this writing, the OSHA website reported requirements for hair salon owners regarding the use of formaldehyde. In addition, new regulations for nail guns were implemented. The OSHA website provides an update on the first page of their website under “latest news.” 0635000Extra Discussion Question 08636000 Research ISO standards. What are the ISO standards for sustainability? What type of training might you offer for this quality standard? Answer: ISO 21930 was a standard developed in relationship to building and construction and set guidelines for building requirements. Other examples of sustainability standards include Global Green Standards ISO14000. This set of standards defines a voluntary environmental management system. Training that may be required include basic training on how the standards work and then additional training might be required to implement processes on the new standards. 0635000Key Terms 08636000 technical training A type of training meant to teach new employees the technological aspects of their job. quality training Refers to familiarizing all employees with the means for preventing, detecting, and eliminating nonquality items. ISO9000 The set of standards for quality management. ISO14000 The set of standards for environmental management. skills training Includes training on proficiencies needed to actually perform the job. soft skills Personality traits, social graces, communication, and personal habits that are used to characterize relationships with other people. professional training A type of training that keeps an employee up to date in one’s professional field. team training A process that empowers teams to improve decision making, problem solving, and team-development skills to achieve business results. managerial training The type of training that occurs when someone has been identified as a good manager candidate. Could include soft-skills training, technical training, and skills training. safety training Training employees so they are protected from injuries caused by work-related accidents. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) The main federal agency charged with enforcement of safety and health regulation in the United States. 0635000Section 3 Learning Objective 08636000 1. Explain the types of training delivery methods. 0635000Section Outline 08636000 There are several types of training delivery methods. On-the-job coaching is where an approved person trains an employee on the job and tasks associated with the job. Mentoring and coaching training delivery is another method. With this type of method, a mentor is assigned to show the employee “the ropes.” Some organizations engage in brown bag training. In this type of training, people bring their lunches and learn about soft skills or other training topics. With a web-based delivery, all training is delivered via the web or is computer based. For example, safety training could be delivered via the web. In a job shadow training delivery model, a person is assigned to “shadow” an experienced employee. This often happens in sales, where a new salesperson might be assigned to work with a salesperson for a period of time before they work on their own. Job swapping occurs when two employees agree to change jobs for a period of time. Other training may be necessary to make sure the employees are successful in their new roles, such as additional technology training or job skills training. Vestibule training is training that is performed near a worksite in a conference room or lecture room, or even a classroom. Orientations and some skills based training might be delivered in this manner. When an employee is going on an international assignment, it is appropriate to provide training on the culture, language or other aspects of the country in which they will work. 0635000Key Takeaways 08636000 Training delivery methods are important to consider, depending on the type of training that needs to be performed. Most organizations do not use only one type of training delivery method; a combination of many methods will be used. On-the-job coaching delivery method is a training delivery method in which an employee is assigned to a more experienced employee or manager to learn the skills needed for the job. This is similar to the mentor training delivery method, except a mentor training method is less about skills training and more about ongoing employee development. Brown bag lunch training delivery is normally informal and can involve personal development as well as specific job-related skills. Web-based training is any type of training that is delivered using technology. There are numerous platforms that can be used for web-based training and considerations, such as cost, when selecting a platform for use. A synchronous training method is used for web-based training and refers to delivery that is led by a facilitator. An asynchronous training method is one that is self-directed. Job shadowing is a delivery method consisting of on-the-job training and the employee’s learning skills by watching someone more experienced. To motivate employees and allow them to develop new skills, job swap training delivery may be used. This occurs when two people change jobs for a set period of time to learn new skills. With this method, it is likely that other methods will also be used, too. Vestibule training delivery is also known as “near site” training. It normally happens in a classroom, conference room, or lecture room and works well to deliver orientations and some skills-based training. Many organizations also use vestibule training for technical training, safety training, professional training, and quality training. Since many companies operate overseas, providing training to those employees with international assignments can better prepare them for living and working abroad. 0635000Exercises and Solutions 08636000 1. Do an Internet search on web-based training. Discuss two of the platforms you found. What are the features and benefits? Answer: A simple Google search produces hundreds of options. For example, Capterra offers training software that has ready to use templates and forms, so the HR manager only must fill in the templates to have a prepared presentation for employees. Kalliance is another example of web-based training which also provides self-paced training. They also offer an online mentoring option for employees who work in different locations. 2. Which training delivery method do you think you personally would prefer in a job and why? Answer: Answers will vary. This is a good time to discuss learning styles, and how everyone’s style is different. Many people would prefer to do self-paced web training, while others may prefer a classroom setting. The key to good training is to match a variety of learning styles. 3. What do you see as advantages and disadvantages to each type of training method? Answer: On-the-job coaching is fast and easy, but the person coaching may not have the necessary skills to do a good job. This is also a challenge with mentoring. Brown bag lunches, while they provide an informal environment, people may want to reserve lunchtime for their personal time and attendance may be low. Web-based training can be great for people who can work well independently, but may not meet all learning styles. It can also be cost efficient and convenient delivery. Job shadowing can be an advantage on cost savings, but it is important to make sure the job shadow is experienced and willing to help train someone. Job swap may have initial productivity issues as the two employees learn the job, but it can be a good way to motive and cross train employees for different jobs. Vestibule training is appropriate for some topics, but it does take significant time away from employees work International assignment training is obviously only appropriate under certain circumstances and may not be applicable to some jobs. 0635000Extra Discussion Question 08636000 Find a training video on YouTube. How effective is the video? Answer: This is a good project in teams. You can ask each team to present their YouTube video to show why it works or why it isn’t effective. If students type “training video” in the YouTube search engine or in Google, hundreds of results from “real” companies will come up. 0635000Key Terms 08636000 on-the-job coaching Refers to the training of an employee by an approved person to learn the skills necessary to complete the tasks. mentoring A process by which an employee can be trained and developed, through use of an experienced person. brown bag lunch training Training occurs during lunchtime, employees bring their lunch, and someone presents training information to them. web-based training Involves the use of technology to facilitate training. synchronous A web-based training delivery method in which the delivery uses instructor-led facilitation. asynchronous A web-based training delivery method in which the delivery is self-directed. job shadowing A training delivery method that places an employee who already has the skills with another employee who wants to develop their skills. job swapping A method for training in which two employees agree to change jobs for a period of time. vestibule training Training is performed near-site in conference rooms, lecture rooms, and classrooms. 0635000Section 4 Learning Objective 08636000 1. Be able to design a training program framework. 2. Understand the uses and applications of a career development program. 0635000Section Outline 08636000 When developing training, we can view it from a framework perspective. The framework requires a needs assessment and decision on learning objectives for the training. Researching the training needs of the organization is part of needs assessment. Setting learning objectives is just like setting goals-what do you hope to accomplish from the training? A delivery mode will also need to be decided upon. For example, is a mentor or on the job coaching the best way to train for the learning objectives? Or does the topic lend itself more to vestibule training? The budget for the training needs to be considered. How much will materials cost, and how much will the training cost in terms of time of employees and the HR professional? The delivery style can vary from a discussion style to a lecture style. The content of the training will determine the best style. Obviously, for team training or team development, you will likely want people to work in teams as opposed to a lecture style. Knowing the audience for the training, for example, are they new employees or managers? Understanding the audience will make it easier to develop the right content and delivery style. The content of the training, or the actual development of what will be taught is a major consideration to the training. The learning objectives, audience and time constrains should be considered. Timelines may be required to ensure the training has been done, for example, in safety training. New employees will likely need safety training before they start their new job. Communication of the training to employees via a company newsletter, e-mail or special invitations will vary depending on the type of training being performed. After we have created all components to our training and delivered the training, we want to make sure it is effective. We can look at the Kirkpatrick model to help us with this. Employee reaction, learning, behavior and results (benefits) can be measured after the training has been done. For example, after safety training, have the number of accidents decreased? Many organizations have specific succession plans in place. This helps get the right person ready for the new job should the current person leave their job. This is part of ongoing training and development and can also help motivate employees—if they see a specific career path within their job. 0635000Key Takeaways 08636000 There are a number of key considerations in developing a training program. Training should not be handled casually but instead developed specifically to meet the needs of the organization. This can be done by a needs assessment consisting of three levels: organizational, occupational, and individual assessments. The first consideration is the delivery mode; depending on the type of training and other factors, some modes might be better than others. Budget is a consideration in developing training. The cost of materials, but also the cost of time, should be considered. The delivery style must take into account people’s individual learning styles. The amount of lecture, discussion, role plays, and activities are considered part of delivery style. The audience for the training is an important aspect when developing training. This can allow the training to be better developed to meet the needs and the skills of a particular group of people. The content obviously is an important consideration. Learning objectives and goals for the training should be developed before content is developed. After content is developed, understanding the time constraints is an important aspect. Will the training take one hour or a day to deliver? What is the timeline consideration in terms of when people should take the training? Letting people know when and where the training will take place is part of communication. The final aspect of developing a training framework is to consider how it will be measured. At the end, how will you know if the trainees learned what they needed to learn? A career development process can help retain good employees. It involves creating a specific program in which employee goals are identified and new training and opportunities are identified and created to help the employee in the career development process. 0635000Exercises and Solutions 08636000 1. Develop a rough draft of a training framework using Figure 8.8 for a job you find on Monster.com. Answer: Answers will vary depending on the job. The components should include needs assessment, learning styles consideration, delivery mode, budget, audience, delivery style, actual content, timelines, communication, and assessment. This activity may be appropriate for a longer in-class activity or in teams. 2. Write three learning objectives you think would be necessary when developing orientation training for a receptionist in an advertising firm. Answer: Possible answers include: Learn to answer the phones in the appropriate manner. Be able to use Outlook to schedule appointments. Greet customers effectively. 3. Why is a career development plan important to develop personally, even if your company doesn’t have a formal plan in place? List at least three reasons and describe. Answer: A career development plan is similar to a map, in that it shows the steps someone must take in order to move forward with an organization. The goals can be shared with a manager and then steps can be determined to see how the person can grow with the organization. 0635000Extra Discussion Question 08636000 What are some ways you could communicate a required online training to employees? Answer: Send messages via e-mail to individuals with follow up e-mails, you can discuss the required training in meetings, it can be posted to the company’s intranet. 0635000Key Terms 08636000 learning objective Something you want your learners to know after the training. organizational assessment A type of needs assessment that allows us to determine the skills, knowledge, and abilities a company needs to meet its strategic objectives. occupational (task) assessment A type of needs assessment that looks at the specific tasks, skills knowledge, and abilities required to do jobs within the organization. individual assessment A type of needs assessment that looks at the performance of an individual employee and determines what training should be accomplished for that individual. career development program A process developed to help people manage their career, learn new things, and take steps to improve personally and professionally. job rotation Involves a systematic movement of employees from job to job within an organization. 0635000Chapter Case 08636000 The Author discusses the case for Chapter 8: http://blip.tv/play/sDyCi8wNAA%2Em4v 0635000Additional Case Study Exercise 08636000 You are in charge of the training component of your organization. The organization is large, with 1,200 staff in four US cities. The organization has had issues with employees posting inappropriate things to Facebook and Twitter about the organization and the amount of time spent on these websites during work hours has been excessive. The organization has identified a need to train employees on the new social networking policy. Write a policy on social networking. What type of communication is necessary? Do you think it requires training? How would you design this short training program? Discuss what you would need to do to ensure employees are trained on the new policy within 60 days from today. Answers: A sample policy might be: Employees should not use work hours for social networking activities. Off hours, employees may not post anything naming our organization. The advantage to training rather than just sending an e-mail is that employees are then “sure” to get the information. The best way to deliver the training, given the size and location of employees, is probably online. The HR manager could create a short 20-minute video and send to employees. Once employees have watched the video, they can take a short assessment on the new policy to confirm they understand it. The assessment of the training, besides the quiz, is to track the number of social networking posts after the 60-day period. 0635000Useful Outside Resources 08636000 The Human Resource Certification Institute: http://www.hrci.org/ Society for Human Resource Management: http://www.shrm.org/Pages/default.aspx YouTube videos: Lynn Johnson discusses the ROI for training and development: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rnpm1RfKybc Chrysler training proves value: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xWkZd0zCcs&feature=related Face to face versus online training: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiYTIXMlKNs&feature=related “Randstad’s workpocket” discusses training and development tips: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Moksh5oIf1o A funny training video example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm_niJIaYqo&feature=related