Employee Training Program, Essay Example

Abstract

Employees of an organization are the most precious asset that an organization has. Their contribution to the organization determines whether organizations’ succeed or fails in their endeavors. It is with this therefore that their skills should match with organizational needs in the quest of achieving organizational objectives. In order for employees meet organizational needs I in terms of the skills they need to effectively handle their jobs and help in achieving organizational objectives, it is imperative that the employees have the right skills. This calls for the need for developing employee skills through training. Today, training occupies a special place in organizational matters. It is the process through which organizations’ see to it that their workers have the exact skills that are required for them to effectively handle and execute the duties of the positions that they occupy in the organization.

This paper aims to reveal how effective training programs are developed, implemented and assessed in an organization. It provides the various requirements that are involved in the designing of employee training program and the factors that influence the design of a training program. It also focuses on how training programs are implemented in organizations such as the curriculum and ways that training programs are to be delivered in the organization. Finally, the paper will provide ways of assessing the success of a training program in an organization. This is to ensure that whatever an organization spends in developing skills in their employees indeed bear fruit in terms of enriching their employees with skills.

Introduction

Today many organizations spend a lot of money to make sure that their employees have the right skills for them to effectively handle the duties that are included in their job specification. This is because of the realization that employees’ effectiveness in their jobs is essential to the success of an organization. Training therefore is the only way that the skills of employees in an organization can be developed or improved.

In order for this to be achieved, an effective training program is always essential. A lot of focus is put in the development of training programs that are used in enrichment of employee skills.

Designing an Effective Training Program       

As already mentioned, the type of program used in development of employee skills determines the success or failure of organizational intentions. This is to say that the training program chosen by an organization as their training method will determine the type of result to be achieved in efforts of trying to improve employees’ skills. It is because of this that many organizations today put a lot of focus in the training method that they use in the training of their employees.

In order to ensure that the training methods used cover all the areas that employees need to be trained, it is important that time is taken in designing an effective method. This is because there are numerous training methods that can be utilized in training of employees but all produce different results in terms of enriching employee skills. Because it is the responsibility of organization to train their employees, it is equally their responsibility to develop the training programs to be used that will be able to deliver the desired results. It should be noted that employees play a crucial role in determining the training method that will be used.

For there to be an essential training program, it is important that time is taken in designing it. One of the major factors that influence the training method to be implemented by organizations is the training needs. Khankal (2007) provides that defining the training needs is the first step in designing a training program that will be implemented by an organization. This is followed by defining those who will be trained and also clearly identifying the content that will be employed during the training program. Clear identification of the target result also helps in the designing of an appropriate training program.

In defining the training needs also known as the discovery phase; the goals of an organization are focused in relation to the skills that are required in employees for them to be achieved. For there to be an effective training program, the needs of employees and the goals of an organization should always be addressed. In this case, needs relates to changes in the way that things are done in a work place. A good example is the change of technology, software, and also systems that are involved in the processes of an organization. When there is a shift in the way that things are done in the sector that the organization works, there should be a change in the way that the organization functions. This is to make the organization competitive in their area of operation.

It is also important that the employees that need to be trained to be identified. This defines the method that will be used in the training and also the way that the training program will be conducted. By identifying the recipients of a training program, taking into consideration their views in the way that training program is to be implemented also determines the design of training program that will be used by the organization. Identifying the participants of a training program also determines the content of a training program (Jackson, Schuler & Werner 2008). By incorporating the views of those to be trained on the areas that they need more knowledge will determine the way that such knowledge will be imparted on them hence determining the design of a training program. Taking into consideration employee feedback views on the way that organizations function also determines what is to be involved in a training program and also who needs to be involved.

Content to be used in the training program also determines the type of the training program to be use by an organization. In determining the training needs to be involved in the training program, in house experts (experts in the organization) can be very useful. This is achieved through the use of job manuals that have been in the organizational records for long. The organization can also obtain the material to be used in their training programs from experts outside the organization by buying from vendors. These types of materials to be used in training programs are in most cases those materials that contain information that is regulated by professional bodies that usually change. In some cases the materials that should be included in the training programs are a legal requirement for doing a given job and therefore such materials cannot be developed by the in-house experts in the organization. In most cases these materials are bought by the organization. Good examples of such material are material used in training accountants in organizations. The accounting bodies produce timely information with updates on the changes in the regulations in the professional body. They place the material on vendors then organizations can purchase the information from the vendors.

Also to be considered in designing an effective training program to be used by an organization is the desired outcomes of the training program (Bohlander & Snell, 2009). This is by the organization knowing exactly what they aim to achieve after the training program (objective). For example they might want to increase their profits, reduce number of accidence in the work place, increase efficiency, or improve customer satisfaction through better customer relation methods. Whatever the aim of the organization, it should be clear before an efficient training program is developed. When the aims, objectives/goals to be achieved after training has been identified, an organization can easily design an effective training program. Including the objectives of the organization in designing the training program is the sure way that the training can be relevant. This is because different results require different training methods. For example a training program that is aimed at improving customer satisfaction cannot have the same content as training aimed at improving the safety in work place.

Implementing Training Programs

After designing appropriate training programs, the next essential step is implementing the program. Although designing an appropriate training program is essential for the success of a training program, its implementation decides whether the organization succeeds in meeting its objectives. Implementing training programs is determined by a lot of factors such as manpower and financial resources that are available to the company.

In relation to the curriculum development to be used for training individuals to be involved in marketing, there are various factors that have to be included. As the objective of the training has already been established and also those to be trained have been identified, what should be the theme or what will be the content and the nature of the curriculum of the training will now be of major concern to those involved in the training.

A good employee training curriculum should include all the requirements in skills that employees need for them to effectively handle their job requirements. It also provides the employees with a complete understanding of their job requirements and the contribution of the job to the overall organizational performance. A good training program should also help an employee understand their job’s position in the entire organizational structure.

Some of the most common training methods utilized by organizations in training their employee include the utilization of the internet in provision of the training content to their employees. In this method training material is availed to the employees to be trained through created mailboxes such as their email addresses. The trainers also create a forum by which those in the training can share their views with each. This interaction is such that whatever one of the members of the training knows is made available to all other members in the training.

Another popularly known training method is the on the job training. In this method, employees learn side by side with their normal duties that they have been assigned. In this method the employees get their training by working side by side with the trainer who has advanced knowledge on what the employees are being trained. In some quarters, this method of training is also called the ‘practical training method’ because the employees are taught while they are being shown what they are suppose to know about their work. This method is mostly suitable for training individuals that have already worked either in the same company or a similar handling almost similar position. This method has been seen by its proponents to be most appropriate way of teaching or training employees handling highly practical jobs. This is because according to Aswathappa (2005) only 40% of what is learned in a classroom method of teaching is retained by the students. While the classroom teaching method may be useful in imparting theoretical knowledge, it may not be very useful in training employees, especially new employees, of ways that they can best handle their duties. This method of training is also useful to organizations especially when they are facing staff shortages and new positions are to be filled up immediately. With this, the organization will be able to run their daily work while at the same time being able to handle the training needs of the employees for them to effectively render quality service to the organization in the future.

Another method that can be used in the development of a curriculum for training employees in organization is considering the position and level of expertise that employees in an organization have in their field. Some employees may be too old to be fitted in the classroom training methods that are usually used by organizations when teaching employees of new skills in their areas of work in the organization or in the entire profession.

Other method that can be used in training employees in an organization include the seminar or lecture method where the employees who have been identified to need training are called for training under special tutorage of specialists in the given field that they need skills. For this the employees are tutored through lectures that impart them with theoretical knowledge as well as skills in areas that the employees need training. This training method has been very essential for training individuals in an organization occupying management positions in their organizations. To save on costs used for training employees, many companies organize such training seminars to occur concurrently so that they hire a single qualified tutor to train their employees under the same room. In such cases the organizations share the costs for hiring the tutors who facilitate the training.

Besides saving on costs, this method of training is associated with other advantages such as providing a same level of knowledge to management teams of multinationals or very big organizations. This occurs such that all the individuals occupying a given position in an organization such as the management of all the branches of a big organization are all called for training under the same conditions and trainer. This ensures that such large organizations maintain uniform level of knowledge and that their operations in all their branches are uniform. Should the management of any of the branches fail to deliver on the results, it will be blamed not on knowledge gap between the managers but rather on individuality because the company has provided a sufficient and equal training to all the employees of the organization. Such training methods are also useful in standardizing firm procedures. Many multinational companies that use this type of training for their senior employees include Coca cola and McDonalds. On competitiveness of a firm, this type of training ensures that employees in a given sector share the same knowledge on given issues regarding operations. Most professional bodies organize training for their members working in different organizations for them to be trained on new knowledge in the field or for them to meet certain legal requirements for working in their fields. This often occurs in areas where employee jobs involve constant use of technology. With evolving technology, always new ways of handling jobs are devised. In order to adequately handle these new changes, there is always need for training.

Assessment of Training Needs

After training has been conducted, it is always essential for organizations to follow up to see the outcomes of a training program. This is called assessment of training. It monitors the impact that the training has had on employees to see if the training has achieved its desired purpose.

Depending on the reason for conducting the training, the assessment of the training needs judges the performance of the outcome program independently. It also takes into consideration the employees that were being trained and the objectives of the training program. Assessment is also known as evaluation of the training program (Aswathappa, 2005). It mainly focuses on the showing impact that a training program has had on the employee and also the overall performance of the company after the training has been conducted.

Like any other learning program, employee training has different impact on individuals. In order to ascertain that a training program has achieved its objective, it is imperative that a method for testing the outcomes of the program. One of the traditional way that have has been in use in assessment of training and other learning methods is the use of testing. Testing is a method where employees are required to provide prove that they have mastered what has been covered in the training. This is achieved through providing a small examination after the training program. Just like the examination in the classroom, the trainees are required to provide feedback of what they have learned in the training program.

Another method that can be used to assess the outcomes of a training program is through monitoring possible changes in the performance of an employee in an organization. Such changes can help in gauging the effectiveness of a training program. Improved performance of employees after training will mean that the training program has been successful and the training program will not have been successful should the performance of employees in the organization remain the same even after the training.

Besides showing the success or failure of a training program, evaluation also is important in evaluating the thoughts of the employees about the training program. Evaluation provides the employees thoughts about the training program. Such information will be useful in determining the appropriate training program that can be used in future similar ventures that will be used by the organization.

References

Aswathappa, K. (2005). Human Resource and Personnel Management (4 ed). New York: Tata McGraw-Hill.

Bohlander, G. W & Snell, S. (2009). Managing Human Resources (15 ed). New York: Cengage Learning.

Jackson, S. E., Schuler R. S.  & Werner S.(2008). Managing Human Resources (10 ed). New York: Cengage Learning.

Khankal, S. S. (2007). Human Resource Management. New York: S. Chand.