Professional Development at Work, Essay Example

Introduction and Thesis Statement Development

Providing people with career and professional development opportunities is an effective way of employee motivation. According to Stone et al. (2008), autonomous motivation has a great positive impact on employee satisfaction, retention, performance, and motivation. The below report will examine what the most successful ways of motivating and empowering workers are in an international organization.

The thesis statement the author would like to examine is as follows:

Employees who are provided with a personal professional development plan are more likely to participate in process improvement projects within the organization, and will feel a stronger connection with the company than those who are not given the opportunity to pursue their professional goals within the organization.

Literature Review and Research Development

Several authors talk about empowering employees through providing them with professional development opportunities. The Cornerstone project (2010) created an overview on the impact of employee empowerment. According to the authors, an empowered employee would be provided with the opportunity to do what they do best every day, while the workplace encourages their development, talks about their progress, and provides them with growth and learning opportunities.

The benefits of empowering employees through training and lifelong learning projects are evident for employees, but they can also provide several advantages for companies. The Cornerstone project (2010) lists some of the major competitive advantages gained by companies encouraging professional development of employees. First, a workplace where employees are empowered is more engaged. Quoting related statistics, the authors state that “companies with higher-than-average employee engagement also had 27 percent higher profits, 50 percent higher sales and 50 percent higher customer loyalty” (Cornerstone, 2010, p. 5). Further, studies show that workplaces where employees are encouraged to grow and learn have a higher overall performance and productivity level. Finally, at empowered workplaces, employees’ personal goals are more aligned with the organization’s vision and mission, and companies achieve a 144 percent increase in their ability to plan for future talent needs.

From the theoretical point of view, several frameworks can be applied to investigate the relationship between employee development and engagement. The Self-Determination Theory (SDT) states that people are more encouraged to do better if they feel like their values and goals are understood by the organization (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Therefore, instead of using the “carrot and stick” type of motivation, companies should start listening to employees, understanding their preferences, values, and aspirations, in order to support them in personal and professional growth. This approach can also lead to intrinsic motivation, described as a type of engagement between the company and the employee where “employees work for passion, pleasure, and interest. In contrast, integrated regulation occurs when people fully endorse the importance of the work even though they may not find it interesting” (Stone et al., 2008).

Goodall et al. (2005)  evaluated the impact of continuing professional development in schools on performance and motivation. Based on the results of the large scale survey carried out in the United Kingdom, the authors created some important recommendations for professionals creating professional development plans on an individual basis. First of all, evaluation of performance and training needs is crucial to delivering the most appropriate training schedule and materials. The impact of learning on motivation and job performance should also be measured by employers. Finally, the authors found that there was a need for differentiating learning and development programs, based on roles, personal needs, and background.

Literature Evaluation and Suggestions

Based on the above review of literature, it is evident that creating personal professional development plans for employees would have a positive impact on their motivation and engagement level. It is recommended by the sources analyzed that it is important to match the training provided to the needs of individuals, and listen to workers. Therefore, the best practices of creating a professional development plan at work should focus on collaboration, discussion, monitoring, and evaluation.

Several frameworks for motivating employees through training and career development opportunities have been created by researchers and HR professionals in the past few years. Zahra et al. (2014) found that “ongoing training of current employees is as important as of new employees; it helps them to adapt their daily routine work according to rapidly changing job requirements and to improve their performance on current job and prepares them for an intended job”. Reviewing several frameworks related to professional development, the most customizable and democratic model was found to be Bramley’s Individual Model of Training. This framework’s strength lies in its complexity and the individual consideration. Suitable training is offered on an individual basis, after assessing experience, competencies, and training needs. Through enhancing individual performance of employees, companies can benefit from a relevant and motivated talent pool that they can turn into organizational competencies and competitive advantages.

The main steps of professional development frameworks at the workplace, however, are similar. The process starts with the training needs analysis (including training gap analysis), followed by designing the different phases of training and setting clear objectives. All models also emphasize the need for evaluating the program’s effectiveness, completing employee interviews, and monitoring progress.

It is recommended that companies planning to design professional development programs create individual plans based on the following elements of design: gap identification, training needs assessment, goal and objective setting based on discussions with employees, creating a training program design, hiring trainers or purchasing programs, creating methods of motivation, and providing ongoing support. It is also important to reward trainee employees based on their achievement, and monitor the effectiveness in order to initiate changes that would make the professional development plan more rewarding for both the company and the employee.

Conclusion

It is important based on the findings of the above research that companies encourage employees in achieving their personal and professional goals. Employees seeking learning and development opportunities will face two options. They could stay within their current roles and settle for less, or look for another company that would help them become the professional they would like to be. If the company does not encourage learning at the workplace, retention and employee motivation, as well as work morale will be negatively affected. This is the reason why companies should work together with their employees to foster their aspirations and provide career development opportunities. This will increase employee engagement, help aligning individual goals with the organization’s culture, increase productivity, and employee motivation. As a result, companies will gain skills through employee training that are necessary for facing the challenges of today’s highly competitive business environment.

Career and Professional Development Plan

In the retail environment of the company FootLocker, it is important that employees remain connected to the brand and motivated. It has been found that employee motivation has a positive impact on job performance and customer service. Therefore, it is recommended that FootLocker’s local store implements a professional development program that suits employees’ and the company’s needs.

There are several training methods the company could implement: co-funding college education and certificate programs, online learning, coaching and classroom based customer service lessons, or on-job professional development. Before deciding on which method to choose, the company will need to identify training needs of the company, and find the relevant available courses to meet the expectations.

In the retail environment, training needs are generally concentrated around customer service, time management, communication, and managing people. FootLocker has recently realized that filling internal managerial roles makes the organization more effective, and employees who used to work alongside with their manager are more likely to accept their authority and communicate openly with them. This results in a better team performance, better alignment of goals, and a greater level of understanding among team members. It is also proven that filling upcoming managerial roles internally through fostering talent would increase employee motivation and make workers feel appreciated and respected.

Further, it is important that training programs are designed to meet current and future job requirements and are relevant to employees’ roles. In FootLocker, most personnel needs communication and interpersonal skills on a daily basis. They, on the other hand, also need to adapt to changes within the market and in the company. Most employees face diversity at work and need to deal with culturally diverse customers. Therefore, training programs based on sales, communication, empathy, diversity, inclusion, and team building would benefit the company in particular.

Needs Assessment

It is recommended that the company focuses on individual training needs based on regular appraisal results and discussions with line managers. In order to assess individual training needs, there is a need to implement an effective tool for employee skills evaluation. Performance reviews should include career planning and development sections, and self-evaluation forms as well, in order to provide workers with recognition of prior learning. Without the company knowing about the current skill set and education level of employees, it would not be able to tailor professional development programs to individual needs. An employee training and training needs questionnaire needs to be developed to help line managers develop training plans.

Training Gaps Assessment

This assessment would not only focus on the existing skills of employees and competencies needed for doing the job, but also review the company’s current practices related to new employees’ training and coaching. This way, the company can identify training goals and gaps that exist within FootLocker, and adjust the basic employee integration processes to the needs of the company, market, and employees. Training gaps assessment needs to be completed on a regular basis, as the competitive landscape of the retail industry is in constant change.

Creating Learning Management Programs

It has been identified that college education programs are not relevant to the roles in FootLocker, therefore, skills development and customer service courses need to be assessed and selected based on the completed needs and gap assessment. Today, there are many online certification modules available through interactive classrooms and online learning. These cost-effective courses are able to help employees do their jobs better, and improve their leadership skills. Two types of training programs need to be created: one for employees willing to remain in the retail environment, and dealing with customers on a day-to-day basis, and one for team members planning to pursue a career in management.

Training Program Development

The simplest and most flexible way of developing training programs within the company is to create a list of modules that are available based on previous training and qualifications, role, and career goals. All modules could be combined on an individual basis, therefore, training would be made suitable for individual needs. The training program modules should be covering the following aspects of current and future roles:

1. diversity and inclusion training
2. understanding customer needs
3. effective communication
4. team building
5. leading change
6. brainstorming
7. personal target management
8. motivating buying behavior
9. building rapport
10. leading teams
11. motivating employees
12. dealing with difficult situations

Implementation

After selecting the online training company to deliver the interactive modules, during the following appraisal and performance review meeting, line managers would discuss individual training need and make a decision along with team members. It is recommended that the line manager and the employee together create a schedule and completion target, with regular review meetings. Personal learning development will be reviewed during these meetings, as well as the career progression opportunities within the company. Employees who are motivated to move on to leadership roles would need to be provided with advice and guidance in order to feel appreciated and motivated. Presenting team members with leadership opportunities to support their transition, such as leading projects within the company or taking part in organizing events would help them get ready for their further role. Coaching, therefore, should be a crucial part of the implementation process.

Evaluation and Monitoring

Employees’ experience with the professional development program’s delivery should be evaluated. Competencies of staff before and after taking part in the courses should also be measured to determine the effectiveness of each module.

References

Cornerstone (2010) The empowered workforce: crucial to success in the new economy. Ondemand.

Goodall, J., Day, C., Lindsay, G., Muijs, D., & Harris, A. (2005). Evaluating the impact of continuing professional development (CPD) (No. Reference: RR659). London: Department for Education and Skills.

Stone, D. N., Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2009). Beyond talk: Creating autonomous motivation through self-determination theory. Journal of General Management, 34(3), 75.

Zahra, S., Iram, A., & Naeem, H. Employee Training and Its Effect on Employees’ Job Motivation and Commitment: Developing and Proposing a Conceptual Model.