Unit 5 final - HRMT 386 PDF

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HRMT 386...

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Unit 5: Employee Training and Development Overview This unit explores the training and development function of HR that focuses predominantly on increasing the productivity of workers. This includes such tasks as conducting a needs analysis, designing a training program, and orienting new workers, and encompasses various approaches to worker development throughout a worker’s time with the employer.

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While workers and employers may both praise training and development, it is important to remember that training can be an area of diverging interests (e.g., what are the training objectives and activities? who should pay?) and that determining what is taught and who participates is an exercise of power by the employer.

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abilities employee development

experiential training- Experiential learning is a well-known model in education. Kolb's Experiential LearningTheory (Kolb, 1984) defines experiential learning as "the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience. Knowledge results from the combination of grasping and transforming experience." Ma

instructional design- Instructional design is the creation of learning experiences and materials in a manner that results in the acquisition and application of knowledge and skills. The discipline follows a system of assessing needs, designing a process, developing materials and evaluating their effectiveness.

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learning needs assessment orientation

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on-the-job training socialization task analysis training training objectives

Unit Study Questions At the end of the unit, you should be able to write two- to three-paragraph answers to the following questions:

1.

Why do employers and workers undertake training? Where do their interests converge and diverge?

Learning Organizations? Over the past 20 years, there has been much discussion of the notion of “learning organizations,” which emphasize worker development and training. Organizing training and development activities typically falls to HR departments. While it is difficult to criticize organizations that provide their workers with opportunities to learn new skills, it is important to examine who receives these opportunities, what learning opportunities are permitted or facilitated, and who benefits from such opportunities. In considering these questions, it is important to remember that workers do the learning, not organizations. Learning in the workplace is nothing new: Workers learn at work all the time. They learn how to do the job, which rules matter and which do not, and how long an unofficial coffee break can last. If the workplace is unionized, workers may learn about the union and how it operates. If there is no union, they may learn why some workers consider unions beneficial. They learn about power and authority. They are encouraged to learn about what is useful for the employer. They learn about how their interests overlap with those of the employer, and when they do not.

Clearly, some of this learning may contribute to a culture of silence, or to an acceptance of the way things are. Workers may learn to accept the dominant ideology that supports management rights, such as the idea that we are all part of a global economy and must strive to out-compete other organizations to survive. Workplace learning is not new; what is new is the emphasis now placed upon it and the belief that real workplace learning is that which enriches the employer (whether or not it enriches the worker). Other workplace lea

2. What purposes does orientation serve for employers and workers?

Socialization and Culture Management Orientation is the process of introducing new workers to the organization’s goals, policies, rules, and procedures. Closely linked to orientation is socialization, which is the process whereby workers absorb and take on the norms and values of an organization, essentially turning from outsiders to insiders. Orientation can be formal, informal, or both. Socialization may go beyond the innocent orientations suggested in your textbook to include introducing new recruits to dubious practices and seeking their compliance. The formal use of orientation and organizational training is an exercise of power. By setting out the norms or culture of an organization, the employer helps to determine and establish the basic pattern of assumptions workers use to cope with and manage workplace problems and issues (Schein, 1985). For most workers, organizational culture is defined by the employer. Workers are expected to be on the same page, to accept the mission statement of their employer, and to buy into organizations’ goals.

3. When organizations attempt to use worker development to reduce barriers to advancement for women, how does the gendered division of labour in society limit its effectiveness?

Employee Development and Women There is broad recognition that women and other groups of workers often face systemic barriers to organizational advancement. While direct gender-based discrimination in accessing training opportunities is uncommon, the broader context of employment and social relations may create structural barriers to female advancement that cannot be solely addressed in the workplace or by training. As we saw in Unit 1, the tasks associated with social reproduction typically fall to women, who often select forms of employment compatible with these demands. In doing so, women may reinforce externally imposed limitations in terms of career development. For example, women may often find themselves excluded from social activities (going out for drinks, playing golf or basketball) that men use as networking opportunities. Even if women were invited and felt comfortable in these activities, their other obligations (e.g., childcare and eldercare) may preclude participation. Simply being more mindful about the allocation of developmental assignments will not fully remedy this situation.

Conclusion Employee training, orientation, and development are meant to maximize the value that employers can extract from the workers they have hired. HR practitioners often undertake the daily tasks associated with training and orientation. It is useful to recognize that training is not just a technical undertaking, but also one that requires political analysis. More specifically, what is learned and who is trained are important ways by which an organization exerts power over its workforce. Orientation activities do convey where the washrooms are and how parking is handled. But they also shape how workers should (in the employer’s view) view their role in the organization and how they should approach their jobs. Also, the allocation of training and opportunities for development may reflect (possibly unconscious) beliefs regarding the organizational return from such activities....