Factors influencing the training

 Factors influencing the training

The amount and type of training, as well as the organization of the training function in a company, are influenced by many factors, among them: company size; employee and manager roles; top management’s support for training; the company’s degree of integration of business units; the company’s global presence; business conditions; other HRM practices, including staffing strategies and human resource planning; the extent of unionization; and the amount of involvement in training and development by managers, employees, and human resource staff (R. J. Campbell,1991).

Roles that employees and managers

The roles that employees and managers have in a company influence the focus of training, development, and learning activity. Traditionally, employees’ roles were to perform their jobs according to the managers’ directions. Employees were not involved in improving the quality of the products or services. However, with the emphasis on the creation of intellectual capital and the movement toward high-performance work systems using teams, employees today are performing many roles once reserved for management (D. F. Van Eynde,1992).

Manage individual and team performance

Motivate employees to change performance, provide performance feedback, and monitor training activities. Clarify individual and team goals and ensure alignment with company goals. Develop employees and encourage continuous learning. Explain work assignments and provide technical expertise. Create environment that encourages learning.  Plan and allocate resources. Translate strategic plans into work assignments and established target dates for projects.  Coordinate activities and interdependent teams. Persuade other units to provide product or resources needed by the work group, and understand the goals and plans of other units. Ensure that the team is meeting internal and external customer needs. Manage group performance. Define areas of responsibility, meet with other managers to discuss effects of changes in the work unit on their groups, facilitate change, and implement business strategy. Facilitating decision-making process. Facilitate team and individual decision making. Encourage the use of effective decision-making processes, Creating and maintaining trust. Ensure that each team member is responsible for his or her workload and customers. Treat all team members with respect. Listen and respond honestly to team ideas. Represent one’s work unit. Develop relationships with other managers, communicate the needs of the work group to other units, and provide information on work group status to other groups (A. I. Kraut, P. R. Pedigo, D. D. McKenna, and M. D. Dunnette,1988).

Business condition

When unemployment is low and/or businesses are growing at a high rate and need more employees, companies often find it difficult to attract new employees, find employees with necessary skills, and retain current employees (K. Dobbs, 2014).

Top management support

The CEO, the top manager in the company, plays a key role in determining the importance of training and learning in the company (5. J. Meister,2000).  Setting a clear direction for learning (vision) ,Encouragement, resources, and commitment for strategic learning (sponsor) ,Taking an active role in governing learning, including reviewing goals and objectives and providing insight on how to measure training effectiveness ,Developing new learning programs for the company (subject-matter expert) ,teaching programs or providing resources online ,Serving as a role model for learning for the entire company and demonstrating a willingness to learn constantly (learner) , Promoting the company’s commitment to learning by advocating it in speeches, annual reports, interviews, and other public relations tools.

Kraut, P. R. Pedigo, D. D. McKenna, and M. D. Dunnette, “The Role of the Manager: What’s Really Important in Different Managerial Jobs,” Academy of Management Executive 4 (1988): 36–48.

D. F. Van Eynde, “High-Impact Team Building Made Easy,” HR Horizons (Spring 1992): 37–41.

 E. Catmull, “How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity,” Harvard Business Review (September 2008): 64–72.

 F. Luthans, “Successful versus Effective Real Managers,” Academy of Management Executive 2 (1988): 127–32; H. Mintzberg, The Nature of Managerial Work (New York: Harper and Row, 1973).

J. B. Quinn, P. Andersen, and S. Finkelstein, “Leveraging Intellect,” Academy of Management Executive 10 (1996): 7–39; B. Campbell, R. Coff, and D. Kryscynski, “Rethinking sustained competitive advantage from human capital,” Academy of Management Review, 37 (2010): 376–395.

R. J. Campbell, “HR Development Strategies,” in Developing Human Resources, ed. K. N. Wexley (Washington, D.C.: BNA Books, 1991), pp. 5-1–5-34; and J. K. Berry, “Linking Management Development to Business Strategy,” Training and Development (August 1990), pp. 20–22.

R. Smith, “Aligning Learning with Business Strategy,” T+D (November 2008): 40–43.

S. W. Floyd and B. Wooldridge, “Dinosaurs or Dynamos? Recognizing Middle Management’s Strategic Role,” Academy of Management Executive 8 (1994): 47–57.

S. Tannenbaum, “A Strategic View of Organizational Training and Learning,” in Creating, Implementing, and Managing Effective Training and Development, ed. K. Kriger (San Francisco: Jossey-Boss, 2002): 10–52.