Definition:

The process used by a company to develop their employees' skills, cultural awareness, leadership, teamwork, and other characteristics that will improve their productivity and value to the organization.

• What it is: The training and development processes in a company are aimed at increasing the productivity and value that employees can provide to the company. The processes can vary from informal mentoring to very advanced forms of curriculum and even company universities. There is even a Hamburger U in Des Plains Illinois to train new managers of McDonald's franchises.
• What does it do: A well-designed training and development program can attract new employees, increase the value of existing employees, and retain employees who want to grow and develop. According to Bizmove.com the reasons for emphasizing the growth and development of personnel include:
  • Creating a pool of readily available and adequate replacements for personnel who may leave or move up in the organization.
  • Enhancing the company's ability to adapt and use advances in technology because of sufficiently knowledgeable staff.
  • Building a more efficient, effective, and highly motivated team, which enhances the company's competitive position and improves employee morale.
  • Ensuring adequate human resources for expansion into new programs.

Uses:

How is it used: Training and development is a joint concern of management and employees to meet the needs of the employee and the company. For programs to be successful, both the company and the employee need to do their part, according to HRCOUNCIL.CA these include:

• For employee training and development to be successful, management should:
• Provide a well-crafted job description - it is the foundation upon which employee training and development activities are built
• Provide training required by employees to meet the basic competencies for the job. This is usually the supervisor's responsibility
• Develop a good understanding of the knowledge, skills, and abilities that the organization will need in the future.
• What are the long-term goals of the organization and what are the implications of these goals for employee development? Share this knowledge with staff
• Look for learning opportunities in everyday activity. Was there an incident with a client that everyone could learn from? Is there a new government report with implications for the organization?
• Explain the employee development process and encourage staff to develop individual development plans
• Support staff when they identify learning activities that make them an asset to your organization both now and in the future
• For employee development to be a success, the individual employee should:
• Look for learning opportunities in everyday activities
• Identify goals and activities for development and prepare an individual development plan

Where: There are two primary training methods: On-the-Job Techniques and Off-the-Job Techniques. There are wide varieties of each, but Bizmove.com provides the following list:

• On-the-job training is delivered to employees while they perform their regular jobs. In this way, they do not lose time while they are learning. After a plan is developed for what should be taught, employees should be informed of the details. A timetable should be established with periodic evaluations to inform employees about their progress. On-the-job techniques include:
  • orientations
  • job instruction training
  • apprenticeships
  • internships and assistantships
  • job rotation
  • coaching.
• Off-the-job techniques include lectures, special study, films, television conferences or discussions, case studies, role-playing, simulation, programmed instruction, and laboratory training. Most of these techniques can be used by large or small businesses although, some may be too costly for small businesses. In general, the types of Off-the-Job techniques include:
  • Orientations are for new employees. The first several days on the job are crucial to the success of new employees. This point is illustrated by the fact that 60 percent of all employees who quit do so in the first ten days. Orientation training should emphasize the following topics:
    • The company's history and mission.
    • The key members of the organization.
    • The key members of the department, and how the department helps fulfill the mission of the company.
    • Personnel rules and regulations.

    Some companies use verbal presentations while others have written presentations. Many small businesses convey these topics in one-on-one orientations. No matter what method is used, it is important that the newcomer understand his or her new place of employment.

    Lectures present training materials verbally and are used when the goal is to present a great deal of material to many people. It is more cost-effective to lecture to a group than to train people individually. Lecturing is one-way communication and as such may not be the most effective way to train. Also, it is hard to ensure that the entire audience understands a topic on the same level; by targeting the average attendee you may under-train some and lose others. Despite these drawbacks, lecturing is the most cost-effective way of reaching large audiences.

    Role-playing and simulation are training techniques that attempt to bring realistic decision-making situations to the trainee. Likely problems and alternative solutions are presented for discussion. The adage there is no better trainer than experience is exemplified by this type of training. Experienced employees can describe real-world experiences, and can help in and learn from developing the solutions to these simulations. This method is cost-effective and is used in marketing and management training.

    Audiovisual methods such as television, videotapes, and films are the most effective means of providing real-world conditions and situations in a short time. One advantage is that the presentation is the same no matter how many times it's played. This is not true with lectures, which can change as the speaker is changed or can be influenced by outside constraints. The major flaw with the audiovisual method is that it does not allow for questions and interactions with the speaker, nor does it allow for changes in the presentation for different audiences.

    Job rotation involves moving an employee through a series of jobs so he or she can get a good feel for the tasks that are associated with different jobs. It is usually used in training for supervisory positions. The employee learns a little about everything. This is a good strategy for small businesses because of the many jobs an employee may be asked to do.

    Apprenticeships develop employees who can do many different tasks. They usually involve several related groups of skills that allow the apprentice to practice a particular trade, and they take place over a long period of time in which the apprentice works for, and with, the senior skilled worker. Apprenticeships are especially appropriate for jobs requiring production skills.

    Internships and assistantships are usually a combination of classroom and on-the-job training. They are often used to train prospective managers or marketing personnel.

    Programmed learning, computer-aided instruction, and interactive video all have one thing in common: they allow the trainee to learn at his or her own pace. Also, they allow material already learned to be bypassed in favor of material with which a trainee is having difficulty. After the introductory period, the instructor need not be present, and the trainee can learn as his or her time allows. These methods sound good but might be beyond the resources of some small businesses.

    Laboratory training is conducted for groups by skilled trainers. It usually is conducted at a neutral site and is used by upper- and middle management trainees to develop a spirit of teamwork and an increased ability to deal with management and peers. It can be costly and usually is offered by larger small businesses.

    Trainers: Who actually conducts the training depends on the type of training needed and who will be receiving it. On-the-job training is conducted mostly by supervisors; off-the-job training, by either in-house personnel or outside instructors.

Why: Bizmove.com reports that research has shown specific benefits that a small business receives from training and developing its workers, including:

• Increased productivity.
• Reduced employee turnover.
• Increased efficiency resulting in financial gains.
• Decreased need for supervision.

Limitations:

• Where it shouldn't be used: For contract employees that are temporary and not going to continue to work for you in the future, it may not be valuable to provide any training and development beyond orientation and safety training as needed to do their jobs. There are also legally required training that must be provided to meet regulatory requirements.
• Any restrictions: none
• Warnings: Providing the wrong training or not providing required training can reduce employee productivity, engagement, and satisfaction.

Demonstrations:

• HR Basics: Training and Development
• Training and development for your team
• Training and Developing Employees l Human Resource Management
• Employee training and development

Examples:

USPS Training and Development 

Additional resources:

• TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT TOOL KIT
• training and learning development
• Effective Employee Training and Development Methods In HRM