Training and Development (7) - Assignment Example

The career development model would set specific target for employees, and therefore employees may be eager to achieve their targets as fast as possible. In order to gain better career achievements, employees necessarily need to develop improved skills and capabilities. Hence, effective career management would encourage employees to actively participate in development activities. In short, career development model would greatly assist organizations to implement their training programs and development activities successfully.

Benefits of Career Development to Companies Generally, companies are very interested in helping employees to plan their career because this strategy benefits firms to achieve their short term as well as long term objectives successfully. As discussed earlier, the career development model would assist companies to keep its employees motivated (career motivation) and this situation in turn may assist organizations to reduce issues like absenteeism and staff turnover to a great extent. As Lindner (1998) points out, motivated employees would be more productive relative to others and hence an organization can improve its profitability by helping employees plan their career.

Another benefit of this policy is that it would assist companies to minimize worksite conflicts to a large extent, because motivated employees will always try to contribute to team efforts. However, companies also face some challenges while helping employees to plan their career. First, organizations need to raise additional funds to finance the career development program. Secondly, a firm’s top management has to spend a considerable amount of time to operate the career development model. Components of Career Motivation Career resilience, career insight, and career identity are the three components of career motivation.

Career resilience can be simply defined as the extent to which employees are capable of managing the problems that affect the efficiency of their work. “Career insight involves (1) how much employees know about their interests and their skill strengths and weaknesses and (2) their awareness of how these perceptions relate to their career goals” (Chapter 11). Finally, career identity refers to the extent to which employees are able to define their personal values in accordance with their nature of work.

Career resilience is identified to be the most important component of career motivation whereas career insight appears to be the least important component. The level of career resilience is an important determinant of an employee’s commitment to the company. Hence, an employee with high level of career resilience can easily deal with his/her worksite problems and thereby contribute to the firm’s overall productivity. In contrast, an employee’s career insight does not directly influence the company’s operational efficiency as this component specifically relates to the employee’s career goals.

Psychological Contract A psychological contract can be defined as “the expectations that employers and employees have about each other” (Chapter 11). The psychological contract reflects the view that the organization would provide long term employment and development opportunities to its employees if they stay with the company and maintain high level job performance. Pay increases and promotion may be the major