Learning and Development - Essay Example

Running Head: LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT Learning and Development By _________ Introduction The world that we have made as a result of the level of thinking we have done this far, creates problems we cannot solve at the same level at which we created them (Monica, 2003:166). Learning defines life. That is to say that the process of cognition from the ‘simple’ biological level to the more complex social level of learning mediated by ‘bodies of knowledge’ is essentially the same process that defines what it is to ‘live’. Living people create value; the energy and commitment of individuals and teams of people ultimately determine the value that we enjoy from our products and services. Any increase in the potential of these individuals and teams will result in greater value production. HRD should be central to value production and enhancement and therefore be at the forefront of any changes that challenge traditional approaches. Sadly, it is constrained by policy and law and often becomes the internal policing process of an organisation, which inevitably moves it away from its more innovative role in organisational development where it can actively challenge ‘what is’. If we do not challenge traditional attitudes and methods we will be lost and unsustainable. Since so much of human activity is absorbed in the pursuit of value creation, HRD is a pivotal activity at this point in our time (Monica, 2003:166-167). Human Resource Development Human behavior and relations tend to contribute to the construction of organisational processes that become obstacles to learning. These include the fears and anxieties that the possibility of learning generates; habits of mind that privilege doing over reflecting; managerial strategies to avoid conflict and difference; the protection of personal empires; or perceptions of work pressure and expectations. As the (conscious and unconscious) emotions and relations behind these processes intermingle with decisions, strategies and political developments, the need to try and control and contain learning and change are reinforced (Monica, Jim,2004:134). As the demands of foreign competition, increased efficiency, and the second industrial revolution spread, organisations are coming to regard training expenses as no less a part of their capital costs than plants and equipment (Ronald,1990:17). History of Training Worker training can be traced back to biblical times, with ancient Egyptians overseeing hordes of slaves being "trained" as well as driven by foremen, often of the slaves own nationality. Training was direct, task oriented, and on-the-job. The evaluation of that training was simple and based entirely on the outcomes of the employees’ efforts. Orientation, a major form of twentieth-century worker training, was also provided in biblical times although less systematically than it is now. Similarly, on-the job, task-oriented training was made available through apprenticeship programs primarily for manual and artistic work.. The beginning of the Industrial Revolution was characterised by a substantial growth of human knowledge and rapidity of change, as evidenced by the number of patents in the first half of the nineteenth century. Despite the creativity and originality that fostered the Industrial Revolution, references to training during that period failed to address such approaches to production or to business, attending more to specific task learning (Ronald 1990:18). Traditionally, training was considered to be job-focused, limited to the teaching of skills and abilities needed by employees to perform specific tasks or to solve problems in particular settings. Traditionally, individuals obtained their education first and subsequently received training in the work environment based on their specific job needs (Jack, Sue,1994:38) In 1958 orientation was the most common corporate education program. The 1960s were characterised by growth and diversification in business, and the entry of women and minorities into business not open to them until then. A dominant theme of the 1970s in training and education was the growing formalisation of coursework. A few corporations formalised their courses into traditionally styled "corporate colleges" while others developed company-sponsored courses that earned collegiate credit from different universities. During the early and middle 1980s, training became more of a systems approach in which the training unit served less as a deliverer of education than as a broker and consultant on education and training to managers and officers. Changes during the past few years have required training at all levels in organisations to make a powerful impact on the nature of organisations and training itself. Because training administrators and executives in general view training as playing a significant role in the success of the organisation, training should continue as an integral and important part of organisations. (Ronald, 1990:18-20) Development of HRD Human resource development can be considered as a field that has existed in some form for thousands of years or as a relatively new field. Certainly, ever since specific ‘jobs’ have existed, some form of on-the-job training has been provided to those new to the job. More recently, however, the field of HRD has become formalised and professionalised (Monica,Jim,2004:46) Historically, the development of HRD can be traced from training and instructional design, to training and development, to employee development, to human resource development. Traditionally, the field of HRD was defined by practice, not from a theoretical frame or set of research. The boundaries of HRD are postulated as individual development, organisation development and career development (Jim, Sandra, 2002:6-7). Organisations today are increasingly recognising the importance of developing their human resources. The training function, now popularly referred to as human resources development (HRD), coordinates the organisation’s efforts to provide training and development experiences for its employees. Although training is often used in conjunction with development, the terms are not synonymous. Employee training can be defined as a planned attempt to facilitate employee learning of job-related knowledge, skills, and behaviors or helping them correct deficiencies in their performance. In contrast, development is an effort to provide employees with the skills needed for both present and future jobs (Ronald,2002:165) Organisations provide training for many reasons: to orient new hires to the organisation or teach them how to perform in their initial job assignment, to improve the current performance of employees who may not be working as effectively as desired, or to prepare employees for future promotions or for upcoming changes in design, processes, or technology in their present jobs. Recent changes in the business environment have made the training function even more important in helping organisations maintain competitiveness and prepare for the future (Ronald,2002:165-166). Today, HRD is focusing on Integrating Career Development in its plans. The psychological contract between employers and workers has changed. Yesterday, employees “exchanged loyalty for job security.” Today, employees instead exchange performance for the sort of training and learning and development that will allow them to remain marketable. (Ronald, 2002:221) Today’s and tomorrow’s training efforts must take place within an overall framework for workforce development that directly contributes to the organisation achieving its mission. This kind of perspective forms explicit connections between training policies and practices, HR and HRD policies and practices, and the organisation’s mission and strategic agenda. The premise behind a strategic approach to training is that training decisions that fit the organisation’s conditions positively impact performance. A strategic approach to training begins with the relationship between the organisation’s mission, strategic agenda, and its HRD needs. Current and future HR-workforce requirements are derived from a clear and widely shared understanding of what the organisation does and how it does it (including the forward thinking about what the organisation needs to do in the future). A strategic approach continues with an assessment of the current capacity of its workforce--what are the composition and core competencies of current employees? From this assessment, areas of special need and/or continuous upgrading can be identified, and appropriate training (and non-training) delivered to those in need of it. Discussions with most members of an organisations senior leadership would indicate their agreement that such a strategic approach to training is important to an organisation’s success. However, the real test of their commitment to such an approach is the extent to which they are willing to insist that there be a linkage, or a common thread, between any training, other learning and development initiatives, and the organisation. A linkage that consistently stresses the organisation’s mission, goals, objectives, and strategies can result in a culture of training and learning. Senior leadership, and a culture that supports ongoing learning and training initiatives, is a key to successful training in any organisation. Clearly, improvements in HRD and training in particular will only make a marginal contribution toward increased employee and organisational performance if cultural barriers to sound training reinforce (Ronald,1998:14). In today’s cost-conscious organisations, the effective analysis of training needs is critical to achieving support for the training intended to improve employee and organisational learning and performance. Needs analysis is the key to designing training programs that create the type of workforce that the organisation needs to compete in the marketplace; it also is essential to give employees, they need to successfully complete and compete for jobs within the organisation. Without first identifying both organisational and individual learning objectives, training personnel will be hard pressed to prove the ROI needed to justify training funding (Ronald, 1998:16-17) Learning organisations appear to be proficient in a number of activities: systematic problem solving, experimentation with new approaches, learning from their own experience and history, learning from the experiences and best practices of others, and transferring knowledge quickly and efficiently throughout the organisation. Usually learning involves three stages: (1) Cognitive members are exposed to new ideas, expand their knowledge, and begin to think differently. (2) Behavioral employees begin to alter their behavior. (3) Improvement of performance--changes in behavior lead to measurable improvement in results. In an organisation dedicated to creating a learning environment, training is a top priority. Learning organisations do not simply appear. They are fostered by devoting time, energy, and resources on a continuous basis to the training and development of employees. Taking steps to encourage learning through training and development activities and forums is essential to improved understanding, performance, and effectiveness. To help their organisations learn requires the training function to shed its current roles and adapt to the organisation environment of the future. The training function must: (1) Adapt a more strategic role in the organisation (2) Deal with the demands of training and developing the more diverse, knowledgeable workforce of the future (3) Adapt and prove its value to the future of the organisation (Ronald,1998:157-158) Current business realities of many European organisations place ever more demands on their ability to respond quickly and adequately to changes in their environments, by improving existing products and services or by innovation. As a result of the ever-increasing rate of (technological) change, induced by developments such as globalisation and the current ‘explosion of knowledge’, organisational capacity for learning was pinpointed as the key ability for organisations in the 1990s, and beyond. New managerial concepts such as the learning organisation, the intelligent organisation, the knowledge-creating company and knowledge management reflect the search for ways to improve organisational capacity for learning (Hilde, Martin, 2002:7) As the pace and complexity of change in organisations continues, training must become more closely integrated with the organisation’s strategic agenda. To do this, training staff will need a much wider exposure to the organisation’s internal and external environment. They will have to build more bridges with customers, both those in line units and those outside the organisation. Training professionals will have to help foster an environment for excellence by taking a proactive stance in linking training to organisational values and identifying strategic issues. This will require increased research on the impact of organisation vision and strategy on HR and HRD, and an increased willingness to participate in strategy formulation and implementation. The training function will also need to integrate itself more closely with a wide range of HR functions, such as recruitment, staffing, labor relations, employee relations, and organisational analysis (Ronald, 1998:158-159) Economy of India India is the birthplace of three of the world’s main religions: Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism. Indian society comprises six main religious groups: Hindus (83.2 per cent), Muslims (11 per cent), Sikhs (2 per cent), Christians (2 per cent), Jains and Buddhists (less than 1 per cent). India has 179 languages and 544 dialects. The Constitution recognises sixteen languages, Hindi and English being the two official languages. India has one of the largest English-speaking populations in the Asia-Pacific region. These facts show the diverse nature of the Indian workforce. Though rich in culture and natural resources, India currently faces a number of problems: political and religious instability; ever-increasing levels of population; unemployment and poverty; corruption in government offices; castism; a low per capita income; instability of output in agriculture and related sectors; slow privatisation of the bloated public sector; lack of adequate intellectual property protection; excessive bureaucracy; and an increasing gap between rich and poor. The level of corruption in politics is rapidly rising (Pawan, Yaw, 2001:75). After independence, the government set up a ‘Planning Commission’ in 1950 to formulate national plans. Since then (till early 1990s) a ‘mixed economy’ approach (emphasising both private and public enterprise) has been adopted. Despite the formalities of planning, the Indian economy reached its nadir in 1991. It witnessed a double-digit rate of inflation, decelerated industrial production, fiscal indiscipline, a very high ratio of borrowing to the GNP (both internal and external) and a dismally low level of foreign exchange reserves. Foreign reserves had become so low that they were barely sufficient to meet the cost of three weeks’ imports. There is a strong need to change the infrastructure, the bureaucracy at operating levels and the existing culture (organisational). Current policies imply a switch from labour-intensive to more capital-intensive methods of production, and therefore a new requirement for organisations is to remove surplus labour and to generate new sustainable employment. Indian organisations are attempting to improve quality and match world standards such as ISO 9000. The aim is to increase productivity, reduce costs and over-manning while generating employment, improving quality, and reducing voluntary and involuntary absenteeism (Pawan, Yaw, 2001:75-76) Hierarchy and inequality are deeply rooted in India’s tradition and are also found in practice in the form of unequally placed caste and class groups. Indian organisational structures and social relations are therefore hierarchical and people are status conscious. They find it comfortable to work in a superior-subordinate relationship, which is personalised (Pawan, Yaw, 2001:80) Indian managers give a high priority to national labour laws (40.89), trade unions (28.55) and educational and vocational training set up (24.45), regarding their influence on HRM policies and practices. Some 28.4 per cent of Indian managers feel that trade unions significantly influence their HRM policies and practices and 16.9 per cent of Indian managers believe that the present educational vocational training set-up of India is helpful in increasing employees’ efficiency, contributes to the process of up-dating their skills and facilitates better stress management. Less than 1 per cent of the Indian managers admit that their HRM practices are influenced by professional bodies and international institutions. (Pawan,Yaw,2001:82) The influence of trade unions on HRM is significant. Although in percentage terms unions in India are in decline, in absolute terms there is an increase in union membership. Moreover, as has happened in the West (for example, in the UK), the Indian unions are now playing a more co-operative role and are less militant. The educational and vocational training set-up is an important institution, which influences Indian HRM). On the other hand, Indian organisations, both past and present, have made attempts to emulate Western or Eastern (Japanese) patterns of management. This is because Indian managers are often trained in the West and most of the Indian management institutes have adopted the Western education system. However, due to the strong family, social, religious influence, on the one hand, and the Western education on the other, Indian managers internalise two separate sets of values (Pawan, Yaw, 2001:83). With an anticipated GDP growth rate of 6 per cent, India is now projected to be one of the fastest-growing economies in Asia. With a parliamentary majority it is likely that the present government can complete its five years, thus providing the much-needed political stability at the national level. The present government has been quick to initiate the vital ‘second generation’ of reforms. If successful, these significant changes could push the growth rate to 9 or 10 per cent. With full ownership allowed, MNCs will no longer need to put up with the constraints of struggling joint ventures, or share the fruits of success with other Indian companies. The success of the Indian software and hardware sectors is now widely acknowledged world-wide. Along with cheap manpower, Indian ‘brain power’ is now contributing to real cost advantage. Such a dynamic and competitive business environment presents a number of challenges to Indian HRM. The antagonistic role of trade unions is on the verge of change. However, due to strong political support, the pace of this change is very slow. Commentators in the field suggest the need for structural adjustments (such as stopping multiple subscription of union membership, reducing inter-union rivalry, reducing political influence on unions and increasing union membership) to make unions more co-operative. This in turn means there is a strong need to amend the provisions of a great deal of labour legislation such as the Trade Union Act of 1926 (which is strongly pro-labour). Understandably, such macro-level structural changes take a long time, therefore, it is the HRM function which should mould things (within the mentioned constraints) to make best use of their HRs. The giant public sector organisations need to downsize to reduce their surplus labour so as to improve their efficiency. Both the trade unions and labour legislation are the most serious hindrance in this regard. Some attempts in this regard in the form of the introduction of Voluntary redundancy schemes’ have been initiated. However, the functioning of such programmes is at present, inadequate. Like the West, Indian work dynamics also suggest that there is a need to encourage flexible work practices (Pawan,Yaw,2001:87-88) Economy of UK Between 1960 and 1998, over five million jobs have been shed by manufacturing industry, along with almost 700,000 in extractive industries such as coal mining. By 1998, manufacturing accounted for less than 18 percent of employees in employment, compared with 42 percent in 1955. This job loss is one manifestation of deindustrialisation. No longer can the UK be described as the ‘workshop of the world’. The UK is not the only advanced capitalist economy to experience such industrial job losses, most other older industrialised countries in north-west Europe passed their peak of factory jobs in the mid-1960s, but the UK was the first to deindustrialise. Jobs have been shed in a whole range of industries such as textiles and clothing, motor vehicles and coal and steel. And this job loss has been largely of male skilled, unskilled and semi-skilled full-time jobs. In 1971, 98 percent of males aged 45 to 54 years were economically active but by 1997 this had fallen to 91 percent. It is estimated that only about 70 percent of men will be economically active by 2011. The proportion of men aged 50 to 64 neither in paid work nor looking for it has increased from 11 per cent to 27 per cent since 1976 . The biggest regional loss in England was recorded in the West Midlands at 12.48 per cent and the smallest loss was in East Anglia at 7.31 per cent. At county level, in England, Staffordshire suffered the greatest loss at 15.10 per cent and Shropshire sustained the lowest loss at 4.13 per cent. In Wales, the biggest loss was in West Glamorgan (10.52 per cent) and the least in Powys (0.98 per cent). In Scotland, the highest was in the Central Region (13 per cent) and the least in Orkney Islands Area (1.36 per cent). Most of the heavy loss was in the old industrial heartlands. At this level of analysis only the Shetland Islands Area showed a gain in manufacturing employment at 1.54 per cent over the decade related to the oil industry and the revival of small craft industries (Irene, Eleonore, 2001:76-77) At a microeconomic level it is widely suggested that there is a consensus that means testing should not be allowed to spread further because of its disincentive effects on saving. This consensus represents politically driven targeting of the median or swing voter rather than necessarily good economics. Means testing has redistributive effects, which are popular with poor people because it delivers them benefits and with rich taxpayers because it is a method of providing targeted help and is cheaper than any universal welfare system. It is unpopular with the middle ground. From an economic perspective, means testing of retirement benefits amounts to a tax on saving. The alternative to taxing saving is to tax labour income. But for people close to retirement the elasticity of labour supply with respect to taxes is probably fairly high while the intertemporal elasticity of substitution is probably fairly low. In such circumstances a tax on saving has less effect on behaviour than the alternative of a tax on labour income and is therefore preferred. It is also not clear that means testing reduces savings in aggregate. People whose incomes are expected to lie within the means-testing bracket are likely to reduce their saving, but those with higher incomes face what amounts to a lump-sum tax and they are likely to increase their saving as a consequence. In the near future the prospects for the UK economy are good. We expect growth of about 3.2 per cent this year, falling to 2.8 per cent next year. The inflation rate is likely to increase but we expect the growth of the consumer price index to accelerate only gradually to its target level of 2 per cent per annum. As we discuss on page 36, we see the current state of the cycle as being poorly defined, so that there is a window of about eighteen months in which it could be deemed to end. The earlier the ending is in fact located, the more likely it is that the Golden Rule--keeping the government current account in budget or in surplus over the cycle--will be met. Thus if the cycle is assumed to end at the end of the current fiscal year, we give a 50/50 chance to meeting the rule, while if it is allowed to run to the end of fiscal year 2005/6 the probability declines and we do not expect the rule to be met. We also note that an early ending of the current cycle is likely to increase the problems associated with meeting the target in the next cycle because it makes it more likely that the new cycle will start with the budget in deficit. However we stress that achieving or failing to achieve the target of balance or surplus does not in itself mean that the fiscal position is sound or unsound; indeed, as we have argued above, there are some circumstances in which a substantial surplus would be desirable (Martin,2004:1) According to the experimental monthly Index of Services (IoS), the service industries overall account for around 70 per cent of UK Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and include private sector and government services. Gross value added (GVA) for the service industries is the difference between the value of a service provided (output), and the value of the goods and services used up in providing that service (intermediate consumption). The IoS show how this difference in value changes from month to month. The index is estimated using the same data sources and National Accounts methodology as the quarterly estimate of service industries’ gross value added within the well established output measure of Gross Domestic Product (GDP(O)). (Monthly Index, 2006) Conclusion Finally, training is seen as pivotal in implementing organisation-wide culture change efforts, such as adopting total quality management, developing a commitment to customer service, or making a transition to self-directed work teams. Today’s proactive training functions have moved from simply providing training on demand to solving organisational problems. Trainers see themselves as internal consultants or performance-improvement specialists rather than just instructional designers or classroom presenters. Training is only one of many remedies that may be applied by the new breed of HRD practitioners (Ronald, 2002:166). Lastly, training should be provided in a broad spectrum of content areas that in some cases may overlap with knowledge and skill areas traditionally taught in academic institutions (Jack, Sue, 1994:40) References Hilde Ter Horst, Martin Mulder, 2002, Hrd and Learning Organisations in Europe. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: London. Irene Hardill, Eleonore Kofman, 2001, Human Geography of the UK: An Introduction. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: London. Jack, Sue, 1994, Local Government Information and Training Needs in the 21st Century. Publisher: Quorum Books. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. Jim Stewart, Sandra Watson, 2002, Understanding Human Resource Development: A Research-Based Approach. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: London. Martin Weale, 2004, The UK Economy. Journal Title: National Institute Economic Review. Issue: 190. Publication Year: 2004. Page Number: 4+. COPYRIGHT 2004 National Institute of Economic and Social Research. Monica Lee, 2003, HRD in a Complex World. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: New York. Monica Lee, Jim Stewart, 2004, New Frontiers in Hrd. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: New York. Monthly Index, 2006 accessed from Pawan S. Budhwar, Yaw A. Debrah, 2001, Human Resource Management in Developing Countries. Publisher: Routledge. Place of Publication: London. Ronald, 1990, An Experiential Learning Approach to Employee Training Systems. Publisher: Quorum Books. Place of Publication: New York. Ronald R. Sims, 1998, Reinventing Training and Development. Publisher: Quorum Books. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. Ronald R. Sims, 2002, Organisational Success through Effective Human Resources Management. Publisher: Quorum Books. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. Read More