Training and Development Introduction

Introduction to Training and Development

• Training, development, and skills are crucial at various levels and are key to economic life.
• These levels include the firm, the national economy, and the individual.
• For trade unions and professional associations, training enhances member expertise and boosts competitiveness.
• For individuals, training can increase wages and reduce unemployment rates.
• The level of training in the UK may not be as high or as evenly distributed as desired.
• Some excellent training practices exist.
• Training should not be considered in isolation.

Advantages of Training

• Training prepares workers to perform tasks, monitor quality, and handle complex products and services.
• High-quality products rely on worker expertise.
• Training safeguards and promotes productivity.
• It prepares employees for future job roles.
• Training protects firms from skills shortages.
• When jobs can be filled internally, firms are less dependent on the external labor market.
• Training leads to high commitment and adaptability to business changes.
• Firms use training and development as a key element of human resource management.

Further Advantages of Training

• Training fosters high commitment work practices.
• It helps organizations adapt to changes in the business environment.
• Organizations facing skills shortages encounter difficulties when introducing new products and work practices.
• Training serves a symbolic function.
• The links to productivity can be hard to measure.

Voluntarist and Regulated Approaches

• Training and development are important.
• Good practices can be encouraged through two main approaches at the national level.
• One approach is voluntarist (market-based), the other is regulated (educational).
• In the USA and UK, a 'voluntarist' approach means organizations operate more effectively when unregulated.
• Market pressures determine training needs and investments, like in Silicon Valley.
• There is an assumption that market pressures ensure firms invest in training in voluntarist.
• Regulated training, common in Europe, involves vocational education supported by the state.
• Employers in France are required to support training.
• Germany has an apprenticeship system for young people entering the labor market.
• Vocational education and training are considered 'public goods' in regulated systems.

Success of Voluntarist and Regulated Approaches

• Both voluntarist and regulated approaches can be successful.
• The USA's Silicon Valley is given as an example of voluntarist success.
• Both approaches can provide links to universities.
• They can supply labor, share research, and stimulate start-up companies.
• They can include professional associations and partnerships/networks with organizations.
• They can include unstructured ecosystems and support experts.
• The USA is generally less successful at training and development overall.

The German Approach

• Germany uses a more regulated system.
• It has an apprenticeship system lasting three years.
• The system combines central training with work experience.
• It allows for participation and further education.
• It provides exposure to a range of work situations.
• Apprenticeships are becoming theoretically more challenging, increasing the number of people staying in academic education.
• There are close links between employer associations, trade unions, and regional governments.

Strengths and Limitations

• Each system has its strengths and limitations.
• Silicon Valley provides new and expert skills.
• German apprenticeships lead to widely available skilled workers.
• Unregulated systems may lead to neglected training.
• It is difficult to transplant 'best practices'.
• Training is only meaningful if integrated into work.

Training and Development in the Workplace

• Training is important but distributed unevenly.
• Employees in the public sector, younger workers, new hires, and those in professional occupations are more likely to receive training.
• Older workers in 'blue collar' jobs (like manufacturing) are less likely to receive training.
• In the UK, despite increasing government subsidies, training is declining.
• This is especially true for high-skilled and professional roles, manual trades, and industries.

Expansive and Restrictive Approaches

• Systematic approaches to training and development vary within firms.
• An expansive approach, e.g., involved a long-established apprenticeship program.
• The apprentices rotated through departments for wider business knowledge and skills
• Apprentices attended college for higher education qualifications.
• A small steel polishing company took a restrictive approach, only using apprenticeships when they could not recruit qualified staff.
• In general, training allows organizations to adapt to business environment changes.
• Health and safety and induction are commonly sponsored by employers.
• Temporary workers are more likely to receive training than permanent, up-skilled workers.

Soft Skills

• 'Soft' or generic skills include management skills, such as leadership, customer handling, teamwork, and communication.
• Technical skills involve abilities or knowledge to perform practical tasks in mechanics, science, mathematics, and IT.
• In finance, technical skills are utilized by investors and analysts.
• The rise of service work places greater importance on soft skills.
• Employee looks, feelings, and emotions are factors.
• Soft skills are valued more in technically skilled than low-intermediate skilled workers.
• There is a relationship between soft skills and technical skills.
• Sexual, racial, age, and marital status stereotypes may exist.
• Prejudice may be legitimized and disadvantage reinforced.
• Most jobs require both technical and soft skills.
• Soft skills are seldom highly rewarded without technical skills.

Disadvantages

• Training and development can be unclear.
• A distinction exists between developmental training vs. narrow qualifications and training.
• There are few firms providing training.
• Most training is confined to induction and health and safety.
• Individual employees have been know to not respond.
• It can be hard to know if training is essential or an extravagance.
• Jobs can be tightly controlled.
• There is sometime a 'low skills equilibrium'.
• Job design can create vicious/virtuous circles.

The Service Sector

• 'Workmanship of risk or uncertainty' is present.
• 77% of UK jobs are now in the service sector.
• There are skilled workers, like medics and teachers.
• Large numbers of care workers and security workers exist.
• The service sector is dominated by low-paid, part-time workers.
• Retail expertise is higher in France and Ireland.
• It is also higher in Japanese-owned retailers.
• Individuals may not take up training and development.
• Low-level vocational qualifications bring the least reward.

Skill and Performance

• Rewards from vocational training are not straightforward.
• There is a link between shop-floor and organizational performance.
• There is variation in performance and performance in the service sector.
• Skills can have a positive effect on performance across a range of levels.
• Prosperity is not guaranteed for all.

Re-Thinking Training and Development

• Debates are occuring beyond formal courses and qualifications.
• There is a development of 'resourceful humans'.
• Training should not be viewed as excellent in isolation.
• Employers are demanding more qualifications.
• Employees need more experience to do their work.
• Most work demands few skills.
• Skillful people outnumber skilled jobs.
• Graduates outnumber graduate jobs.
• There is under-utilization of skills.
• A decline in employee discretion is present.

Concluding Remarks

• Training is a 'litmus' test of HRM.
• Ensuring employees are developed for their roles.
• HR practices are the test of training.
• Consider rhetoric vs. reality.
• Not all training is developmental.
• Not all development is integrated into work.
• Consider what is involved in particular training systems.
• Consider what effect it does have on individuals.
• Consider how it is integrated into work.