BDO Chapter 7 Enhancing Team Performance PDF

## Enhancing team performance - For teams to function effectively their members need to be cross-trained so that they are able to perform one another's jobs and effectively support each other. - Fewer workers due to downsizing - Many organisations are downsizing due to economic reasons, with the res...

## Enhancing team performance - For teams to function effectively their members need to be cross-trained so that they are able to perform one another's jobs and effectively support each other. - Fewer workers due to downsizing - Many organisations are downsizing due to economic reasons, with the result that the remaining employees need to perform a wider range of tasks, for which they require training. - Government Interventions in the workplace - Governments may at times impact on the workplace by making laws that require organisations to train their workers. An example is the Skills Development Act (97 of 1998). - Covid-19's impact on training and development - Face-to-face training and development has been replaced in many instances by remote and multi-modal approaches that make extensive use of online technologies. ## Conducting workplace learning in a systematic manner - In order for the organisation to achieve these goals, workplace learning needs to be approached in a systematic manner. - Like any other organisational function, it is essential that workplace learning be approached in a systematic manner. This involves an approach that is ordered and follows specific steps. - The aim of a systematic approach is to follow a logical, structured approach in the design and development of training and learning programmes. - This should not be confused with the systems approach to training, which views work-based learning and training as “a subsystem upon which an organisation depends for its progress and survival” - A systematic approach to workplace learning involves following the five-step model illustrated in Figure 7.2. The first step is analysing the performance problem within the organisation. - To do this, it is essential to answer three questions: - What is the nature of the problem? - How can the problem be resolved? Is training an appropriate response? - If training is an appropriate response, what would be the most appropriate approach? ## Methods - Interviews - Interviews are conducted face to face and allow for the collection of in-depth information. - This is done by asking probing questions or follow-up questions, such as: - Please explain - Why do you say this? - When did you undergo the training? - What happened during the training? - The main advantages are that the interviewer can seek clarification on issues, they provide an opportunity to build rapport and a wider range of subjects can be addressed, such as unexpected issues that may have arisen. - Disadvantages are that interviewers may influence interviewees; note taking may distract respondents; interviews are expensive and time-consuming; and results are often difficult to analyse if semi-structured or unstructured questions are used. - Focus group - Focus groups are group interviews, whereby a number of employees are interviewed together, for example, the members of a department. - Interviews are conducted in a group setting with the members of the group free to interact and talk to one another. - This is the main advantage of this data-collection method. - The main disadvantage is that more powerful members of the group may dominate the others. - Observation - Observation is the process of observing employees on the job to see if they have mastered the required skills. - Advantages include that one can see if employees have the required skills to perform the job. - Disadvantages are that people often behave differently if they are aware they are being observed and it is both time-consuming and expensive. - Artefacts - Artefacts are examples of physical evidence that are a product of the employee's skills. - An example is products that are produced by an employee (e.g. bicycles), and the quality of a sample of these products is analysed. - A disadvantage is that not all jobs produce tangible results, so this data-collection technique would not be appropriate in a service-orientated environment. - Historical documents - Historical documents include company records, which are a useful indicator of skill levels. - The training manager may review items such as complaints about service, reject records, accident reports or any other records that relate directly to skills and their implementation in the workplace. - The main advantage is that employees are not necessarily aware they are being analysed; - The main disadvantage is that these records were compiled for another purpose and do not always contain all the data required. ## Learning methods - Problem-solving case studies: - Learners are presented with a written description of an organisational problem that they are expected to resolve. - Business games: - Attempt to simulate complex organisational situations that are intended to hone and develop problem-solving and decision-making skills. - Role playing: - Learners are required to act out a management scenario in order to develop their abilities to handle difficult interpersonal situations. - Conference or group discussions: - Involve a structured type of training in which participants are brought together to share ideas and information and solve specific shared management problems. - Action learning: - Is a very complex method which consists of teams of employees who are assembled to work on an actual company-related problem or issue such as developing a new product or solving an organisational issue. ## Other methods - The 360-degree feedback method: - A manager’s performance is appraised by their peers, subordinates and superiors. - Mentoring: - An experienced manager acts as role model for a younger, inexperienced employee and helps the employee understand the requirements of the job. - Coaching: - Is typically a one-on-one relationship between a consultant and a key executive or manager and is designed to help develop and improve the executive's professional performance. - Behaviour modelling: - Involves trainees imitating the behaviour of exceptional job performers. - Job rotation: - Learners are exposed to different jobs and departments to help them get acquainted with all facets of the organisation. - Assessment centres: - A range of procedures, such as role playing, business games, in-baskets and leaderless group discussions, which are used to assess management competency. ## Training versus facilitation - The person delivering the learning intervention performs the role on a continuum that ranges from training, which involves presenting knowledge to learners in a controlled environment, to facilitation, which has a stronger focus on making learning possible by creating an environment conducive to learning. - In facilitation, the learner plays a much more decisive role. ## Developing an instructional plan - Once the outcomes have been determined, a strategy needs to be developed to achieve them. - The instructional plan, also called a learning facilitation strategy, lesson plan or a course map, is a detailed plan as to how a learning programme is to be delivered. - Instructional plans are a tool for keeping on track as you develop materials and can be used as an overview by trainers. The key components that should generally be included: - The title of the training or learning programme. - A course description that emphasises the overall goal of the training programme, together with a brief description of what will be covered. - A list of the learning outcomes that describe what the learner should be able to do after the training programme, including the unit standard if relevant. - The length of the programme in terms of the number of sessions and their duration. ## The levels of learning - Remembering: Retrieving, recognising and recalling relevant knowledge and information from memory. - Understanding: Constructing meaning from information by interpreting, classifying, summarizing, comparing and explaining this. - Applying: Doing something using a particular procedure. - Analysing: Breaking material down into its different parts and explaining how these relate to one another. - Evaluating: Making judgements about content using particular criteria and standards. - Creating: Putting parts/components together in order to devise something new ## Types of knowledge - Factual knowledge: - Knowledge of terminology - Knowledge of specific details and elements. - Conceptual knowledge: - Knowledge of classifications and categories - Knowledge of principles and generalisations - Knowledge of theories, models and structures. - Procedural knowledge: - Knowledge of subject-specific skills and algorithms - Knowledge of subject-specific techniques and methods - Knowledge of criteria for determining when to use appropriate procedures. - Metacognitive knowledge: - Strategic knowledge - Knowledge about cognitive tasks, including appropriate contextual and conditional knowledge - Self-knowledge. ## Assessment of learning - Assessment is "a structured process for obtaining evidence about a learner's competence to make a judgement of competence" - Assessment measures whether the learner has mastered the knowledge, skills and attitudes specified by the outcomes of a learning programme. - An important distinction is made between formative assessment, which is the ongoing assessment process throughout the learning process aimed at providing the learner with feedback about their progress, and summative assessment, which is conducted at the end of the training programme and used to judge overall competence and success. ## Assessment methods - Written tests and exams: - Comprise a range of different types of questions that learners are required to respond to in a specified amount of time. - Used to measure/assess: The recall and application of information Cognitive skills, such as analyses or problem solving. - Oral tests: - The learner answers questions orally, allowing for self-expression and supports the observation of tasks where underlying knowledge and understanding need to be assessed. - Used to measure/assess: The ability to listen, interpret, communicate ideas and sustain a conversation. - Assignments and projects: - A problem-solving or investigative exercise with clear guidelines and a specified length. - Used to measure/assess: Problem-solving ability Integrating information and presenting it in a structured manner. - Case studies: - A description of a real-life or simulated situation accompanied by a number of questions. - Used to measure/assess: The ability to analyse situations Drawing conclusions Deciding on possible courses of action. - Logbooks: - A record of a learner's progress and achievements in the workplace. - Used to measure/assess: Used for monitoring and checking activities and recording processes used and achievements. ## NQF - The NQF has two broad goals: standard setting and quality assurance. - Standard setting involves designing agreed qualifications and their components with the input of subject matter and educational experts. - Quality assurance is the ongoing process of monitoring learning (training) design, delivery and assessment to ensure that training meets the intentions of the designers and the changing needs of learners. - Three quality councils are responsible for this, one for each sub-framework of the NQF: - Umalusi, the quality council for general and further education for schooling and vocational education (levels 1–4 of the NQF). - The Higher Education and Training Quality Council, which is part of the Council for Higher Education, is responsible for academic and professional learning (levels 5-10 of the NQF). - The Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO), which is responsible for the development and registering of standards and qualifications for trades and occupations and focuses on workplace-based learning ## Workplace learning in South Africa - Workplace learning in SA is governed by a number important acts, which include: - The Skills Development Act (97 of 1998 - The Skills Development Levies Act (9 of 1999) - The Skills Development Amendment Acts (31 of 2003) and (37 of 2008). - These acts aim to develop the skills of the South African workforce by: - Increasing the levels of investment in education and training. - Encouraging employers to use the workplace as an active learning environment. - Encouraging workers to participate in learnerships. ## National Occupational Learning System - The DOL established *the national Occupational Learning System (OLS)* to improve work-related (occupational) learning. - The OLS was established as a national tracking system that is used to report on the supply and demand of skills for selected occupational groups in order to facilitate skill-development interventions (DOL, 2008). - The range of learning forms that the OLS recognises is illustrated in Figure 7.5. - The OLS includes *the Occupational Qualifications Framework (OQF)* (as a sub-framework of the NQF 2.0), *the QCTO* as a new standards-setting and quality-assurance body, as well as various innovations relating to the management of learning in business and industry (Kiley & Coetzee, 2016). - The OQF is focused on *providing a structure for designing, delivering and assessing learning that is highly responsive to the demands of the workplace* illustrated in Figure 7.6 (Kiley & Coetzee, 2016). ## Different forms of Learning - Formal - Informal ## Occupational qualification framework - The *OQF enhances the acquisition of occupation-specific, relevant skills in a responsive OLS.* - Like other qualifications, an occupational qualification is the achievement of a planned combination of learning outcomes that meets the SAQA requirements for registration on the NQF. - The key difference is that an occupational qualification is intended to provide learners with *the applied competence to practise an occupation (Kiley & Coetzee, 2016).* ## The scope of occupational qualifications - **General knowledge and theory** - **General practical skills** - **Occupational and specialised practical skills** - **Specialised knowledge and theory** - **Work experience** ## Summary and reflection - Although a distinction is made between education, training and development in workplace learning, all these strategies have the same aim: developing employees to ensure that the organisation functions more effectively to achieve its strategic goals, deliver better customer service or produce high quality goods and services. - Learning in an organisation takes place on three distinct levels: namely, the individual, the team and the organisational levels. - While there is fairly general agreement that learning results in a relatively permanent change in behaviour, there are a number of different theories that attempt to explain the process by which learning takes place. - The fact that we work with adults in organisations needs to be considered, as adults differ significantly from children in the way they learn. - At the same time, however, we need to take cognisance of the fact that not all adults learn in the same way, which is addressed through Kolb and Fry's theory of learning styles. ## The National Qualification Framework - All qualifications in SA are required to be registered on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF), - a national system developed to standardise the South African education and training system right from Grade 1 to PhD level. - The original eight-level NQF 1.0 was introduced in 1995 with the passing of the *South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) Act* (58 of 1995) and underwent a major revision in 2008 with the implementation of the *National Qualifications Framework Act* (67 of 2008). - The NQF is based on the following principles: - Integration: to ensure a unified approach to education and training across different areas and levels of learning and between different components of the learning delivery system. - Relevance: to be responsive to national development needs. - Credibility: to have international and national value and acceptance. - Coherence: to work within a consistent framework of principles and certification. - Flexibility: to allow for multiple pathways to the same learning ends. - Progression: to ensure that the framework of qualifications permits individuals to move through the levels of national qualifications via different combinations of learning programmes. - Standards: to be expressed in terms of a nationally agreed framework and internationally acceptable outcomes. - Legitimacy: to provide for the participation of all national stakeholders in the planning and co-ordination of learning end points. - Access: to provide ease of entry to appropriate levels of education and training for all prospective learners in a manner that facilitates progression. - Portability: to enable learners to transfer credits of qualifications from one learning institution and/or employer to another. - Recognition of prior learning: to give credit to learning that has already been acquired in different ways through assessment. - Every qualification on the NQF is registered on a specific NQF level from one to ten to reflect progression in learning. - The NQF is based on outcomes-based education and training (or learning) and applied competency, which focuses on what learners need to be able to demonstrate at completion of a qualification. - "The word outcomes refers to everything that is learnt, including social and personal skills, the activities of learning, how to learn and concepts, knowledge, methodologies, values and attitudes” - The outcomes for a qualification or part qualification (learning units) are described in a unit standard. Unit standards are the building blocks of qualifications. - A unit standard is the smallest learning achievement that can be credited to a learner on the NQF and is a description of the evidence someone will be able to demonstrate of having mastered a skill at a particular NQF level - As illustrated in Figure 7.4, the NQF 2.0 is organised into three distinct sub-frameworks: - The General and Further Education and Training Qualifications Framework (GFETQF). - The Higher Education Qualifications Framework (HEQF). - The Occupational Qualifications Framework (OQF). ## Workplace learning in the South African context - South Africa is faced with a number of challenges that impact directly on the delivery of training, learning and development. - These include high levels of poverty; high levels of inequality in education in terms of race, gender and disability; national skills shortages and high levels of unemployment - The Department of Labour (DOL) launched the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS) and the National Human Resource Development Strategy and implemented legislation governing the education and training of employees in South African workplaces. - The vision of the NSDS is to contribute "... to sustainable development of skills growth, development and equity of skills development institutions by aligning their work and resources to the skills needs for effective delivery and implementation" - On a national level, the aim of the NSDS is to support growth, enhance global competitiveness and compel employment equity. - "At enterprise level, it is all about people, productivity and profit: people in that it supports personal development and career opportunities; productivity in that people development is linked to enterprise strategy and builds a smarter human-resource base; and profit in that increased productivity leads to growth" ## Training legislation in South Africa - South African organisations have to comply with a number of laws (acts) aimed at achieving the objectives of the NSDS, including the *National Qualifications Framework Act* (67 of 2008) and *the Skills Development Amendment Act* (37 of 2008). ## Workplace learning interventions - The effective delivery of any workplace learning intervention "does not just depend on the selection of an appropriate delivery method, but also on the expertise, techniques and learning materials used to support the facilitation of learning" - It is a reality that however well designed any learning intervention is, if it is not delivered effectively, it will fail. - Common training methods are: - Problem-solving case studies: Learners are presented with a written description of an organisational problem that they are expected to resolve. - Business games: Attempt to simulate complex organisational situations that are intended to hone and develop problem-solving and decision-making skills. - Role playing: Learners are required to act out a management scenario in order to develop their abilities to handle difficult interpersonal situations. - Conference or group discussions: Involve a structured type of training in which participants are brought together to share ideas and information and solve specific shared management problems. - Action learning: Is a very complex method which consists of teams of employees who are assembled to work on an actual company-related problem or issue such as developing a new product or solving an organisational issue. - The 360-degree feedback method: A manager’s performance is appraised by their peers, subordinates and superiors. - Mentoring: An experienced manager acts as role model for a younger, inexperienced employee and helps the employee understand the requirements of the job. - Coaching: Is typically a one-on-one relationship between a consultant and a key executive or manager and is designed to help develop and improve the executive's professional performance. - Behaviour modelling: Involves trainees imitating the behaviour of exceptional job performers. - Job rotation: Learners are exposed to different jobs and departments to help them get acquainted with all facets of the organisation. - Assessment centres: A range of procedures, such as role playing, business games, in-baskets and leaderless group discussions, which are used to assess management competency. ## **Training versus facilitation** - The person delivering the learning intervention performs the role on a continuum that ranges from training, which involves presenting knowledge to learners in a controlled environment, to facilitation, which has a stronger focus on making learning possible by creating an environment conducive to learning. In facilitation, the learner plays a much more decisive role. ## **Workplace learning needs analysis** - The goal of an analysis process is to diagnose the true nature of a performance problem together with the sources of the problem. This may seem straightforward; however, the end results of an analysis often differ significantly from the initial problem brought to the attention of the human-resource function within the organisation. - As Peterson (1998: 6) points out, “[p]erhaps the number-one rule in analysing training needs is to keep in mind that training is not necessarily the answer to performance problems”. - In fact, if training is adopted too quickly to resolve organisational problems it may become part of the problem. - Training needs analysis comprises three aspects: - Developing a list of the tasks performed in a job. - Verifying that these are a valid representation of that job. - Analysing what a person needs to know and be able to do in order to meet the performance standards of the job. - Employees in the particular job are then measured against the required levels of workplace expertise. This form of analysis is normally conducted for jobs that are fairly simplistic in nature as it ignores facts such as how these tasks relate to the team or organisation. - A second technique is to analyse the work processes. This involves using flow charts to create a map of the processes that are followed to create the products or services that are delivered by the organisation. - A more complex version of this is a systems tasks analysis. The systems in modern organisations are increasingly complex and abstract, hence the organisation needs to be analysed as a complex system with multiple relationships, as opposed to a linear process where one step is followed by the next. - Most contemporary work comprises knowledge tasks, such as “work of thinking, analyzing, and deciding, which is not visible" - Use is, therefore, often made of a knowledge task analysis. - This examines people-people and people-idea workplace expertise. - Workplace expertise is "... the level at which a person is able to perform within a specialised realm of human activity" - One aspect of a job analysis is determining the expertise that is required by the incumbent to perform effectively in the specific job. - Once the training manager or practitioner has identified the expertise required to achieve the strategic plan of the organisation, a skills audit can be conducted to measure the collective skills and knowledge held by members of an organisation. - A skills audit contains three key aspects: - first, setting up a picture/map of the skills required by the organisation (which is a breakdown of the skills currently required by the organisation in order to achieve its strategic goals); - second, identifying the skills that will be required in the future to master new technologies and other changes in the organisation; - and, third, identifying the skills required by individual employees in order to perform their jobs effectively, which will, in turn, allow them to achieve the skills and objectives that are directly related to their jobs. - A list of skills is compiled, based on the organisation's strategic plan. - This is then linked to the various posts within the organisation, including the occupational profiles on the Organising Framework for Occupations (OFO). - An audit is then conducted to compare the employee's current level of skills to the required performance levels and skills levels specified for an occupation in the OFO. - This is particularly important in the South African context as it is necessary in order to complete a workplace skills plan and annual training report, which are required by the Skills Development Act (97 of 1998); the Employment Equity Act (55 of 1998); and the Employment Equity Amendment Act (47 of 2013). ## Collection of the data required for an analysis - The four major methods available for data collection are questionnaires, interviews, observations and unobtrusive measures. - The choice of data-collection technique will depend on the type of data that needs to be collected, the amount of time and money available and the personal preferences of the analyst - A key recommendation in collecting data for an analysis is that it is preferable to use more than one method to ensure validity. - The key data-collection methods are summarised in Table 7.6. ## Designing learning interventions - Once the performance problem has been correctly analysed, the second step involves designing the work-based learning intervention. - At this stage, it is important to ensure that the intervention is designed in such a way that it addresses the problems identified in the analysis. - Only then does the actual delivery of the intervention take place. - The technical aspects of the different approaches and the skills of the trainer/facilitator play a key role in the delivery of the intervention. - It then remains to determine the competence of the learners by means of assessment, whereby the learner's performance is measured against the outcomes that have been set for the programme. - Finally, the effectiveness of the intervention is determined by evaluating the programme, which entails measuring whether it has met the outcomes that were set, and how efficiently this was done. ## Analysing performance deficits - The reason for conducting an analysis in an organisation is to identify the nature and causes of a gap in the organisation's performance. - Analysis answers the questions, 'what exists?' and 'what should exist?' - The fundamental reason for conducting an analysis is that systematic and thorough workplace diagnosis and documentation provide the true basis for improving performance at the organisational, process and worker levels - The analysis of performance problems within an organisation implies the accurate diagnosis of actual and desired performance at the individual, process, work-team and organisational levels of performance. - When conducting an analysis, it is important to view an organisation as a system, as "an interrelated set of elements functioning as a whole" - Performance thus occurs on a number of interrelated levels in the organisation, and it is important that the analysis includes both the nature of the performance problem as well as the level at which it occurs within the organisation. - The rationale for this is that a problem that exists, for example, on the organisational level, such as an unproductive culture, cannot be effectively addressed by an intervention that takes place on the individual level, such as skills training. - A distinction can be made between performance on the organisational, process, team and individual job/performer levels. - On the organisational level, questions are asked about the overall performance of the organisation, which can involve variables such as organisational goals, structure, culture and performance. - The process level examines issues such as the operation of key processes and the steps and jobs that are crucial to operate these effectively. - On the individual level, the analysis focuses on whether the employee has the necessary competence, that is, knowledge, skills and attitude to perform the job effectively. - Swanson and Holton III (2009) add a further dimension in the analysis of performance, on the team level, as modern organisations rely heavily on the performance of teams and it is therefore necessary to analyse both team performance and the dynamics of the relationships between team members. ## Learning styles - Learning involves all four of these processes as they each entail different cognitive processes. - However, learners tend to favour some over others. - Kolb and Fry identified four distinct learning styles that comprise a combination of two of the phases that a particular group of learners tends to favour over the other processes - Converger: - Abstract conceptualisation and active experimentation - Enjoys practically applying theory - Performs better where there is a single correct answer to a problem - Uses deductive reasoning extensively - Prefers dealing with things as opposed to people - Narrow range of interests and often specialises in a specific field. - Diverger: - Concrete experience and reflective observation - Imaginative and easily generates ideas - Is able to view issues from different perspectives - Interested in people and cultures - Often specialises in the humanities and arts. - Assimilator: - Abstract conceptualisation and reflective observation - Excels at creating theoretical models - Strong in inductive reasoning - More concerned with abstract concepts than practical application - Works well in research and planning. - Accommodator: - Concrete experience and active experimentation. - Strength lies in doing - Tends to take risks - Performs best when needs to make quick decisions and solve problems - Solves problems using intuition - Relies on others for information - Performs well in action-orientated jobs such as marketing and sales. ## Implications of learning styles - The implications of learning styles are that the trainer needs to acknowledge that groups of learners are diverse in the way they learn and should include activities that favour each of the styles. - The activities should also be structured in the sequence of the experiential learning cycle (MacKeracher, 2004: 63). - Online or eLearning, including social media and social networking sites (SNS), is becoming popular in the learning and development domain (Donelan, 2015) and trainers therefore need to consider the learning styles of SNS user groups. - A differentiation can be made between three user groups based on Internet and social networks: - Introvert users: Send private messages, contact friends, update their profiles less frequently and typically use the Internet and SNS less than once a week for less than an hour. - Versatile users: Update their profiles, share photos, send private messages and search for friends; they might look for information and send public messages less frequently; they typically use the Internet and SNS several times a week for over an hour a week. - Expert communicators: Do all of the activities that introvert and versatile users engage in, but more frequently. They may also share ideas/reflections, make comments on other users' profiles/photos, send public messages, examine other users' profiles and inform others about products. They typically use the Internet and SNS more than once a day for over an hour a week. - During the progression of the course, the facilitator will discover which group individuals belong to through their use of (or lack thereof) online resources and social media. - It is, therefore, important that trainers acknowledge that groups of learners are diverse in the way they learn and should therefore include activities that favour each of the styles and user group profiles. - The activities should follow the sequence of the experiential learning cycle, and trainers should avoid putting active experimentation activities at the end without giving learners the opportunity for feedback or discussion (MacKeracher, 2004:63), - Collaborative learning and using social networks for interactive discussions should be considered for the reflective observation and active experimentation learning components. - Learners belonging to Generation Y or the Millennial generation (born between 1981-1996) place a great deal of value on experiential and personal learning as well as using their peers and mentors for development - Formal learning programmes (10 per cent) and feedback from peers, mentors and coaches (20 per cent) are additional important activities of the learning cycle (Meister & Willyerd, 2010). - The current generation, Generation Z (born after 1996) are the most educated generation yet and are more likely to have at least one parent with a university education - Generation Z learners have extensive access to technology and generally have more technological know-how than those conducting the training, are constantly connected, and prefer learner-based learning that includes interactive methodologies that are creative and diverse (Cilliers, 2017). - Although it is important to understanding how and why adults learn, the fact that the purpose of workplace learning is essentially to make the organisation more effective and efficient cannot be ignored. ## The purpose of workplace learning - Both public and private organisations in South African face a number of challenges that training, learning and development efforts can help to resolve - Workplace learning, and specifically training and development, are the ways in which information is communicated, knowledge is created and employees are provided with skills in an organisation. ## The purpose of education, training and development in organisations - The primary reason for any learning intervention in an organisation is to solve performance problems, including both current and future performance problems, i.e. dealing with current shortcomings in performance and avoiding future performance problems by preparing employees for the implementation of new systems and processes. - Improving performance on all levels of the organisation by providing the members of the organisation with the necessary knowledge, skills, experience and attitudes to function effectively. - Training, learning and development are used to inform new employees about the policies, procedures, processes and culture of the organisation that they have joined. - It is necessary to update employee skills in order to ensure that they are up to date with the latest technologies and other changes in the marketplace. - Preparing managers for promotion within the organisation that entails their assuming new duties and responsibilities. - Keeping managers up to date with the latest processes and methods that will allow them to function effectively, and ensuring that the organisation stays up to date with the latest trends in the marketplace. - People have a need for personal growth and development. Learning, training and development play a significant role both in esteem needs as well as enabling self-actualisation. - Addressing national skills shortages by managing the quality of occupationally-specific skills-based training, learning and development, and assessment, in accordance with the national skills development legislation. - SA has high levels of functionally illiterate adults, requiring organisations to implement programmes to improve the basic numeracy and literacy skills of many of their employees. - Creating organisations in which learning is a priority and where all activities in the organisation are aimed at improvement, and staying abreast of the latest developments in the workplace. ## The learner's readiness to learn is dependent on - Their stage of development - The social roles that they fulfil. - Learners have different orientations to learn, which are reflected in individual learning styles. - The motivation to learn differs between learners in that there is a wide range of motives that induce individual adult learners to participate in any given learning intervention - Adults also have many other responsibilities that have to be considered when they are being trained. These include: - Family responsibilities for their own and/or extended family, such as looking after children or family members, cooking, household duties, shopping, paying accounts and managing household expenses. - Taking care of their own health needs. - Managers who have expectations of them in the workplace. - Differing work responsibilities, such as working overtime or shifts. - Transportation of themselves and others. This is often a challenge in Africa where public transport is unreliable. - Keeping professional appointments that may interfere with the training. ## Different ways of learning - "Active learning or the construction of knowledge entails information processing beyond passive responses to stimuli or encoding verbatim ... whatever input has been provided." - This implies that individuals differ in the way that they attend to and process learning materials "based on prior knowledge, understanding, values, attitudes, styles, and resultant motivation" - Learning styles therefore refer to differences in the preferences that learners have in the use of their abilities ## Africanistaion of learning - The theories discussed so far are Eurocentric as they emanate from Europe and the United States. - A major theme when examining theories of learning is the Africanisation of higher education, training and development in general. - The Africanisation of learning can be regarded as a dual approach in that Africans aim to advocate African aspirations and ideals, ancestry, cultural heritage, ideas, rights and interests in a manner that builds and maintains their self-concept and own rationality in an intercultural context. - An important aspect of Africanisation is that other cultural groups need to respect and accommodate Africans' efforts to realise these aims. - Msila (2009) argues that African societies will be strengthened when education represents indigenous knowledge systems. - Understanding why and how people learn are important considerations for the design and implementation of learning strategies on an individual, team and organisational level. - Insight into how people learn and acquire skills and abilities for effective job performance enables managers, I-O psychologists and HR practitioners to develop strategies to increase individual competence and ability and consequently increase organisational flexibility, adaptation and performance ## Adults as learners - Adults learn in a different way to children. The study of adult learning is known as andragogy, which refers to the "art and science of helping adults learn" - In a classic study of why adults participate in continuing education, Houle identified three categories of learners, namely goal-orientated learners, who study to achieve a particular goal in their lives, such as promotion; activity-orientated learners, who find the learning experience meaningful in itself and whose emphasis is on social contact and the type of relationships that the learning experience yields; and learning-orientated learners, who seek knowledge for its own sake and participate in learning experiences on the basis of the potential for growth that these experiences offer. - There are a number of key principles