CHAPTER 7: Training

What is Training

Training is a planned programme designed to improve performance

and bring about measurable changes in knowledge, skills, attitude
and social behaviour of employees.

Features of Training
 Increases knowledge and skills for doing a particular job
 Focuses attention on the individual job.
 Concentrates on individual employees
 Gives importance to short term performance

Training is essential for job success. It can lead to higher

production, fewer mistakes, greater job satisfaction and lower
turnover.

Training
 Need For Training

 helps new recruits to perform assigned tasks effectively

 helps existing employees to prepare for higher level jobs
 enables existing employees to keep in touch with latest developments
 permits employees to cope with changes brought in by frequent transfers
 makes employees more versatile, mobile, flexible and useful to the organisation
 bridges the gap what the employee has and what the job demands

Training
 Training vs. Development

Training is concerned with teaching specific job related skills and behaviour.
Development is future oriented training, focusing on the personal growth of
the employee.

Training vs. Development

Learning Dimension Training Development
Meant for Operatives Executives
Focus Current job Current and future jobs
Scope Individual employee Work group or organisation
Goal Fix current skill deficit Prepare for future work demands
Initiated by Management The Individual
Content Specific job related information General Knowledge
Time-frame Immediate Long term

Training
 Learning, Training, Development and
Education

 Development: Skills and abilities get enhanced through

growth of individuals, and this results in education and
learning, this may take place either through conscious
and unconscious learning. Whereas, development
involves coaching , mentoring and other related aspects.

 Training: Has a narrower focus than education and

learning. It tends to concentrate on skill development.
After training, one is clear about what people are to
accomplish once it is over.
Defining Learning and Development

 Learning and development can be defined as a

collective progress which aids in the organizational
process through facilitation, collaborative and expert
stimulation and indepth knowledge which helps in
supporting business goals and thereby leads to
developing the employee potential and respect.
Learning Theories
 Theory of classical conditioning: People could be conditioned to
behave in a certain way.

 Theory of operant condition: Learning in people could be affected by

reinforcement—positive, negative or intermittent.

 The social learning theory: People learn by watching others to

behave in a social situation and then imitate or model their behaviour
after that person.

 Cognitive learning process: Learning is a sequence which processes

information at three stages—perception stage which gives attention to
absorbing from the environment; a second mentally active stage which
makes sense of the information; and finally a restructuring and a
storage phase.
Kolb’s Learning Cycle
Strategic Model of Training
 Areas And Types of Training

The various types of training that are commonly employed in

present-day organisations may be listed thus.
Types of training
 Skills training: here certain basic skills like reading, writing, computing, speaking,
listening, problem solving etc are taught
 Refresher training: here the focus is on short term courses that would help employees
learn about latest developments in their respective fields
 Cross functional training: this helps employees perform operations in areas other than
their assigned job.
 Team training: this is concerned with how team members should communicate with
each other, how they should cooperate to get ahead, how they should handle conflictful
situations, how to find their way using collective wisdom etc.
 Creativity training: this helps employees to think unconventionally, break the rules,
take risks, go out of the box and develop unexpected solutions.
 Diversity training: it aims to create better cross cultural sensitivity with the aim of
fostering more harmonious and fruitful working relationships among a firm's employees
 Literacy training: this is generally offered to those employees with weak reading,
writing or arithmetic skills.

Training
 How to be more creative?

 Thermax: At Thermax (over 1200 employees nearly Rs. 600 crore turnover, 6 per
cent attrition rate) high-potential individuals are given greater exposure, high
visibility and asked to chart out a career vision through an ongoing dialogue.
 GCPL: Godrej Consumer Products Ltd’s (1052 employees, nearly Rs. 500 crore
sales) talent management system allows bright employees to acquire a wide
variety of skills through job rotation (e.g., sales systems, project management
skills, IT skills, Team building skills etc.). Outstanding performers get salary
increase instantaneously.
 Sapient Corporation: (914 employees with over $ 202 million global sales). At
Sapient employees work on 48-50 projects at any given time. Some of these are
executed entirely by the local employees from their Gurgaon and Bangalore
offices.
 Johnson & Johnson: (1419 employees with over $ 41,000 million global sales)
J&J constantly encourages its employees to upgrade their skills and knowledge
through short-term programmes at institutes like the IIMs, XLRI etc. apart from
rotating employees on challenging tasks.

Cont…

Training
 How to be more creative?

 Monsanto India: (354 employees with nearly $ 5,000 global sales) Monsanto
sets stiff targets for employees, but trains employees with a rare rigour so that
they get a fair shot at those. People identified as future leaders are given internal
international positions.
 P&G: (Over Rs. 750 crore sales and powerful brands like Vicks, Tide, Ariel,
Pantene, Pampers, Head and Shoulders, etc.) P&G relies on the
promote-from-within philosophy’. It hires freshers straight out of B-school, trains
and empowers them to handle challenging jobs from day 1. Says a new recruit
from IIM Ahmedabad: “I am two months old in the company and already handling
a new brand launch”.

[BT-Hewitt Study, 2003; BT-Mercer-TNS Study, 2004; Grow Talent Study, B. World, 1.9.2003 and 6.12.2004]

Training
 A Systematic Approach To Training

A systematic approach to training would consist of three phases: training

needs assessment, implementation and evaluation

Training needs assessment

Training efforts must aim at meeting the needs of the organisation and the
individual employees. This, essentially, involves three types of analysis:
a. Organisational analysis: This is a study of the entire organisation in
terms of its objectives, utilisation of resources to achieve objectives etc.
 Analysis of objectives
 Resource utilisation analysis
 Environmental scanning
 Organisational climate analysis

Training
 Training needs assessment

b. Task or role analysis: this is a detailed examination of a job, its

components, its various operations and conditions under which it has to
be performed.

c. Person analysis: here the focus is on the individual in a given job;

whether training is needed, whether the employee is capable of being
trained, and the areas where the training is needed.

Training
 Identify training objectives

Objectives of training

OBJECTIVE

Innovative Problems Solving Regular

 Anticipating problems  Training clerks to  Orientation
before they occur reduce complaints
 Team building  Training supervisors  Recurring training of
sessions with the in communications interviewers
departments to reduce grievances
 Refresher courses on
safety procedures

Training
 Training Methods

 On the job training: Job instruction training (JIT ),coaching, mentoring, job
rotation
 Off the job training: Vestibule training, Role playing, Lecture method,
Conference or discussion method, Programmed instruction

Training
 On The Job Training Methods

 Job instruction training (JIT): This is training directly received on the

job. Here the trainee receives an overview of the job. The trainer actually
demonstrates the job and the trainee is asked to copy the trainer’s way.
The trainee, finally, tries to perform the job independently.
Merits and demerits of job instruction
training
Merits Demerits
 Trainee learns fast through practice and observation.  The trainee should be as good as the trainer.
If the trainer is not good, transference of
knowledge and skills will be poor.
 It is economical as it does not require any special  While learning, trainee may damage equipment,
settings. Also, mistakes can be corrected immediately. waste materials, cause accidents frequently.
 The trainee gains confidence quickly as he  Experienced workers cannot use the machinery
does the work himself in actual setting with while it is being used for training.
help from supervisor.
 It is most suitable for unskilled and semi-skilled jobs
where the job operations are simple; easy to explain

Training
 On The Job Training Methods
 Coaching: Here the supervisor explains things and answers questions;
throws light on why things are done the way they are; offers a model for
trainees to copy, conducts lot of decision making meetings, and allows
trainees freedom to commit mistakes and learn. Coaching, thus, requires
lot of teaching skills.

 Mentoring: The use of an experienced person to teach and train

someone with less knowledge and experience in a given area is known
as mentoring. The mentor nurtures, supports and guides the efforts of
young persons by giving appropriate information, feedback and
encouragement whenever required.

Training
 Functions of Mentoring
Good mentors......
 Listen and understand
 Challenge and stimulate
learning
 Coach
 Build self-confidence
 Provide wise counsel
 Teach by example
 Act as role model
 Share experiences
 Offer encouragement
Good mentees......
 Listen
 Act on Advice
 Show commitment to learn
 Check ego at the door
Successful  Ask for feedback
Mentoring
 Are open minded
 Are willing to change
 Are proactive

Training
 On The Job Training Methods

 Job rotation: This kind of training involves the movement of trainee from
one job to another.

Merits and demerits of Job rotation

Merits Demerits
 Improves participant’s job skills, job satisfaction Increased workload for participants
 Provides valuable opportunities to network within Constant job change may produce
the organisation stress and anxiety
 Offers faster promotions and higher salaries to Mere multiplication of duties do not
quick learners enrich the life of a trainee
trainees commit mistakes, handle tasks
less optimally

Training
 Off The Job Training Methods
 Vestibule training: It occurs off the job on equipment or methods that
are highly similar to those used on the job.

 Role playing: This is a development technique requiring the trainee to

assume a role in a given situation and act out behaviours associated with
that role.

 Lecture method: Here the instructor organises the study material on a

specific topic and offers it to a group of trainees in the form of a talk.

 Conference or discussion method: In this method the trainer delivers

a lecture and involves the trainees in a discussion so that the doubts
about the job to be undertaken get clarified.

 Programmed instruction: This is an approach that puts material to be

learned into highly organised logical sequences that require the trainees
to respond
Training
 Evaluation of A Training Programme

Training can be evaluated at five levels: reaction, learning, behaviour,

organisation and results.
Important decision points in training evaluation may be listed thus;

Important decision points in planning

training evaluation
 Should an evaluation be made?
 Who should evaluate?
 What is the purpose of evaluation?
 What will be measured?
 How comprehensive will the evaluation be?
 Who has the authority and responsibility?
 What are the sources of data?
 How will the data be collected and evaluated?
 How will the data be analysed and reported?

Training
Phase 4: Evaluating the Training Program

Measuring program effectiveness

Criterion 1: Trainee reactions

Criterion 2: Extent of learning

Criterion 3: Learning transfer to job

Criterion 4: Results assessment

Criteria for Evaluating Training
 Criterion 1: Reactions

• Participant Reactions
 The simplest and most common approach to training
evaluation is assessing trainees.
 Potential questions might include the following:
– What were your learning goals for this program?
– Did you achieve them?
– Did you like this program?
– Would you recommend it to others who have similar
learning goals?
– What suggestions do you have for improving the program?
– Should the organization continue to offer it?
 Criterion 2: Learning

• Checking to see whether they actually

learned anything.
 Testing knowledge and skills before beginning a
training program gives a baseline standard on
trainees that can be measured again after training
to determine improvement.
 However, in addition to testing trainees, test
employees who did not attend the training to
estimate the differential effect of the training.
 Criterion 3: Behavior

• Transfer of Training
 Effective application of principles learned to what is
required on the job.
• Maximizing the Transfer of Training
1. Feature identical elements
2. Focus on general principles
3. Establish a climate for transfer.
4. Give employees transfer strategies
 Criterion 3: Behavior (cont.)

• Measuring the Utility of Training Programs

 Calculating the benefits derived from training:
– How much did quality improve because of the training
program?
– How much has it contributed to profits?
– What reduction in turnover and wasted materials did the
company get after training?
– How much has productivity increased and by how much
have costs been reduced?
 Criterion 4: Results, or Return on Investment
(ROI)

• Measuring the Utility of Training Programs

 Calculating the benefits derived from training:
– How much did quality improve because of the training
program?
– How much has it contributed to profits?
– What reduction in turnover and wasted materials did the
company get after training?
– How much has productivity increased and by how much
have costs been reduced?
 Criterion 4: Results, or Return on Investment
(ROI) (cont.)

• Return on Investment
 Viewing training in terms of the extent to which it
provides knowledge and skills that create a competitive
advantage and a culture that is ready for continuous
change.
 ROI = Results/Training Costs
– If the ROI ratio is >1, the benefits of the training
exceed the cost of the program
– If the ROI ratio is <1, the costs of the training
exceed the benefits.
 Criterion 4: Results (cont.)

• Benchmarking
 The process of measuring one’s own services and
practices against the recognized leaders in order to
identify areas for improvement.
– Training activity: How much training is occurring?
– Training results: Do training and development achieve
their goals?
– Training efficiency: Are resources utilized in the pursuit of
this mission?
 Criterion 4: Results (cont.)

• Deming’s Benchmarking Model

1. Plan: conduct a self-audit to identify areas for
benchmarking.
2. Do: collect data about activities.
3. Check: Analyze data.
4. Act: Establish goals, implement changes, monitor
progress, and redefine benchmarks.
 Thank you