Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
Chapter 8
Training Human Resources
Learning Objectives:
After students have read this chapter, they should be able to:
• Define training and discuss why a strategic approach is important.
• Identify three types of analyses used to determine training needs.
Chapter Overview
Training is a process whereby people acquire capabilities to perform jobs. This chapter
examines training and HR, training and organizational strategy, training for global
strategies, planning for training, training needs assessment, training design, training
delivery, and training evaluation. The chapter first examines training and HR including the
The relevant phases or components of effective training programs consist of:
• Assessment
• Design
• Delivery
Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
• Evaluation
Each of these is described in some detail. Training needs assessment includes three types
of organization analyses—organizational, job/task, and individual—and establishing
training objectives and priorities. Training design addresses learner characteristics,
instructional strategies, and transfer of training. Training delivery covers internal training;
external training; combination training such as cooperative training; and e-learning/on-line
training.
Chapter Outline
Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
Businesses must change if they are to survive because the environment in which they
compete changes. For this reason, employee training is an ongoing process for most
organizations. In the United States more than $126 billion is spent on training annually, or
more than $1,000 per employee on average.
I. Training and Human Resources
Common training topics include, among others, safety, customer service, computer skills,
HR Headline: Tuition Reimbursement for New Skills Training
Amazon.com recently started a program that allows full-time employees to enroll in
college courses of their choice. The policy, called the Amazon Career Course Program,
was developed to enhance workers’ skills and to provide individuals the opportunity to
The motivation to provide such a training benefit is driven by the notion that Amazon can
help employees plan and train now for their future professional pursuits whether with the
company or another. Amazon also wanted to provide an innovative program to employees
when many other companies are scaling back on benefits, thus enhancing the firm’s ability
to effectively recruit and keep good talent.
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quality initiatives, dealing with sexual harassment, and communication. Benefits of well-
done training for individuals include:
• Enhanced skills
A. Training Categories
Training can be designed to meet many objectives and can be classified in various ways.
Some common groupings of training include the following (Figure 8-1):
• Required and regular training—complies with various mandated legal
requirements (e.g., OSHA and EEO) and is given to all employees (e.g., new
B. Legal Issues and Training
Many legal issues must be considered when designing and delivering training. One
concern centers on the criteria and practices used to select individuals for inclusion in
training programs. Organizations need to make sure these factors are job related and do
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II. Organizational Strategy and Training
Training represents a significant expenditure for most employers. However, it is too often
viewed tactically rather than strategically, which means that training is seen as a short-term
activity rather than one that has longer-term effects on organizational success. However,
this may be changing.
A. Strategic Training
Training can help the organization accomplish its goals. That requires HR and training
professionals to get involved with the business and partner with operating managers to
B. Organizational Competitiveness and Training
Companies like General Electric and Dell recognize that training efforts can be integral
to business success. For these companies, training is similar to the “continuous
improvement” practiced by some manufacturing firms.
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shows how training may help accomplish certain organizational strategies. Ideally,
upper management sees the training function as providing valuable intelligence about
the necessary core skills.
Knowledge Management
As the information age has evolved, “intelligence” has become the raw material that
many organizations make and sell through their “knowledge workers.” Knowledge
Training as a Revenue Source and Other Positive Outcomes
Some organizations have identified that training can be a source of business revenue,
as well as other positive outcomes. For instance, Microsoft, Ceridian, and other
technology firms bundle customer training with products and services they sell. Also,
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Integration of Performance with Training
Job performance, training, and employee learning must be integrated to be effective,
and HR plays a crucial role in this integration. Organizations find that training
Sales Training
Organizational competitiveness in many industries hinges on the success of the sales
HR Skills and Applications: Building Support for Training
Some executives are not very interested in training and see such efforts as a
serious cost to businesses. Consequently, HR professionals need to make a strong
case for training in by showing how individual learning can enhance the bottom
line. In particular, they must effectively communicate to top leaders how training
activities prompt positive results in the organization, especially if they want to
generate sustained support for these programs in the long term.
HR managers can explore many questions when trying to build a strong argument
for training:
• Is there a definite link between training and business outcomes?
The best way for HR professionals to build support for training inside the
organization is to consider the following steps:
• Utilize the data that is generated from a company’s financial and operational
Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
function. Innovative products or services require well-prepared professional sales
people to inform the appropriate audience. A key element in sales force success is
often the training opportunities available. While slightly over one-third of firms can
directly connect sales training to improved sales or ROI, 85% do track such measures
as increase in closes, improved client relationships, and reduction in cost per sale as a
result of sales training.
Sales training can cover a wide variety of skills:
• Call execution
• Presentation skills
• Negotiation skills
• Strategy development
• Other skills that lend themselves well to simulation of the sales situation
C. Global Competitiveness and Training
For a global firm, the most brilliant strategies ever devised will not serve to improve
competitiveness unless the company has well-trained employees throughout the world
Global Assignment Training
The orientation and training that expatriates and their families receive before
departure significantly affect the success of the overseas assignment. When these
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programs are offered, most expatriates participate in them, usually producing a
positive effect on cross-cultural adjustment. Also, training helps expatriates and their
families adjust to and deal with host-country counterparts.
Intercultural Competence Training
Global employers are providing intercultural competence training for their global
employees. Intercultural competence incorporates a wide range of human social
skills and personality characteristics. Three components of intercultural competence
Increasingly, global employers are using training methods that allow individuals to
behave in international situations and then receive feedback. One method is the
Cultural Assimilator. Used worldwide, especially by European-based firms, the
III. Planning for Training
Planning includes looking at the big picture in which the training takes place, as well as
specifics for the design of a particular training effort. For example, the needs for skills
have changed over time and soft skills like adaptability, problem solving, and
professionalism have increased in value in some firms. Planning that recognizes and
includes changes such as these may make for a more effective training program.
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• Identifying critical employees
Training plans allow organizations to identify what is needed for employee performance
before training begins so that fit between training and strategic issues is secured. Effective
training efforts consider the following questions:
• Is there really a need for the training?
A. Planning for New Employees: Orientation/Onboarding
A good example of one kind of training that requires planning is orientation. Also called
onboarding, orientation is the most important and widely conducted type of regular
training done for new employees.
Orientation, which is the planned introduction of new employees to their jobs,
Among the decisions to be made during planning new employee orientation are what to
present and equally important, when to present it. Too much information on the first day
leads to perceptions of ineffective onboarding. Several shorter sessions over a longer
period of time, bringing in information as it is needed, are more effective. Effective
orientation achieves several key purposes:
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• Accelerates socialization and integration of the new employee into the
organization
• Ensures that employee performance and productivity begin more quickly
Electronic Orientation Resources
One way of expanding the efficiency of orientation is to use electronic resources.
Most employers have implemented some kind of electronic onboarding activities to
improve their employee orientation efforts. Many employers place general employee
orientation information on company intranets or corporate websites. New employees
B. Orientation: Evaluation and Metrics
HR Perspective: Satisfying the Millennial Generation with Innovative Onboarding
Effective employee onboarding requires careful planning and preparation, but the
orientation process also needs to be innovative enough to get employees excited
about working for the company. Fox Filmed Entertainment has designed such an
onboarding program to better connect with its tech-oriented and motivated workforce,
which is staffed with many individuals from the millennial generation.
individuals’ employment experiences.
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Measurement should be made of the success of both the orientation program and the
new hires themselves. Suggested metrics include the following:
• Tenure turnover rate—what percentage of new hires of six months or less left the
organization?
Successfully integrating new hires is important, and measuring the degree of success
allows the orientation program to be managed well. The way in which a firm plans,
organizes, and structures its training affects the way employees experience the training,
IV. Training Needs Assessment
Assessing organizational training needs is the diagnostic phase of a training plan. This
assessment considers issues related to employee and organizational performance to
determine if training can help. Needs assessment measures the competencies of a company,
a group, or an individual as they relate to what is required. It is necessary to find out what
A. Analysis of Training Needs
The first step in assessing training needs is analyzing what training might be necessary.
Figure 8-5 shows the three sources used to analyze training needs.
Organizational Analysis
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Training needs can be diagnosed by analyzing organizational outcomes and looking
at future organizational needs. A part of planning for training is the identification of
the KSAs that will be needed now and in the future as both jobs and the organization
change. Both internal and external forces will influence training and must be
considered when doing organizational analysis.
Job/Task Analysis
A second level of analyzing training needs is to review the jobs involved and the
tasks performed. By comparing the requirements of jobs with the KSAs of
employees, training needs can be identified.
Individual Analysis
The third means of diagnosing training needs focuses on individuals and how they
perform their jobs. The following sources are examples that are useful for individual
analysis:
• Performance appraisals
• Skill tests
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Another way of assessing individual training needs is to use both managerial and
nonmanagerial or peer input about the kind of training that is needed. Individuals can
also identify their own training needs. Obtaining this kind of input can be useful in
building support for the training from those who will be trained, as they help to
identify training needs. Tests can be a good means of individual-level analysis.
B. Establishing Training Objectives and Priorities
Once training requirements have been identified using needs analyses, training
objectives and priorities can be established by a “gap analysis,” which indicates the
distance between where an organization is with its employee capabilities and where it
needs to be. Training objectives and priorities are then determined to close the gap.
Three types of training objectives can be set:
• Attitude—creating interest in and awareness of the importance of something (e.g.,
sexual harassment training)
V. Training Design
Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
Once training objectives have been determined, training design can start. Whether job-
specific or broader in nature, training must be designed to address the specific objectives.
Effective training design considers the learners and instructional strategies as well as how
best to get the training from class to the job.
A. Learner Characteristics
For training to be successful, learners must be ready and able to learn. Learner readiness
means that individuals have the ability to learn. However, individuals also must have
the motivation to learn, have high confidence, see value in learning, and have a learning
style that fits the training.
Ability to Learn
Learners must possess basic skills, such as fundamental reading and math
proficiency, and sufficient cognitive abilities. Companies may discover that some
Motivation
A person’s desire to learn training content, referred to as motivation to learn, is
influenced by multiple factors. For example, differences in gender and ethnicity and
Self-Efficacy
Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
Learners must possess self-efficacy, which refers to people’s belief that they can
successfully learn the training program content. For learners to be ready for and
Perceived Utility/Value
Training that is viewed as useful is more likely to be tried on the job. Perceived
utility or value of training is affected by a need to improve, the likelihood that
Learning Styles
People learn in different ways. For example:
• Auditory learners learn best by listening to someone else telling them about the
training content.
Trainers who address all these styles by using multiple training methods can design
more effective training.
Training design also sometimes address special issues presented by adult learning.
Certainly, the training design must consider that all the trainees are adults, but adults
come with widely varying learning styles, experiences, and personal goals. For
Malcolm Knowles’s classic work on adult learning suggests five principles for
designing training for adults. According to that work and subsequent work by others,
adults:
Chapter 8: Training Human Resources
• Have the need to know why they are learning something
• Have a need to be self-directed
B. Instructional Strategies
An important part of designing training is to select the right mix of strategies to fit
learner characteristics. Practice/feedback, overlearning, behavioral modeling, error-
Practice/Feedback
For some training, it is important that learners practice what they have learned and
get feedback on how they have done so they can improve. Active practice occurs
when trainees perform job-related tasks and duties during training. It is more
effective than simply reading or passively listening.
Overlearning
Overlearning is repeated practice even after a learner has mastered the performance.
It may be best used to instill “muscle memory” for a physical activity to reduce the
Behavioral Modeling
The most elementary way in which people learn and one of the best is through
behavioral modeling, which involves copying someone else’s behavior. The use of
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Error-Based Examples
The error-based examples method involves sharing with learners what can go wrong
when they do not use the training properly. Error-based examples have been
Reinforcement and Immediate Confirmation
The concept of reinforcement is based on the law of effect, which states that people
tend to repeat responses that give them a positive reward and to avoid actions
associated with negative consequences. Positively reinforcing correct learned
C. Transfer of Training
Trainers should design training for the best possible transfer from the classroom to the
job. Transfer occurs when trainees actually use on the job what knowledge and