Benefits and challenges of training and development

 Benefits and challenges of training and development.




Benefits of training and development.

Training and development act as a motivator for employees. This can be justified through motivational theories such as Hergberg’s two factor theory and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. According to Hergberg’s two factor theory, training and development act as a motivator resulting in advancement and growth. Therefore, the theory suggests that when employees are motived, it leads to job satisfaction (Carson, 2005). Further, as per Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Figure 01), training and development addresses physiological, social and fulfillment needs of an individual (Ganta, 2014). Induction training sessions meet physiological needs as they prepare employees to the job and familiarize them with their job roles. Trainings designed to enhance communication skills, public speaking and team cohesiveness meet social needs of the employees. Leadership programs to prepare highly skilled employees to their next role as part of succession planning meets fulfillment needs of the employees. Highly motivated employees will develop affective commitment to the organization by developing emotional attachment as they feel value and their contribution to the organizational success is important and the expected benefits of the training act as motivator (Tharenou, 2001).

Figure 01: Application of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to workplace



Source: Ozguner et. al, 2014

Challenges of training and development

With different theories suggesting different factors for motivation, there is no single theory that points universal needs (Fowler, 2014). The challenges to training and development can be reviewed from three dimensions: HR professionals, line managers and employees/learners.

The challenges posed by HR professionals in implementing training and development include identifying training needs, who delivers the content of the training, who develops the training, how to standardize training when the workforce includes multicultural and generational dynamics (Effront Learning, 2020). Rapid changes in technology and business environment can leave the training and development team less time to prepare adequate training materials. Scheduling the training program also is a difficult task as employees are expected to stay away from during this time and it may lead to loss of productivity (Dixit, 2017). Training sessions are expensive, therefore ineffective design can lead to loss. If the training and development programs fail to address individual needs of learners, then it may contribute towards demotivation and employee turnover (Dixit, 2017).

The challenges posed by managers are that line managers view production output more important than supporting training and development activities and fail to provide adequate support for employees to transfer learning to the workplace (Abdullah, 2009). Lack of physical, social and psychological conditions to support employees can discourage them to acquire new skills or knowledge.

The challenges to training and development posed by employees are that they demonstrate pessimistic attitudes. Studies have identified that employees have demonstrated lack of commitment to training and development and it is almost impossible to achieve full attendance for in-house training programs (Abdullah, 2009). The main reason behind pessimistic attitudes is that employees resist change.


References

Abdullah, H. (2009). Major challenges to the effective management of human resource training and development activities. The Journal of International Social Research. Vol. 2 (8). Retrieved on May 2, 2021 from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Haslinda_Abdullah3/publication/26628188_MAJOR_CHALLENGES_TO_THE_EFFECTIVE_MANAGEMENT_OF_HUMAN_RESOURCE_TRAINING_AND_DEVELOPMENT_ACTIVITIES/links/5b7189ee92851ca65057cd51/MAJOR-CHALLENGES-TO-THE-EFFECTIVE-MANAGEMENT-OF-HUMAN-RESOURCE-TRAINING-AND-DEVELOPMENT-ACTIVITIES.pdf

Carson, C., M. (2005). A historical view of Douglas McGregor’s Theory Y. Management Decision. Vol. 43 (3).

Effront Learning. (2020). What are the most common training challenges and how do successful managers overcome them?. Effront Learning. Retrieved on May 1, 2021 from https://www.efrontlearning.com/blog/2017/04/common-training-challenges-solutions.html

Fowler, S. (2014). What Maslow’s Hierarchy Won’t Tell You About Motivation. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved on May 01, 2021 from https://edisciplinas.usp.br/pluginfile.php/4096391/mod_resource/content/1/maslow.pdf

Ganta, V., C. (2014). Motivation in the workplace to improve the employee performance. International Journal of Engineering Technology, Management and Applied Sciences, Vol. 2 Issue: 2, Retrieved on May 01, 2021 from https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/54026295/improve_performance.pdf?1501558484=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DMOTIVATION_IN_THE_WORKPLACE_TO_IMPROVE_T.pdf&Expires=1620734182&Signature=fW58ShyofYHJBtEfNlXHIyVqLwBD84y49gkT0qL4pbsXqLIliE2NyqOEz-QI9CXhqz2DuZUi5JptOL32-su4lJqR7EZ4xAaQgQbBOHwG1t6h095cHRPBn1NXIsVXr47y6rIj3~6H9SB2TbfdSwar6M89w95vs3oL-Z2o3uOCWsOnAuIIzv5dvO35KhI80dBY5gvseFXS4BUpNo5rIC6pnXLWJlgaj105IUx9v3hyqP4imDmTnimxmvpQzzlDd9zXWOjmBNjVJUaZ81psm177wDiSuCyNzK1wsHXEoNJp-WqnGPbnegVyxPq6pw4~VwiaAsNFp3iQCevITRzVMpiXQw__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA

Kamarul Zaman Bin Ahmad, K., Z., B., Jasimuddin, S., M. & Kee, W., L. (2018). Organizational climate and job satisfaction: do employees’ personalities matter?, Management Decision, Retrieved on May 03, 2021 from https:// doi.org/10.1108/MD-10-2016-0713

Ozguner, Z. & Ozguner, M. (2014). A Managerial Point of View on the Relationship between of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Herzberg’s Dual Factor Theory, Vol. 5 Issue: 7, Retrieved on May 03, 2021 from https://ijbssnet.com/journals/Vol_5_No_7_June_2014/26.pdf

Johnson, S., Cooper, C., Cartwright, S., Taylor, P., Donald, I. & Millet, C. (2005). The experience of work-related stress occupations. Journal of Managerial Psychology. Vol. 20 (2).

Tharenou, P. (2001). The relationship of training motivation to participation in training and development. Academy of Management Proceedings. Retrieved on April 29, 2021 from https://journals.aom.org/doi/pdf/10.5465/apbpp.2001.6133171



Comments

  1. Deshani RodrigoDecember 26, 2021 at 12:11 AM

    Hi Purnima, Agree with you. Further this will benefited for the employees as in job satisfaction, employee motivation, increasing efficiency in processes and capacity that innovates new strategies that will increase the service level of the organization as well (Maxwell, Scourfield, Holland, Featherstone and Lee, 2012).

    ReplyDelete
  2. Divakar DavidDecember 26, 2021 at 6:00 AM

    Hi Purnima, interesting post. I would like to add that whilst the importance of training is undeniable, Sonnentag (2003) points out that engaged employees are the ones who are the most open to learning.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Manoj JayasiriDecember 26, 2021 at 11:32 AM

    Hi Purnima , Agreed with your points , further Training and development strategies and practices are targeting to ensure that the employees are in the organization acquire and develop their knowledge, skills, and /or modify attitude that they need to carry out their jobs and/or their roles efficiently and effectively and improve their careers to their own benefit as well as organizational benefits (Armstrong,2014).

    ReplyDelete

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