Training and Development in Work Organizations

Abstract

Training and Development can be defined as a means to an end. It helps an organization to achieve its ultimate target which is elevating the happiness quotient leading to exemplary performance by the employees hence generating quality production and a healthy organization. Healthy organizations lead to good employee retention and which indirectly builds the image of the company and helps it earn goodwill in the market. It is like a bridge that reduces the gap between competence and performance. Training and Development is the key to employee satisfaction. Managing human resources is the biggest challenge faced by an organization and training and development seems to be the best available option to deal with and tackle this problem. This current study focusses on the need, important role, and relevance of training and development in organizations and presents the case study of a PSU based in Bhubaneswar. The research was conducted with the help of a questionnaire randomly distributed to 50 employees working at various levels in the organization. From the study conducted it was observed that the training and development system is not up to date and needs the intervention of the latest tools and technologies.

Full text

Training and Development in Work Organizations
Disha Bhatt, Faculty in KISS Deemed University, Bhubaneswar
Abstract
Training and Development can be defined as a means to an end. It helps an
organization to achieve its ultimate target which is elevating the happiness quotient leading to
exemplary performance by the employees hence generating quality production and a healthy
organization. Healthy organizations lead to good employee retention and which indirectly
builds the image of the company and helps it earn goodwill in the market. It is like a bridge
that reduces the gap between competence and performance. Training and Development is the
key to employee satisfaction. Managing human resources is the biggest challenge faced by an
organization and training and development seems to be the best available option to deal with
and tackle this problem. This current study focusses on the need, important role, and
relevance of training and development in organizations and presents the case study of a PSU
based in Bhubaneswar. The research was conducted with the help of a questionnaire
randomly distributed to 50 employees working at various levels in the organization. From the
study conducted it was observed that the training and development system is not up to date
and needs the intervention of the latest tools and technologies.
Introduction
Training and Development work on building a bridge between competence and
performance and helps the employees in strengthening their wings in building a successful
career and an organization. It acts as a catalyst in letting two ends meet and it goes without
mentioning that it is only then the circle is completed. Training and Development is a part of
Human Resource Management and some of the questions which come into the attention of
HRM are - Who are these people? How to attract them? How to retain them? How to
motivate them? So on and so forth. Human beings no matter how strong they are cannot lock
their emotions and problems when they come to work. It is easier said than done. These
unseen issues do affect their performance and here comes the need and requirement of
Training and Development. It is all about letting employees evolve and elevate their skill sets.
Profile of the company
The National Aluminium Company, NALCO is Navratna group ‘A’ CPSE and the
headquarters is situated in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The mines and plants are located in
Damanjodi and Angul. They are a diversified sector working on mines, metal, and power
under the wings of the Ministry of Mines, Government of India. Their products are
aluminum, Alumina, and Hydrate and the Government holds 52% of equity. The company
had a net income of 1,732 crore in the year 2018-19 and embraces as many as 6,385
employees as in June 2019.
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The current study was done on fifty employees of NALCO working at various levels
in the corporate office. The key purpose of this study was to find out the effect of training on
the employees who undergo training at NALCO.
Objectives of the Study
The study was undertaken keeping in mind the following objectives
 To appreciate the training policy of the organization
 To know the various methods of training assessment
 To analyze the training effectiveness and evaluation methods
 To analyze the responses given by employees about training needs satisfaction
 To give suggestions for improvement in training
Research Methodology
The post facto research methodology was used for the research and this consists of a
descriptive style to find out the effectiveness of Training and Development of the
organization. The primary sources of data collection included questionnaires, discussions,
and interviews with the employees and the secondary sources of data collection incorporated
previous studies, journals, and reports. The sample size was 50 employees working at various
levels in the organization.
Limitations of the Study
Some of the limitations to carry this work have been listed below:
 The study is delimited to NALCO only
 The findings are from one organization hence a quick generalization can be dangerous
because it lacks a comparative angle to the study
 None of the private players in the same sector were considered for striking a
comparison of the policies and practices
Review of Literature
In a study conducted by Muhamad and Fard (2013), it came to the forefront that
training has become a buzz word. It is the human capital that differentiates one organization
from the other. Those organizations which put in effort in training and development achieve
both short term and long term goals. Employees need to embrace continuous learning and
need to update and upgrade their skills and knowledge keeping in mind the dynamics in
technological, environmental and social. Training is an organized way where organizations
provide a platform for the development and quality enhancement of existing and new
employees in the organization. It helps a helping hand towards learning and development that
elevates individual, group and organization. Goldstein & Ford (2002). As per the Oxford,
dictionary productivity can be defined as the efficiency with which things are produced. In a
study by Rohan and Madhumita in the year 2012 employee productivity can be defined as the
measure of output with every unit of input. Training and development must be tailor-made
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catering to the needs of the employees. It has found to carry a positive impact on the
employees fostering them to carry out their abilities and potential and improvising their
technical and interpersonal skills Kate Hutchings, Cherrie J. Zhu, Brian K. Cooper, Yiming
Zhang and Sijun Shao (2009).
Data Analysis and Interpretation
A questionnaire was designed based on the previous study done. The questions have been put
in tabular form and some of them carry bar diagrams and pie charts. The analysis of every
question has been mentioned in the form of paragraphs. The questions move from general to
specific.
Q1. Since how many years you are working in NALCO?
a. 0-5 years
b. 5-10 years
c. 10-15 years
d. More than 15 years
Sl
no.
No. of years
No. of employees
Percentage
1.
0-5 years
7
14
2.
5-10 years
16
32
3.
10-15 years
12
24
4.
More than 15 years
15
30
1st Qtr-14%
2nd Qtr-32%
1st Qtr
2nd Qtr
3rd Qtr
4th Qtr
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3rd Qtr-24%
4th Qtr-30%
Interpretation of Q1.
From the analysis, it is evident that most of the employees at NALCO fall under 5-10 years
category which suggests that the company consists of a young mass ready to accept new
learnings.
Q2. Are you aware of the training policies of NALCO?
a. Yes
b. no
Sl no.
Options
No. of employees
%
1.
Yes
40
80
2.
No
10
20
Interpretation of Q2.
From the analysis, it is seen that 80% of the employees are aware of the training programs.
During the research, it has been found that the organization is following the same training
policy since 2004. There is no change either in the methodology or training materials. So it
can be interpreted that the organization is imparting the same type of training for the last 10
years.
Q3. Do you feel training is necessary for any employee for developing skills?
a. yes
b. no
Sl no.
options
No. of employees
%
1.
yes
50
100
2.
no
0
0
Interpretation of Q3.
From the above analysis, it is observed that all the employees consider training important for
developing life skills.
Q4. Training is organized?
a. Monthly
b. Quarterly
c. Half-yearly
d. Annually
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Sl no.
options
No. of employees
%
1
monthly
7
14
2
quarterly
16
32
3
Half-yearly
12
24
4
annually
15
30
Interpretation of Q4.
From the above result, we can see that the agreement of people concerning organizing pieces
of training depends on the number of years of service in the organization.
Q5. Since how many years training is being provided?
a. 0-5
b. 5-10
c. 10-15
d. More than 15
Sl no.
options
No. of employees
%
1
0-5
1
2
2
5-10
4
8
3
10-15
20
40
4
More than 15
25
50
1st Qtr- 2%
2nd Qtr- 8%
1st Qtr
2nd Qtr
3rd Qtr
4th Qtr
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3rd Qtr- 40%
4th Qtr-50%
Interpretation of Q5.
From the above pie chart, it is observed that the more the experience the more is the
awareness about the organizational training.
Q6. Which technique is most suitable for training?
a. On the job
b. Off the job
c. Depends on need
Sl no.
options
No of employees
%
1
On the job
10
20
2
Off the job
15
30
3
Depends on need
25
50
Interpretation of Q6.
It has been observed that maximum employees consider that need-based training is a suitable
technique.
Q7. Have you ever been counseled regarding the benefits of training before being
nominated for it?
a. Yes
b. No
Sl no.
options
No. of employees
%
1.
yes
37
74
2.
no
13
26
Interpretation of Question-7
From the above result, we can observe that the organization is taking good care of the people
and they are properly briefed.
Q8. Do you experience fruitful changes in working efficiency after being trained?
a. Yes
b. No
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Sl no.
options
No. of employees
%
1.
yes
45
90
2.
no
5
10
Interpretation of Question-8
From the above analysis, we can make out that the majority of employees have successfully
implemented the attained training to their job.
Q9. Do you think that your organization encourages the use of the latest technology and
devices to infuse training?
a. Yes
b. No
Sl no.
options
No. of employees
%
1.
Yes
37
74
2.
No
13
26
Interpretation of Question-9.
The analysis shows that the majority employees give their consent to the use of the latest
technology and devices to infuse training in NALCO.
Q10. Do you believe that training contributes to the productivity of the organization?
a. Yes
b. No
Sl no.
Options
No. of employees
%
1.
Yes
37
74
2.
No
13
26
Interpretation of Q10.
The study shows that the majority of employees feel that training contributes to the
productivity of the organization.
Q11. On what level training is provided?
a. Rigorous
b. Smooth
Sl no.
Options
No. of employees
%
1.
rigorous
44
88
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2.
smooth
6
12
Interpretation of Q11.
From the result, we can observe that the training provided is of rigorous level.
Q 12. Do you get innovative ideas during training?
a. Yes
b. No
Sl no.
Options
No. of employees
%
1.
yes
26
52
2.
no
24
48
Interpretation of Q12.
From the result, we can interpret that maximum employees feel that they get innovative ideas
during training because of the brainstorming sessions conducted as one of the sub-activity of
the training program.
Q13. Does training builds teamwork?
a. Yes
b. No
Sl no
options
No of employees
%
1
yes
32
64
2
no
18
56
Interpretation of Q13.
From the above result, we can see that 32 employees out of the sample size off 50 say that
training succeeds in building teamwork.
Q14. Does training result in the adoption of new working methods?
a. Yes
b. No
c. Depends
Sl no.
Options
No. of employees
%
1
yes
16
32
2
no
13
26
3
depends
21
42
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Interpretation of Q14.
The third category shows us that the new working methods are well adopted in training.
Q15. Are you satisfied with the effectiveness of training programs?
a. yes
b. no
Sl no.
Options
No of employees
%
1
yes
47
94
2
no
3
6
Interpretation of Q15.
The above result shows us that majority of the people are satisfied with the effectiveness of
training programs.
Q16. Do you find post-lunch sessions boring?
a. yes
b. no
Sl no.
options
No of employees
%
1
Yes
31
62
2
no
19
38
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
Category 1 Category 2 Category 3
Series 1
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Interpretation of Q16.
During the project, it was observed that most of the employees find the post-lunch sessions
boring and prefer not attending the second half.
Q.17. How long is the training process?
a. 5 to 10 days
b. 10 to 15 days
c. 15 to 20 days
d. 20 to 25days
Sl. No
Duration
No. of. Employees
Percentage
1
5 to 10 days
15
32
2
10 to 15 days
12
24
3
15 to 20 days
16
32
4
20 to 25 days
7
14
Interpretation of Question-17
The requirement of training varies among different categories of employees. It is found from
the analysis that the duration of the training process has a direct relation with the years of
experience of the employees. The new and inexperienced employees require training of a
long duration while the experienced employees do not require rigorous training within short
intervals.
Q18. Do you think training is more effective when it is given to a limited number of
people about a specific area?
a) Yes
b) No
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4
Series 1
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Sl. No
Options
No of Employees
Percentage
1
Yes
43
86
2
No
7
14
Interpretation of Question-18
86% of the employees agreed to the fact that training should be imparted to selective people.
It improves not only the efficiency of the training programs but also the people who are
giving and taking training. So the organization should take proper steps in this direction to
make the training program more productive.
Q19. Does the company provide study material before the training program?
a. Yes,
b. No
Sl. No
Options
No. of Employees
Percentage
1
yes
33
66
2
no
17
34
Interpretation of Q 19
66% of employees say that study materials are provided during the training session but lacks
innovation which is the demand of the modern organization. It should think about new and
better ways of imparting training every year because innovation is the demand of time
Q20 does training and development activities help the organization to maintain
employee retention rate?
a)Yes
b) No
Sl no
options
No of employees
percentage
1
yes
39
78
2
no
11
22
Interpretation of Q 20
The study shows that Nalco has succeeded in maintaining good employee retention as 78 %
of employee agree to it
Q21 Do you think that training helps get promotion and incentive?
a)Yes
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b)No
Sl no
options
No of employees
percentage
1
yes
43
86
2
no
7
14
Interpretation of Q22
86% of the employees feel that training has helped them in getting promotions and
incentives. The reason being training has increased their efficiency and effectiveness as they
can perform the same work in less time and ensuring better quality. Better performance helps
them in moving up the ladder and promotion in the job leads to an increase in salary and job
satisfaction.
Q22. Do you feel that the training policy of Nalco is up to date?
a)Yes
b)No
Sl no
options
No of employees
percentage
1
yes
31
62
2
no
19
38
Interpretation of Q 22
The policy was framed in the year 2004 and has not been revised since then. This
interpretation is evident from the result as almost 50% of the employees are doubtful
regarding the applicability of the existing training program in the present scenario.
Q23 Do you like to give any suggestion to the organization regarding training policy
a)Yes
b)No
Sl no
options
No of employees
percentage
1
yes
36
72
2
no
14
28
Interpretation of Q23
72 % of the employees are willing to give suggestions which shows that there is room for
improvement
Q24 What would you like to suggest? ( tick the following options)
a) The organization should change the training policy from time to time
b) Separate training policy should be designed for different levels
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c) The present policy is appropriate
d) Training should be organized phase by phase
Sl no
options
percentage
1
The organization should change the training policy from
time to time
37
2
Separate training policy should be designed for different
levels
31
3
The present policy is appropriate
6
4
Training should be organized phase by phase
26
Interpretation of Q 24
Different employees have different suggestions.37% employees suggest that a training
program should be pursued as a continuous one. It should not be stopped or neglected at any
point in time. It is not only the duty of the organization but it the right of the employee to be
imparted with requisite training.31 percent of the employees have the suggestion that separate
training should be designed at various levels because the type of work and the burden at
different levels in the organizational hierarchy is different so the type of skill required to
perform the work is also different. Like the top-level employee require theoretical
knowledge. The middle-level employees require administrative skills and lower-level
employees require technical or operative skills to perform their work. So the training program
should be designed to cater to the specific requirement of the job. 26% of the employees have
the suggestion that training should be conducted phase by phase so that the right kind of
employees can get the right type of training.
Findings
1) Mostly all the employees are well aware of the role and importance of the training. They
are self-motivated to attend such training programs as it will result in their skill enhancement
and improving their interpersonal skill
2) The training department of Nalco is providing training from time to time it is a continuous
process but they are adopting the age-old procedure of training which needs improvement
3) Two types of training are provided to the employees on the job training and off the job
training but which type of training is to be provided depends upon the need and requirement
of the program
4) Post-training evaluation focuses on results rather than on the effort expended in conducting
the training and it worth the time, money and effort.
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5) Most of the participants are benefitted by giving feedback after attending the training
program.
6) In NALCO, post-training evaluation is used to identify the return on investment, to
identify the need for retraining and to provide the points to improve the training.
Suggestions
Training managers should take an interest in the recruits
Senior Managers should take an interest in spending time with the recruits during the
induction period. This will help them in creating a rapport with the juniors. Working together
than at a later stage will be easier and manageable.
Employees should start taking the training programs seriously.
A proper mechanism should be in place to monitor and evaluate the training activities.
Resources spent on conducting the training programs should be utilized judiciously.
Training programs should be chosen carefully
Information Technology industries should choose training programs after careful
investigation and testing quality. It should spend time in finalizing the experts and organizing
the training programs efficiently.
Training should help in pursuing long term assignments
A training program should not only help in suiting the needs of short term assignments but
should also help in pursuing long term assignments and other jobs in the organization. The
development of competencies should not only bring in a transactional change in the person
but also a transformational change.
Budget should be judicially estimated
The budget for training programs should not be based on an estimation of the previous year’s
spending but should be based on realistic current expenses. It should in relevant cases go by
the approach of Zero Base Budgeting.
Attach rewards and incentives to training programs
Rewards and Incentives should be attached to training programs. This would help in
encouraging the trainees to take training seriously and positively. It need not necessarily be
monetary rewards; non-monetary incentives would also create a positive training
environment.
Solve the root cause of performance problem
Training should be able to solve the root cause of a performance problem. Training Needs
Assessments should be done to provide the right kind and right duration of the training
program.
Training should reflect upon the learning
Trainees should be given adequate scope to reflect upon the lessons of the training conducted.
Managers should provide adequate resources to implement and enhance the knowledge
gained from the training programs. This will enable the trainees to retain the information and
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knowledge gained during the training program. Trainees will also be able to transfer the
inputs to other members of the organization.
Training should focus on results
Effective training should focus more on processes and means to ends, and lesson outcomes.
This focus results in measures that facilitate learning and provide data that can guide action
and decision making.
Learning through training should be an ongoing process
The business environment is likely to change, practices and procedures which are effective
now may be ineffective in the future. Industries should build in a culture of training and
knowledge creation. This should be an ongoing, integral part of the company.
Create a positive sense of Internal Competition and social identity
Borrowing inputs from someone within the organization signals to everyone inside the
company that there is someone else who is better, at least in a certain dimension. Creating
social identity binds people together and to the unit, creating loyalty, teamwork and mutual
commitment.
Turn knowledge into Action
Organizations should aim at turning knowledge into action by giving employees the scope of
practicing techniques and trying things. Employees will fear trying something new if the
reward is likely to be a career disaster.
Conclusions
From the research conducted it is concluded that the training methods and policies of Nalco
are not updated with the change in time. No doubt training policies may help in clarifying
doubts, improve competency, enhance performance or bridge the gap between the two but the
company should focus on the development as well without which there is no growth.
If there is performance appraisal, and competency mapping then errors in work reduces to a
great extent. Feedback and evaluation of training helps in increasing the effectiveness of
training, its policies, and strategies.
The policies and strategies need to be modified with change in working methods, employees
need to be briefed about the changes so that they are motivated enough to continue the good
work.
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