1. Lecture 5 Developing people
HRM for MBA Students
Lecture 5
Developing people

2. Learning outcomes
Understanding the definitions of training and learning
Knowing how to undertake a training needs analysis and its purpose
An appreciation of the necessity to identify learning objectives
Understanding the importance of learning theory and the principles of learning
An appreciation of the main learning and development methods used in organisations
Understanding the Kirkpatrick model of training evaluation
Understanding the concepts of single- and double-loop learning
Knowing what is meant by the term ‘learning organisation’

3. Training is defined as:
a set of planned activities on the part of an organisation to increase job knowledge and skills, or to modify attitudes and social behaviour, to achieve specific ends which are related to a particular job or role.

4. Learning is defined as:
a relatively permanent change in knowledge, skills, attitudes or behaviour that comes through experience.
Learning happens inside the person whereas training is something that is given to a person: it is a planned experience that is expected to lead to learning.

5. Learning interventions under PM and HRM

6. Learning interventions and activities in HRM

7. Key learning principles
The principle of ‘distributed practice’ – ie breaking the learning experience up into manageable chunks for the learner
Reinforcing the learning by praising the learner for correct responses
Training individuals to perform entire task units as a whole
Giving results of the training performance to the learners
Providing opportunities for practising the skills developed during training

8. Kolb’s learning cycle
1 Concrete experience
2 Observations and reflection
Formation of abstract concepts and
generalisations
4 Testing the implications of the concepts in new situations
The learning experience runs in sequence from 1 through to 4

9. Learning styles and the Kolb cycle
‘Activists’ tend to learn best from the experience stage: they prefer to take action – eg hands-on learning or role-playing
‘Reflectors’ tend to learn most from the second stage – observation and reflection
For ‘Theorists’ learning is most effective at the third, abstract conceptualisation stage
‘Pragmatists’ learn best from trying out the new skill or knowledge in actual work situations, so they benefit most from the fourth stage of the Kolb cycle

10. Transfer of learning To increase the probability of learning transfer:
maximise the similarity between the learning situation and the job situation
provide as much experience as possible with the task being taught
provide for a variety of examples when teaching concepts or skills
label or identify important features of a task
make sure the general principles are understood
make sure that the learned behaviours and ideas are rewarded in the job situation
design the learning content so that the learners can see its applicability

11. Some Common Learning and Development Methods
Action Learning:
originally introduced for management development but now widely used at all organisational levels.
groups of people work together to find practical solutions to real work problems.
Instructors act as facilitators,
Blended learning:
a combination of multiple approaches to learning.
typically a combination of technology-based materials and face-to-face sessions

12. Some common learning and development methods
Case studies
detailed examinations of real-life situations written up and presented for educational purposes
students typically work in groups to analyse each case and answer set tasks
Coaching
a non-directive form of development, which focuses on improving performance and developing individuals’ skills and giving feedback on a person’s performance
should be delivered by trained personnel, who are usually drawn from outside the organisation

13. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
a continuous process of personal growth, to improve the capability of people at work and realise their full potential
achieved by developing a range of knowledge, skills and experience which go beyond initial training or qualification, and which maintain and develop professional competence
many professional bodies such as the CIPD now insist on CPD as a condition of continued membership

14. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
Corporate universities
more than just in-company training departments, they have been defined as:
[a] centralised strategic umbrella for the education and development of employees ... [that] is the chief vehicle for disseminating an organisation’s culture and fostering the development of not only job skills but also such core workplace skills as learning-to-learn, leadership, creative thinking and problem-solving.
Meister (1998)

15. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
E-learning
learning that is delivered, enabled or mediated using electronic technology for the explicit purpose of learning and development in organisations
Instruction
a highly structured teaching method used to teach specific skills
the format typically comprises a physical demonstration followed by supervised practice of the skills concerned

16. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
Lecture
a structured talk, longer and more formal than a presentation, normally accompanied by visual aids and handouts of key points
may be combined with audience participation in discussion, a question-and-answer session and/or group exercises/activities
Mentoring
similar to coaching although the mentor is usually an experienced senior member of staff, but not the person’s line manager
the emphasis in mentoring is less focused on the person’s current job or role than in coaching, but more on their future development and career within the organisation

17. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
Outdoor training
team exercises involving physical and mental tasks in challenging external environments
very popular in corporate team-building
believed by advocates to teach leadership and team- and self-development skills in addition to teamworking
Role-playing
the enactment of roles in a structured context
very useful in practising inter-personal skills

18. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
Self-development
is concerned with helping people to understand their own personal learning and development processes and by doing so to assume greater control of, and responsibility for, their own development
an emphasis on longer-term development as distinct from specific study or learning
a stress on setting one’s own goals and methods for achieving development
this approach can be applied to groups where participants are encouraged to support each other
self-development is frequently, but not exclusively, applied to managers and professionals

19. Some common learning and development methods (cont.)
Simulations/business games
group exercises or case studies, usually computerised, in which the students are asked to make certain choices and then deal with consequences of their decisions
usually run in competitive syndicates of students

20. Formal learning interventions
A four-stage process:
1 Identifying the development need
2 Designing the development activity
3 Undertaking the development activity
4 Evaluating the development intervention
This process is sometimes called the ‘training cycle’

21. Needs analysis
provides a set of learning objectives for the development programme
these objectives might include adding knowledge, developing specific skills or helping to form specific attitudes – eg towards customers or clients
The learning objectives
guide us as to what learning principles and training methods should be used.
secondly, provide a means for assessing afterwards whether the learning intervention has been successful

22. Evaluating a learning intervention
Kirkpatrick’s model: a four-stage process
Trainee reactions
Learning reactions
Learning behaviour/behavioural change
Results/performance

23. Informal learning The learning an individual acquires:
from the experiences of doing the job
from working in the organisation
from thinking and reflecting on the work
The US Bureau of Labor (1996) found that people learned 70% of what they know about their jobs informally through processes that were not structured or sponsored by their employing organisation

24. A learning organisation
An organisation which facilitates
the learning of all of its members and [thereby] continuously transforms itself.
(Pedler, Boydell and Burgoyne)

25. Tacit and explicit knowledge
Tacit knowledge:
personal, context-specific, and therefore hard to formalise and communicate
Explicit knowledge:
can be transmitted in formal, systematic language (eg written down)
We can know more than we can tell
Polanyi (1966, p.4)

26. Management development
The entire structured process by which managers learn and improve their skills for their employing organisations.
CIPD Factsheet on Management Development (February, 2007)

27. Most common formal methods for management development
external courses
seminars and conferences
in-company training to develop individual skills
in-company training to develop organisational skills
pursuing external formal qualifications (such as MBAs)

28. Most common informal methods for management development
in-company job rotation
job observation
on-the-job training
mentoring
coaching

29. Conditions for successful management development
It is recognised by the organisation as a strategic business activity
Management development programmes recognise the nature of managerial work
Programmes are tailored to fit the needs of the individual managers on them
Education, training, selection, career planning, reward systems and managerial evaluation are recognised as all being part of a connected system
Evaluation is itself a vital part of the system of development