HR Training in Most Firms,

HR Training

In most firms, people are considered to be one of the most important assets. Key people provide leadership, innovation and the raw talent to move the company forward and guide it towards its objectives. Large firms, especially those with many different operating divisions, need dozens, hundreds or even thousands of such individuals. One of the roles of the human resources department is to facilitate the attraction, retention and development of top talent. One of the tools at their disposal is that development is training and education.

In large corporations, training and education programs serve many different functions. One is that they allow employees to develop skills and competencies that can be applied to their jobs. In this way, the function adds value to an existing resource (the employee). However, there are other benefits as well, with respect to motivation and fulfillment. On the scale of human needs, salaries and benefits fulfill the employee's needs for survival and comfort (food, shelter, etc.) However, the employees' higher order needs are not met. Training and education programs can allow employees to attain higher fulfillment and self-actualization. Thus, not only do training and education programs enhance organizational competitiveness, they also contribute to improved employee morale and retention.

Organizational Competitiveness

In a manufacturing organization, raw materials are purchased and then put through a process to convert them into a finished product. The role of the company, therefore, is to add value to the raw materials. The same is true of human resources. Too often, employees are seen in terms of the skill sets they bring to the company. Instead, they should be viewed in terms of the skill sets they could potentially bring to the company. As with raw materials, a company can add value to its human resources, enhancing the firm's output.

This is especially true in today's society, when most firms are heavily oriented towards producing services rather than producing products. In a service-oriented economy, value is added not through a production process, but by the contributions of the different employees to the process. The companies that add the most value are ultimately the companies that are most competitive.

The contributions of employees are what adds value in most firms. To be competitive, therefore, a firm must have the best employees who can add the most value. The employee arrives at the company with a set of skills and knowledge that has bee acquired, in part at least, from previous training and education. By adding to this more training and education, the firm increases the value of that employee's contribution. Thus, organizational competitiveness is enhanced through the training and education that the firm provides to its employees.

Retention

It is worth noting that organizational competitiveness is only enhanced to the extent that the employee remains with the company. This holds true both for employees that receive additional training and those that do not. In an era when many firms report difficulty attracting and retaining top employees, training and education has become an important tool in retaining the best people. One study found that 37% of workers would switch companies for better training opportunities (Narisi, 2009).

According to Maslow's hierarchy of human needs, workers need to fulfill a wide variety of needs, up to and including self-actualization and esteem needs (NetMBA, 2007). These needs cannot be met with basic pay and benefits programs. Training, however, provides employees with a sense of achievement, a sense that they are making progress in their lives and their careers. In an information-based society, the most valuable workers will also tend to be the ones motivated by higher order needs. Training and education programs satisfy these needs, giving the firm a better chance to retain these key workers (Heathfield, 2009).

Morale

Meeting higher order needs is also critical for employee morale. There are many means to improve employee morale, one of which is continuing education and enhanced training (Hopkins, 1995). Training enhances employee morale in several ways. The first is that employees gain a greater sense of achievement, because they are progressing in their careers and lives. Another is that employees feel as though the company sees them as a valuable asset. Too often companies do not communicate the value they see in an employee. By offering training, the company is taking a vested interest in the employee's future. The absence of that feeling can cause employee dissatisfaction.

The Role of HR

There was a time when companies assumed that training and education were things the employee arrived with. Recently, as the importance of training and education to morale, retention and organizational achievement have become apparent, firms are realizing that they must take the initiative to provide training and education. This responsibility has fallen to the human resources department. This is because the programs are specifically geared towards the development of humans as a resource.

There are many different types of education and many different means for HR departments to deliver training and education opportunities for their workforce. Education can focus on particular skills that would allow the employee to fill a needed role within the organization. This can include technical training, job skills training, or language education. In other instances, the training can be any subject, as the program is geared towards the esteem and actualization needs of the employee, the firm hoping that this results in productivity improvements.

There are as many means to deliver education and training as there are types. One option is for the company to run the training itself. This gives the company total control over the content and direct tracking of each employee's progress through the process. Another option is reimbursement. This option often comes with a cap on annual spending, and sometimes the types of education are also limited. Human resources essentially repays employees for successfully complete training programs. No matter whether the course is internal or external, it can be delivered by a variety of means, including in-person, online, or by correspondence.

The training and education program can be structured in terms of time as well. Short seminars or guest speakers at meetings can be used for minor training and education. Structure courses can be used to delve into more complex subject matter. Some training can lead to certificates or diplomas; other training may not have a formalized outcome. Many universities offer programs tailored to the needs of business communities, and many companies specialize in specific types of training and education programs. Training can be done in a classroom or virtual classroom setting, or specialized training can be conducted through one-on-one program, coaching and mentoring (Hewlett-Packard, 2006).

Conclusion

Training and education are a critical human resources function in the modern information-based economy. When a firm develops, or adds value to its human resources, it improves employee morale and boosts retention rates. This happens because the company is showing an interest in the employee and appealing to their higher order needs. Moreover, training and education programs contribute to the overall effectiveness of the organization by improving the organization's skill set.