10.TrainingEducationandStaffDevelopment.pptxTraining, Education, and Staff Development
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The Path towards Professionalism Begins with Self…
We can view a study of the Public Administration as a detail examination of criminal justice system; or the public school system;
or the various functions that encompass a wide range public servants working at the local, state, and federal level and how they work independently and collectively.
Although the study of these systems are for some individuals a path towards professionalism, some, unfortunately, who pursue this route find out that the job is not for them and they drop out to follow some other line of work.
Still others who learn the basic craft and trade of the job but do not wish to advance their kills or knowledge, do the minimum effort required and explore other concerns.
However for those that do seek out professional development in the field of public administration there’re is a number of different paths, depending on their area of interest, in which they can take.
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Training vs. Professional Development …
Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies.
Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance.
In addition to the basic training required for a trade, occupation or profession, observers have noted the need to continue training beyond initial qualifications: to maintain, upgrade and update skills throughout working life.
People within many professions and occupations may refer to this sort of training as professional development
Professional development encompasses all types of facilitated learning opportunities including credentials such as academic degrees to formal coursework, conferences and informal learning opportunities situated in practice.
It has been described as intensive and collaborative, ideally incorporating an evaluative stage.
There are a variety of approaches to professional development, including:
consultation, coaching, communities of practice, lesson study, mentoring, reflective supervision and technical assistance
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The Future is Now….
Factors such as increasing retirement rates that are responsible for a projected shortages in valued competencies; rapid technological change; a demand for new KSA’s for new employees; and demographic changes in the environment are
making training a key component in todays strategic planning process to encompass individuals, groups, and the organization as a whole.
Inappropriate operational and management decisions by today’s public administrators are highlighting the need for
public servants to be retained in order to meet the current demands of our changing environment.
Additional team-based training is a common way to help identity and provide the needed resources and mechanisms to clarify and advance agency goals.
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Education and Staff Development….
Because education is more future oriented, it can include skill building with more of an emphasis on learning.
Learning is the ability to apply what you have been taught in the classroom to different challenges and situations.
Staff Development is also more future oriented, but the future is less clear and less defined.
The focus is to prepare employees for changes that are not specifically anticipated or clearly known.
While skill building may still be a component of this type of development, the emphasis is on building attitudes and knowledge that are consistent with the organization’s values and changing requirements.
The emphasis is also on developing the competencies that will enhance the individual’s ability to lead.
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Organizational Approaches to Development
Organizations, like individuals, seek feedback to improve themselves through some sort feedback mechanism so they can change through their own self-assessment. Such as:
Organizational Development and planned change;
Works when the managers and supervisors who are responsible training employees, implement the programs that are designed to improve the agency…
Diversity Training;
For all full and part time employees and contract workers.
Commitment to Continuous Learning.
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Developing New Employees
New employee orientation
Formal orientation programs can facilitate understanding of company culture, and introduces new employees to their work roles and the organizational social environment.
Formal orientation programs may consist of lectures, videotapes, and written material, while other organizations may rely on more usual approaches.
More recent approaches such as computer-based orientations and Internets have been used by organizations to standardize training programs across branch locations.
A review of the literature indicates that orientation programs, like onboarding, are successful in communicating the company's goals, history, and power structure.
Training for Basic Skill Development
Integrating On-the-Job Training (OJT) with Other Training
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Developing New Employees
New employee orientation
Formal orientation programs can facilitate understanding of company culture, and introduces new employees to their work roles and the organizational social environment.
Formal orientation programs may consist of lectures, videotapes, and written material, while other organizations may rely on more usual approaches.
More recent approaches such as computer-based orientations and Internets have been used by organizations to standardize training programs across branch locations.
A review of the literature indicates that orientation programs, like onboarding, are successful in communicating the Agency’s goals, history, and power structure.
Basic Skill Development training, (AKA Basic Training) is the initial indoctrination and instruction given to new personnel.
This is where they all have various background checks, examination, physical requirements, medical requirements, legal training, and if needed driving skills, equipment training and firearm training.
Basic Skill Development after completion of this training, new employees will undergo a type of advanced Individual training where they learn additional skills needed for their jobs.
These new employees may undergo a more detailed programs (OJT) that may either precede or follow the program provided them in the basic training program.
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Onboarding …
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Developing Current Employees…
Questions:
With the increased use of temporary and part-time employees, “How much training must be offered to these workers?”
Coaching and Counseling: Whose Job Is It?
Is training available for those managers and supervisor who has to provide coaching and counseling assistance?
Is online interactive and self-paced training available?
Is there mandatory or mandated training for those specialize KSA’s required by the worker?
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Three Roles for the Human Resource Development Specialist ….
Learning Specialist:
facilitator of learning, designer of learning programs, developer of instructional strategies.
Manager of HRD:
supervisor of HRD programs, developer of HRD personnel, arranger of facilities and finance, maintainer of relations.
Consultant:
expert, advocate, stimulator, change agent
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Training Needs Assessment, Design, and Evaluation…
Assessment Function
Training is frequently used as a solution to a performance problem without considering alternatives
So when is training appropriate?
Only after an investigation into the performance reveals what challenges have cause or created the discrepancy and only when it has been determined that they are suitable to a training solution.
Once the program is completed another assessment should be made to determined if the program was effective in reducing any negative challenges to the workers job performance.
How does one design and evaluate training development programs?
By assessing training needs…
So what’s a training need?
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Assessing Training Needs….
General Treatment Need
When management requires training for all employees in a job classification without regard for data concerning a particular employee’s performance.
Observable Performance Discrepancies:
These training needs are indicated by problems such as:
standards of work performance not being met, accidents, frequent need for equipment repair, several low ratings on employee evaluation reports, high rate of turnover, the use of many methods to do the same job, and deadlines not being met.
In this case, a managers job is to observe the jobs and workers in question and uncover the difficulties. This may be done through:
observation,
interviews,
questionnaires,
performance appraisal,
and by requiring employees to keep tract of their own work output.
Educational and Staff Development Needs
These are based on anticipated future discrepancies caused by technological advances and or changes in strategic goals.
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Planning, Delivering, and Evaluating a Training Program…
Designing a training program:
Once a program area is identified an intervention can be planned.
Please note: training can only benefit an employee who does not know how to work effectively.
If training is an appropriate intervention then that particular training design is dependent on the target of the change…
The simplest distinction in training methods, which are more directive, teacher-oriented, and have as their objective transferring knowledge, work best where the trainees are motivated to change...
Please Note: The more significant the change anticipated, the more likely it will involve rejection of something the employee already knows and relies upon.
If the anticipated change is tangible and involves technical training, the trainer must maintain a delicate balance between getting the material across and recognizing
that not all the trainees may be eager to reject what they already know and what may still serve them well… (i.e. supervisory training)
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The steps involved in tailoring a training intervention to a specific agency or work group move through five Phases.
Change depends on the nature of expected change…
Does it present a relative advantage to the person who is supposed to adopt the change?
Can the person see what the change will produce or is the proposed result vague?
Is the change compatible with past practice, competencies, and values?
Can change be adopted gradually and incrementally, or does it need to be adopted completely?
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Problem perception
Diagnosis
“Unfreezing”
“Movement”
“Refreezing”
Evaluating Training Programs….
All solutions are tomorrow’s problem,
Redefine the problem as a challenge,
Then look for opportunities.
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Training can be Evaluated at Five Levels:
Reaction:
How well did the trainees like the training? Do they feel they benefited from the training?
Learning:
to what extent did the trainees learn the facts, principles, and approaches that were included in the training?
Behavior:
To what extent did the trainee’s job behavior change because of the program?
Results:
What increases in productivity or decreases in cost were achieved?
To what extent were unit or organizational goals advance?
Cost effectiveness:
Assuming the training is effective, is it the least expensive method of solving the program?
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Summary
Seeking quality requires an employer investment in the competences of a workforce that must become intimately acquainted with
service delivery systems and committed to a customer orientation.
The value of efficiency that is captured in the basic concept of civil service systems provides
the foundation for government to face these challenges.
Investments in the development function go beyond traditional training and extend into the areas of education and staff development,
where employers indicate their willingness to make long-term investments in their employees.
In part, this depends upon whether public employers are able to view their employees as assets rather than costs and whether
citizens are willing to do the same.
Strategic thinking in human resources management depends in large part on being able to connect the
development function to the organization’s short- and longer-term goals and objectives
identifying the competencies needed and then preparing to develop them.
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