Train and Develop (DO NOT SEND ANOTHER STUDENT'S COMPLETED WORK)

BHR 4680, Training and Development 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit V Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

2. Compare and contrast the training implications of behavioral and cognitive learning in the training environment. 2.1 Discus how training is influenced by new technologies. 2.2 Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of e-learning, mobile technology, and simulations. 2.3 Explain the pros and cons of multimedia training.

6. Describe classroom-based training programs. 6.1 Discuss the pros and cons of traditional training methods. 6.2 Explain how group building methods improve team/group effectiveness. 6.3 Discuss the steps necessary to develop effective self-directed learning.

Reading Assignment Chapter 7: Traditional Training Methods Chapter 8: Technology-Based Training Methods

Unit Lesson Company A Company A’s training sessions are always the same—hour-long lectures. Employees file into a room composed of rowed seating. A lectern is in front of the room and the training manager, John, stands behind it. He greets the employees and begins a lecture. This particular session is on how to use Microsoft Excel. He is reading from a book, but occasionally looks up to glance at his audience. When an employee raises their hand, John asks that all questions be saved for the end of the session. Most of the group tries to follow what he says, but have blank expressions on their faces since they are not sure what John is even talking about. One employee in the back row has nodded off, and a few others are having a hard time keeping their eyes open. At the end of the session, the manager asks for questions. No one raises their hand. Could it be that the manager has conveyed the material so well that everyone now understands how to use a spreadsheet? Or could it be that the audience is so bored with the material that they are in a hurry to leave the session? Company B Company B is also offering a training session on how to use formulas in an Excel spreadsheet. The training manager, Bill, has asked an employee from the accounting department, Carol Jones, who has a Microsoft certification in Excel to conduct the training session. A few days before the training session, Bill and Carol meet to discuss the objectives of the course, and Carol is adamant that the course be conducted in the computer training room so that participants can create spreadsheets during the training. On the day of the training session, Carol presents the objectives to the learners using a white board in the front of the classroom, but also asks the learners if there are specific issues the learners want to learn regarding Excel formulas. One participant asks if he can see how to create a specific formula that will help him with a monthly report. Carol adds this issue to the objectives and begins the training session. She lectures a bit on Excel issues and demonstrates the material on her computer that is hooked up to a projection device so that the

UNIT V STUDY GUIDE

Traditional Training Methods and

E-Learning and Technology

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students can see what she is doing. Then she has the students practice the concepts she has presented on their computers. She answers questions from the participants as they are asked unless the explanation is too long and will distract from what she is currently presenting. Those questions she writes down and then answers them at the end of the class. The learners are pleased when they leave the course. One learner comments that because she took this course, she will save an hour or two each month because of one of the formulas she has learned in the course. Instructional Strategies As seen from the scenarios above, some instructional strategies work for training and others do not. There is nothing wrong with using a lecture within a training session, but is it the best method for the particular training you are presenting, or would another approach work better? For a group of sales representatives who thrive on competition, a training session built upon a game might be a good presentation method. For a department of online faculty, self-directed learning where the instructors choose courses and articles to read to stay up on their field of study might work better than requiring these same teachers to come in to the office at a specific time to participate in a training course. A high school graduate wanting to learn to be an electrician might be better served working as an apprentice under an experienced electrician than sitting in a classroom. Instructional strategies, or presentation strategies as your textbook refers to them, should be varied and appropriate to the specific training. What works for one type of training may not work for another type. Once again, the importance of the analysis phase comes into play as the analysis of your training should help determine the best instructional strategies to use for the particular training being presented. Team Building and Action Learning In a number of organizations, work teams are replacing that one lone leader credited in the past with the success of organizations. Even in organizations with strong leaders—think about Steve Jobs at Apple— success cannot be accomplished without others to help execute great ideas. Most of Jobs’ team members were with the company for ten years or longer. In the past units, we have focused more on individual training, but team building can be an important part of training and development as well. Numerous development techniques improve the effectiveness of groups, such as process consultation, survey feedback, and team building. Team building is a development process that helps or prepares organization members to work more efficiently or effectively in groups. It is designed to enhance individual team members’ problem-solving skills, communication, and sensitivity to others. Organizations depend on the cooperation of a number of people in order to be successful. Consequently, teams of people have to work on a temporary or permanent basis in harmony. Task forces, committees, project teams, and interdepartmental groups are the kinds of teams that are frequently brought together in the workplace. When team building is successful, participation is encouraged and sustained. There can also be improved communication and problem solving within and between teams. Team building has proven to be most successful when the technique is tailored to fit the needs and the problems of the groups involved. Some observers believe that teams, or high-performance teams specifically, are the wave of the future. Examples of how team building has been used in organizations include:

1. Team skills workshop: Production teams participate in multi-day workshops that include specific and various experiential exercises in order to get to know team members, thus creating a more cohesive unit.

2. Data collection: Attitude and job data are collected from all individual team members. 3. Data confrontation: Consultants present data to teams. Data is discussed and problem areas are

sorted out. Priorities are established by each team. 4. Action planning: Teams develop their own tentative plans to solve problems. 5. Team building: The teams finalize plans to solve the problems identified in Step 4 and consider

barriers to overcome. 6. Intergroup team building: When problems are identified that involve multiple teams, these groups

participate in additional workshops to establish mutually acceptable plans. The importance of a clear and appropriate structure to team performance is well documented. Katzenbach and Smith (1993) interviewed hundreds of people on more than fifty teams. They drew a clear distinction

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between undifferentiated groups and sharply focused teams. “A team is a small number of people with complementary skills, who are committed to a common purpose, set of performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable” (Katzenbach & Smith, 1993, p. 112). Katzenbach and Smith’s (1993) research highlights six distinguishing characteristics of high-performance teams:

1. High-performing teams shape purpose in response to a demand or an opportunity placed in their path, usually by higher management. Top managers clarify the team’s charter, rationale, and challenge, while giving the team flexibility to work out goals and plans of operation. By giving a team clear authority and then staying out of the way, management releases collective energy and creativity.

2. High-performing teams translate common purpose into specific, measurable performance goals. Purpose yields an overall mission, but successful teams take the additional step of recasting purpose into specific and measurable performance goals.

3. High-performing teams are manageable in size. Katzenbach and Smith (1993) fix optimal size for an effective team somewhere between two and 25 people. More members mean more structural complexity, so teams should aim for the smallest size that can get the job done.

4. High-performing teams develop the right mix of expertise. The structural frame stresses the critical link between specialization and expertise. Effective teams seek out the full range of necessary technical fluency. Exemplary teams find and reward expertise in problem solving, decision making, and interpersonal skills to keep the group focused, on task, and free of debilitating personal squabbles.

5. High-performing teams develop a common commitment to working relationships. Effective teams take time to explore who is best suited for a particular task, as well as how individual roles come together. Achieving structural clarity varies from team to team, but it takes more than an organizational chart to identify roles and pinpoint one’s place and responsibilities. Most teams require a more detailed understanding of who is going to do what and how people relate to each other in carrying out diverse tasks.

6. Members of high-performing teams hold themselves collectively accountable. Pinpointing individual responsibilities is crucial to a well-coordinated effort, but effective teams find how to hold the collective accountable.

Human resource professionals need to remember that when team performance is expected, the reward and recognition program of the organization must reflect this. Performance appraisals and recognition programs should focus on measurement of team performance or have a team component aspect incorporated into the appraisal assessment. Expecting team performance but rewarding individual performance can be counterproductive.

Reference Katzenbach, J. R., & Smith, D. K. (1993). The wisdom of teams: Creating the high-performance

organziation. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.