PSYCH-105 Industrial Psychology
Chapter 18: Training and Development
Unit 1
Unit 2
Unit 3
Unit 4
Appendix
Meaning and Objective of Training
Training and development are the field concern with organizational activities aimed at bettering the performance of individuals and group in organizational settings. Training is concern with increasing the knowledge and skills of employees for doing specific job / tasks while development involves the growth of all employees in all aspects.
The need for training and development is determined by the employee’s performance deficiency computed as follows:
Training and Development Need = Standard Performance – Actual Performance
Training
Training is a process that develops and improves skills related to performance. Effective training programs can result in increasing production, reduced labour turnover and greater employee satisfaction. They should include all employees, from factory workers to executives and apply not only to inexperienced workers but also to experienced workers new to the company. A training program should also include those who are promoted to higher level jobs and the periodic retraining of present employees by means of refresher courses.
Training can be seen as an organized activity for increasing the technical skills of the employees to enable them to do the particular job efficiently. Training is equally important for existing as well as for new employees.
Edwin B Flippo – Training is the act of increasing the knowledge and skills of an employee for doing a particular job.
The main objective of training is to develop required knowledge, skills and attitudes of employees so that they can perform more productively and achieve the business goals.
Objectives
- To impart basic knowledge and skill to new entrants and enable them to perform the job well.
- To equip employee to meet the changing requirement of job and organization.
- To teach the employees new techniques and ways of performing the job operations
- To prepare employees for higher level task and build up a second line of competent managers
- To increase productivity and quality
- To increase efficiency.
Benefits
To the organization
1. Economy of operations
Trained personnel make better use of the resources and materials supplied to them. Reduction in accidents and damage of equipment comes down by the well-trained employees.
2. Greater productivity
A well trained and skilled employee brings increase in both the quality and quantity of the work.
3. Uniformity of procedures
Trained helps standardizing the best available methods of work to all the employees in the organization. Standardization brings high levels of performance than the expectations of the employers.
4. Less supervision
If employees are well trained the responsibility and need to detailed and constant supervision is lowered in the organization.
5. Systematic enhancement of skills
If a properly designed training program is run in the organization, the employees need not learn by trial and error and by observing other employees. A formal training reduces the learning time of employees and helps them to achieve the acceptable level of performance.
6. Higher morale
A good training program molds employees’ attitudes to achieve support for organizational activities and to obtain greater cooperation and loyalty towards the organization.
To the workers
1. Acquisition of new skills
The workers get an opportunity to acquire new skills. These new skills help them achieving their career prospects of the future.
2. Higher wages
If the workers are well trained the productivity of the overall organization is increased. This increased productivity, in turn, brings higher wages, promotions and bonus to the workers.
3. Industrial safety
Trained workers are less accident prone as they know how to handle the machinery and other equipment at work. They are also well versed in use of various safety devices in case of an emergency.
Disadvantages
- Can be a financial drain on resources, as training could be expensive
- Equips staff to leave for a better job
- Often takes people away from their job for varying period of time.
