Executive Summary
The ever-changing global economy calls for new innovations and strategies in organizations in order to maintain competitive advantage. These include training and development of the human resource to enhance productivity and overall business performance.
Organizations are taking huge risks by investing heavily on human resource training and development. Business executives view innovation as one of their top most challenges. The main purpose of this study is to explore the role of training professionals in innovation and organizational change.
Many studies have found out that training and development is the main instrument for breaking new ground bringing changes in an organization. These changes include change in workers behavior and competency, up holding innovations and adopting new technologies. The best design and strategy in professional training must be all inclusive, continuous in nature and should integrate training with other elements of the organizations.
Introduction
Overview
High performing organizations nowadays are acknowledging the significance of using best training and development systems to improve their competitive advantage in the industry. Training and development of the human resource is a critical factor in any organization if the value and potential of the human resources are to be harnessed and grown).
Many studies have underscored the apparent correlation between a soundly designed and strategic training and the overall success of the organization (Cappelli 2000, p.103). The general image of the industry and workers is also influenced by the level and quality of training and development.
In our contemporary business climate most companies are faced with stiff competition for their quality staffs (Gronn 2002, p.425). Human resource experts asserts that companies which invests heavily training and development benefits from enriched working environment with low level of staff exodus as well as enhanced productivity and organizational performance (Kuchinke 2001, p.292).
Report Purpose
The main focus of this report is to identify the role of training and developing professionals in our contemporary competitive business environment, to enhance productivity and overall business performance through innovation. There are challenges associated with developing a well designed business strategy through training.
The report will also identify where the senior management always goes wrong in developing these strategies and best possible approaches to employ. The report will come up with the best types of training that can deliver innovation in an organization.
Training professional’s role
The role of training professionals in today’s businesses, to deliver innovation.
In order to maintain a competitive advantage and retention of high quality staff, companies must ensure that training and development of their human resources is not taken lightly. Investing in professional training guarantees stability and productivity in organization (Wexley & Latham 2002, p.12).
On of the most significant aspect of human resource development is helping employees to become more effective in the work and to be able to adapt other jobs within the company. However, in order for training strategies and policies to be effective they must correspond to the company’s goals and objective (Miller 2010, p.55).
Major changes in an organization are brought about by change in workers behavior and competency. Willingness of the employees to embrace changes in an organization is influenced by numerous factors such as organizational structure, performance evaluation system, organization’s culture among others. Training department is the one with the strongest position to integrate the above elements and direct top leaders through change initiatives (Miller 2010, p.55).
Training and development is the main instrument for breaking new ground bringing changes in an organization. Expertise acquired through professional training not only helps in getting accustomed to the new technology but also contributes to new innovations (Langbert 2005, p.440).
Professional training must take place within a framework of partnership between the training department, the organization as a whole and the human resources. This will make sure that the training offered is in line with all the stakeholders view/ interest. Therefore, training brings all the stakeholders together and the common interest is identified and worked upon. Eventually, professional training is about value addition to the company and the stakeholders (Krefting & Nord 2003, p.513; Miller 2010, p.54-55).
Senior leaders’ view of training
Complacency and poor program strategy and design
One of the major obstacles to innovation in organizations is complacency. Most managers after budding through the ranks to the top most positions forget about training. They only turn to training departments usually after making all the key decision within unreasonable time frame (Miller 2010, p.54). In order for training department to accomplish its task successfully, it needs time to design programs, invite workers for training, carry out the training and allow a sample to experiment what they have learned to produce results (Scully 2005, p.20). This often leads to waste of time and company resources. It is only through professional training that an organization can avoid t time wastage and exasperation by assisting the top management to embrace training practices that leads to innovation and change in an organization Miller (2010, p.54-55).
Top down leadership
Most managers always apply top-down style of leadership which has proven to be ineffective in the businesses nowadays. In this case, the manager designs the business strategies, sets goals and objectives, sets deadlines, delegate duties among other functions without consultation. In such cases, training department only executes duties assigned by the top management. Generally, training and human resources development should be a continuous process not spontaneous (Scully 2005, p.18-19).
Know-all attitude
Some of managers always think they know everything about the organization to understand the effect of a change on the workers and their roles in the company and how the change should be managed to produce optimal results. Lastly, some believe consultation is a major obstacle to quick adoption of innovations. Therefore, they always avoid performance barriers which are threat to new innovations (Gronn 2002, p. 425).
Approaches to change by training professionals
Consultation and consensus building
Professional training helps the company in clarifying, planning, and implementing change through various elements. To start with, professional training ensures wider consultation and consensus building when it comes to adopting and implementing change (Miller 2010, p.54-55).
Great vision
Professional training helps managers to make clear decisions. Most managers are great visionaries except that they do not translate their visions into observable variables. Professional training thus plays an important role in articulating goals and objectives of an organization. Professional training also acts as a vehicle for communication and leading change (Miller 2010, p.54-55; Wexley & Latham 2002, p.19).
Designing solutions to problems in the organization
The managers through training are able to design solutions to challenges in an organization. Training team during the early stages of initiative is always capable of advising the top management on the best possible solutions to the current or looming problem (Kuchinke 2001, p.293).
Preparing workers for change
Most of the activities carried out in the training department are parallel with the change team. By the time the executives make an announcement about the change, those who have undergone professional training would already be familiar with it. This gives workers confidence, trust and belief (Miller 2010, p.55).
Makes the management visible
Lastly, professional training helps senior leaders to remain visible in an organization. Leaders become visible through participation and involvement in the training activities or programs (Miller 2010, p.55).
Recommendations
The best human resource training and development is the one that is all inclusive and continuous in nature. All inclusive in this case means participation without discrimination and consensus building. Professional training should be done on a regular basis and not spontaneous.
The training should aim at establishing the solutions to the current looming challenges and developing new ideas/ innovation. Human beings are always skeptical in nature when it comes to innovations. Therefore, besides developing new strategies and ideas, professional training should act as a means of communication between the management and the employees. This provides the employees with confidence, trust and belief when implementing the new strategies/ideas.
The employees in this case understand the benefits of the new ideas/ strategy and its challenges. The best design and strategy in professional training must integrate training with other elements of the organizations such as organizational structure, performance evaluation system, organization’s culture among others. This is the only way to achieve sustainability and organizational success.
References
Cappelli, P. (2000) A market-driven approach to retaining talent. Harvard Business Review, 78, 1, 103–111.
Gronn, P. (2002) Distributed leadership as a unit of analysis. The Leadership Quarterly, 13(4): 423-451.
Krefting, L. A., & Nord, W. R. (2003) Ethics and HRD: A new approach to leading responsible organizations (Book). Academy of Management Review, 28, 512–513.
Kuchinke, K. P. (2001) Why HRD is not an academic discipline. Human Resource Development International, 4, 291–294.
Langbert, M. (2005) The master’s degree in HRM: Midwife to a new profession? Academy of Management Learning & Education, 4, 434–450.
Miller, N. (2010) Leading workplace innovation and change: brave new role. T+D, vol. 64, no. 6, pp. 54-58.
Scully, M. (2005) Bystander awareness: Skills for effective managers. In Ancona, D., Kochan, T., Scully, M. Van Maanen, J. & Westney, and D.E. Managing for the future: Organizational behavior and processes. Cincinnati, OH: Southwestern: M11:18-27.
Wexley, K., & Latham, G. (2002) Developing and training human resources in organization, 3rd Ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.