Introduction
Business enterprises and organizations at large rely on human resource in their operations. To a large extent, the success of a given organization is determined by the skills and commitment of the human resource. Hatcher (17) points out that the effectiveness of human resource is dependent on a number of factors. One of them is the level of skills possessed by employees in a company. The ever changing business environment in contemporary society requires a workforce to have skills equal to the tasks assigned to them.
The level of skills determines the competitiveness of the organization in the local and global market. For this reason, Hatcher (23) is of the view that it is important to put in place training and development programs with regards to the labor force in a give organization. The opinions of such scholars help to affirm the hypothesis that human resource development is vital for the success of a given business organization in contemporary society.
The current paper is written against the aforementioned hypothesis. Consequently, the author seeks to outline the various benefits of training and development in a contemporary business organization. According to Wilson (74), one can view the benefits or importance of training and development from two perspectives.
For example, there are those benefits that accrue to the employee of the organization. The other category includes those benefits that are associated with the employer. Both of these benefits are discussed in detail in this paper. To achieve the objective of this paper, the author relies on various books on human resource and a number of peer reviewed articles published in journals in the field of human resource.
Introduction to Training and Development in a Business Organization
Salvi (para. 1) looks at training from an academic angle. Salvi suggests that training is an avenue through which personnel learn new skills that build on their existing knowledge. Training and development has a number of objectives. The main objective is to improve the efficiency of employees at their place of work. To this end, the process of training seeks to enhance the skills of an individual. Through this process of skill improvement, the much desired efficiency at the work place is realized.
On its part, development is considered as an avenue through which an organization employs some form of capacity building to enhance its performance in the market (Salvi para. 2). There are a number of elements underlying this aspect of development in a company. Some of the elements include the prevailing business environment and the current state of a company.
From these perspectives, the aspect of development (with regards to both the organization and the employee) is made evident. Salvi (para. 3) is of the opinion that training and development go hand in hand, especially when it comes to human resource management. Salvi believes that training is an avenue through which skills can be developed.
The Importance of Training and Development
Overview
Lipman (para. 1) is of the opinion that many companies are not providing enough training and development to their staff. The trend has increased in recent years. Lipman (para. 2) makes reference to a study published in the Harvard Business to argue out this point. In this study, a large number of participants cited development dissatisfaction as the reason behind their exit from companies. From the study cited by Lipman, it is evident that members of staff prefer to work in an environment where their skills can be continuously developed.
From the discourse above, it is apparent that training and development remains a key element in the overall management of a company. In this section, some of the benefits of training and development are discussed to determine the veracity of the hypothesis developed for this study. Lipman (para. 4) and Rothwell (127) illustrate some of these benefits. The sentiments of these two scholars (Lipman and Rothwell) are driven by the need to improve human resource management in today’s business organization.
Identifying and Addressing Weaknesses among Employees
According to Rothwell (73), all the employees working in a given organization have a number of shortcomings. The inefficiencies characterizing many business organizations arise from the individual shortcomings of the employees.
Consequently, Rothwell (73) argues that it is only through training and development that these weaknesses are identified and dealt with. Managers in companies with an established program of training employees can easily identify employees with weaknesses that affect their performance. As a result of this, the levels of skills among employees in a given business entity are greatly enhanced.
Companies that do not address the shortcomings of their employees tend to rely more on the skills of a few individual members of staff (Wilson 111). A training program creates uniformity with regards to skill distribution in a particular company. The increased pool of skilled employees in a company reduces the need to rely on particular members of staff to perform certain tasks. In this regard, training and development ensures that a company has a reliable workforce.
Improved Performance among Employees and Training and Development
Kesler (11) examines the factors that improve the performance of a company’s workforce. Kesler points out access to information as a key determinant of performance among employees. In light of this, training and development ensures that individual employees have access to updated information regarding a number of procedures in their practice.
For examples, a hospital may organize a conference for a team of specialists in the workforce to help them learn about new developments in their field. Workers who are well informed are able to perform their tasks better and more efficiently compared to those who are not adequately informed. The training, as a result, improves the employees overall performance.
To some extent, performance is tied to individual employee’s level of confidence. Rothwell (67) is of the opinion that individuals with a low self-esteem perform poorly in their work. A training and development program helps to identify such employees to boost their levels of confidence. When their confidence levels are dealt with, the employees are capable of improving their performance. Consequently, the overall efficiency of a company is improved.
Employee Satisfaction and Training and Development
A training and development program helps to increase employee satisfaction in the organization. According to Lipman (para. 2), there is an emerging trend in American companies where members of staff opt to leave companies that lack a training and development mechanism.
According to Hamel (116), individuals are highly satisfied when their levels of skills are improved. Members of staff enhance the achievement of an organization’s core objectives when they feel a sense of belonging in the company. The sense of belonging can be achieved through a training and development program in the company (Hamel 116).
Increased Productivity and Training and Development
As aforementioned, training and development helps to increase employees’ skills and knowledge (Hatcher 23). The implication is that a workforce with improved skills and access to updated information is more efficient than a workforce that lacks the two. In addition, increased levels of skills help to reduce the time taken to perform a given task. As such, the productivity levels in a given company are significantly improved.
Quality Improvement and Training and Development
According to Ulrich and Reeds (294), training and development introduces the workforce to updated methods of service delivery. It follows that the overall quality of service delivery in a company is tied to the availability of information on best practices. To this end, a company’s training and development program ensures that the quality of goods and services produced remains high.
Reducing Operational Costs and Training and Development
Many companies are keen on ensuring that their operational costs are minimized (Lipman para. 7). Consequently, it is important to ensure that the resources available to the company are optimally utilized. A training and development program helps employees to acquire skills that are useful in reducing wastage in the company.
Conclusion
From the arguments made in this paper, it is evidently clear that training and development is a key pillar in business and human resource management. Based on the findings made, the author of this paper concludes that all organizations should have a training and development program for the employees to enhance the overall performance of the company.
Works Cited
Hamel, George. Leading the Revolution, Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2000. Print.
Hatcher, Tim. Ethics and HRD: A New Approach Leading to Responsible Organizations, Kentucky: Basic Books, 2002. Print.
Kesler, Gregory. “Why the Leadership Bench Never Gets Deeper: Ten Insights about Executive Talent Development.” HR Planning Society Journal 25.1 (2002): 1-28. Print.
Lipman, Victor 2013. Why Employee Training is Important, Neglected can Cost You Talent. Web.
Rothwell, Williams. Effective Succession Planning, New York: AMACOM, 2001. Print.
Salvi, Siddheshwar. n.d. What is Training and Development?. Web.
Ulrich, David and Beatty Reeds. “From Partners to Players: Extending the HR Playing Field.” Human Resource Management 40.4 (2001): 293-308. Print.
Wilson, John. Human Resource Development: Learning and Training for Individuals and organization, London: Kogan Page Publishers, 2005. Print.