The strong changes that have taken place in the context of companies and organizations have had a strong impact in relation to the organizational arrangement that they have to adopt, and it is no longer possible to determine a single best way to organize and even less for a long time..
The processes of recruitment and selection of personnel carried out by organizations in their need to adjust the person to the role and position are thus insufficient over time.
Even the same business the company is in can change simply because its economy of scale is greater and it is no longer an industry, but the results have a lot to do with the financial aspect, or as it is in the case of McDonald, it may no longer be. in a fast food business, but rather a "real estate" business.
The same information technology can also transform the business within which the company is located.
With the aim of achieving personnel compliance and adaptation and persistence of both attitudes and behaviors of these organizational members, companies have increasingly come to training sessions that have become increasingly stronger since the second half of the last century.
There is practically no organization today that does not dedicate many of its efforts, energy, money, and resources to training its organizational participants as well as those at the top of the organization.
There are several aspects to consider in terms of training. One of them has to do with the fact that within Latin American cultures and within organizational contexts, it is assumed that “Training” is identical to the concept of “Training” that Anglo-Saxon organizations have, particularly in the United States of America and in England.
"Training" for North American and English organizations has to do - to a large extent - with the fact of "adopting new practices".
Within Latin American cultures the concept of "Training" is associated with knowledge that must be put into practice.
But the evidence from training courses overwhelmingly shows that the vast majority of training course participants do not change their behaviors "upon returning to their jobs." The influence of her peers - who did not participate in the course - and also that of her superior (which is very common when she tells her on her return to “try to catch up on everything that is late as she has had a good rest Of course you can "try to innovate", but if you do, you are "at risk and without the support of both your peers and your superior";This leads to the participant not changing his behavior taking unnecessary risks and therefore the new learning is not put into practice (Eric Gaynor Butterfield: "Congress of Organizational Development"; Buenos Aires - Argentina. 1997).
Another important aspect to take into account is the one mentioned by the US philosopher and literary critic, Kenneth Burke (“Permanence and change” - 1935) when mentioning the weaknesses of the measurement system: “One adopts measures in keeping with his past training - and the very soundness of this training may lead him to adopt the wrong measures. People may be unfitted by being fit in an unfit fitness. ”
This inability (lack of ability) regarding training has been pointed out by the sociologist and economist Thorstein Veblen (“The instinct of workmanship” - 1914) when he highlights that: “If the efficiency engineers are to be credited, it is probable within the mark to say that the net aggregate gains from industry fall short of what they might be by some fifty per cent, owing to the trained inability of the businessmen in control to appreciate and give effect to the visible technological requirements of the industries from which they draw their gains ”.
Organizational researchers and theorists have studied different factors that influence organizational results, and have also considered how "training - training" influences these factors / components.
James March and Herbert Simon (“Organizations”; Wiley and Sons - 1958) as well as WH Mobley (“Intermediate linkages in the relationship between job satisfaction and employee turnover”; Journal of applied psychology - 1977) chose rotation as a factor personnel while RM Steers & SR Rhodes (“Knowledge and speculation about absenteeism” - 1984) privileged absenteeism, and LW Porter & RM Steers (“Organizational, work and personal factors in employee turnover and absenteeism”;
Pyshological bulletin - 1973) considered attitudes regarding the degree of commitment. SL Premack & JP Wanous (“A meta-analysis of realistic job previews”; Journal of applied psychology - 1985) chose the aspect of socialization as a relevant factor. A factor that several researchers have shared is that of "staff satisfaction" that was treated with special interest by James March & Herbert Simon (already cited) and also by Victor Vroom ("Work and motivation", Wiley - 1964) among others. Evidence has been found where the increased participation of staff in “training and education” influences all the variables - factors mentioned above.
Practically almost all models of interaction between organizational participants with their roles / positions include training as an important component.
Such is the case of the model by C. Hulin, M. Roznowski, D. Hachiya ("Alternative opportunities and withdrawal decisions"; Psychological Bulletin - 1985).
New topics in terms of training have emerged from the 50s of the last century, which differ from the traditional courses that were developed until then.
Originally the in-company courses and workshops were more directly related to the operations of the company from a functional point of view, giving special consideration to merely operational aspects. But as the organization is impacted by important contextual forces - and especially with the advent of the matrix organization where the organizational members begin to report to two or more people - the relationship problems appeared as "being of greater importance" as we were told. will demonstrate a CEO of a major service company.
Conflicts resulting from not dealing appropriately in unusual or unanticipated situations were not dealt with properly and hence the assertion made by Henry L. Tosi, John Rizzo & Stephen Carroll (“Managing organizational behavior”; Blackwell - 1995) in the sense that Many organizations develop training programs for employees to learn to deal with, prevent, and anticipate conflict:
“They are given the chance to practice techniques of confict resolution. They can assess their own conflict reaction style and learn how to use more than one style. ”
The "international" trainer and trainer may encounter a variety of problems that affect the results that he can and hopes to achieve in the courses and workshops that he develops (MA Hayes:
"Nonverbal communication: expression without Word"; Readings in interpersonal and organizational communication - Boston - 1973). Henry L. Tosi, John Rizzo & Stephen Carroll (“Managing organizational behavior”; Blackwell - 1995 highlight that in these situations “technical” expertise may not be sufficient, as is the case of training developed in Thailand due to the degree of formality that I did not expect from the trainees as well as the inability to get proper and honest feedback regarding the seminar (people in Thailand are not used to doing it).
Therefore these authors suggest that even paying attention to culture at times and showing a special enthusiasm for learning about it coupled with technical expertise may not be enough.
Aspects such as a tolerance for uncertainty and failure, a certain sense of humor, and the ability to persist under "hard" situations are also necessary conditions that the instructor has most likely not taken into account before beginning the development of the training program. training.
Knowledge of culture and language, as well as the support of a coach / mentor, must be extremely useful to the trainer / facilitator so that they can adapt their own techniques, methods, tools and practical cases to the point. culture to be confronted.
Training turns out to be an important factor due to the fact that those who participate have usually been selected by “powerful units” (Henry L. Tosi, John Rizzo & Stephen Carroll: “Managing organizational behavior”; Blackwell - 1995) who are in better conditions to define who should be the subjects to train.
And this is a very important type of influence since training transmits information that is related to the culture of the organization.
These three authors develop a training typology that represents the range of opportunities that companies have available in this area:
1. “lecture method” that has to do with one-way communication;
2. the “case method” that makes use of complex situations that participants must try to solve;
3. the “discussion method” that is based on a methodology where all people participate in the training effort;
4. business simulations and games where you try to create real business situations where the different participants make decisions and then learn about the various consequences of them;
5. programmed instruction where participants are able to learn at their own pace as a consequence of following a sequence of concepts and information that has been previously programmed;
6. "role playing" or role play characterized by the fact that participants must play / simulate the role of a person.
For training to be effective, a series of conditions are required that are not always satisfied before starting, as detailed by KN Wexley and GA Yukl: “Organizational behavior and personnel psychology”; Irwin - 1984). Henry L. Tosi, John Rizzo & Stephen Carroll (“Managing organizational behavior”; Blackwell - 1995) include some of them:
to. that the participants are "trainable", which requires that they have the necessary skill and motivation;
b. It is necessary that there is a context that facilitates training and learning, which requires, among other things, that the participants be able to practice the new skills and behaviors;
c. the material can be learned so that it can be transferred to other organizational members, even when unfavorable situations are found;
d. Efforts and energies must be devoted to replicating a training context that is as similar as possible to the work context confronting the organizational member;
and. The different participants should be given feedback regarding the results of the training program.
The quality of the training and the training and its relation with the subsequent evaluation, are strongly linked with the “validity” of four main aspects as described by Irwin L. Goldstein (“Training in work organizations”; in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991). The validity regarding the or:
1. training itself that attempts to answer the following question: Do participants try to learn during training?
2. The transfer that tries to answer the question: Can what has been learned in training be transferred to the task, achieving greater performance within the organization?
3. The intra-organizational that tries to answer this question: Is the performance consistent for a new group of participants who have to be subject to the training program, consistent with the performance of the original group that has been trained / trained?
4. How inter-organizational it is proposed to answer this question: Can a training program that has been validated for one organization be used successfully in another type of organization?
Training is strongly related to processes of change and organizational development. In reality both concepts - and practices - are based on the general principle that "everything deteriorates" by the simple passage of time (Eric Gaynor Butterfield: "Congress of Organizational Development";
Argentina - 1997). That is why sometimes repairing and repairing is not enough for the company to survive and sustain itself in its context since repairs and repairs simply help it to return to a “previous situation” that is almost always insufficient to face new challenges. and challenges.
Terrence Deal & Allan A. Kennedy (“Companies as Cultural Systems”; Editorial Sudamericana - 1985) highlight the importance of an enriching relationship between training and organizational change. “Consider the change as a skill builder and focus on training as part of the process: Even though employees understand and accept the change, they often do not have the skills and abilities necessary to undertake the new plan.
This is a very serious impediment to the success of the change. Let's look at an example taken from a fast growing tech company.
This company found that half of its worldwide sales came from just 40 companies.
To protect his situation against key accounts, he established a major client program.
The theory was that the manager of the important accounts should take care of these 40 clients, providing them with a special service when required, reacting to their needs, etc.
To fill this critical position, he promoted to a top seller who had never done a review, or given much thought to special services for an account.
His success as a salesman was largely derived from his personality with character and his willingness to do something requested by the customer. Needless to mention, he was not given any special training before assuming his new responsibilities.
A year later, the program was dismantled. Unit sales were up, but revenue was actually down.
The salesman, behaving as he had before, visited each client, asked him what he wanted and used the power his new position gave him to get it.
Unfortunately, each of the major customers wanted lower prices, and the result was that the entire major account program consisted of quantity discounts.
Taking into account the seller's background, the result was predictable, but no one thought about it in advance. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated example, but occurs many times in organizations that are trying to make a change.
We hope it will be a very good example for managers to remember the need to focus - next time they make a change - on building expertise and training. ”
The training that managers, managers, executives and professionals in organizations need depends largely on the different requirements of two systems, according to Kenneth Benne ("Case methods in the training of administrators"; Boston).
The most common requirement and the one that is generally observed is the one that has to do with the “task requirements system”.
And the second type - which is not as usually considered important - is the one that relates to the "system of both construction and maintenance requirements."
Possibly one of the most difficult problems faced by effective training is that practical applications as a consequence of learning are not easy to install in organizational participants, as they have to do with the construction and maintenance system.
Even many executives and managers do not always perceive that this is one of their tasks in the company.
According to Kenneth Benne, there are various types of case methods such as training practices.
The first of these is the one where the training participant is able to discover the variety and complexity of factors that arise in a real situation, where the differences between their points of view and those of other participants come to light.
The second type is that assigned to P. Pigors ("Case methods on the spot"; Adult leadershipl - 1954) known by the name of "incident-process" where engineers are confronted (this is the profession with which this focus) with respect to a critical incident where it is necessary to make some kind of “award” and decision.
The group undergoing training must decide what additional information is required to make a decision regarding a critical incident.
The third type of case method for training in action has been developed by JL Moreno (“Who shall survive” - 1953) who was originally given the name of sociogram. Later, other people called it in other different ways ("reality-practice; role play; participatory method). Under this situation, participants are presented with a problematic situation where they must assume roles and act consequently in search of some resolution (sometimes they even have to create the situation themselves).
A fourth modality that is much more refined still involves the group of participants to analyze their own current behavior within a group situation as a living example of an organization that is subject to change and development. Kenneth Benne and Warren Bennis have used this modality frequently. So we find a variety of training modalities that are available to the coach who participates in a process of change and organizational development where it is possible that this has to take into account the diversity among the participants, the stage of organizational development of the company and the modality of the type of learning to implement.
Awareness groups have been widely used in learning processes within organizational settings in the United States of America. The results achieved are disparate, and not always totally within those expected.
However, the enrichment for the participant usually goes beyond what their work environment represents.
Herbert A. Shepard ("The T-Group as training in observant participation" - MIT) makes a clear description of their valuable premises and training objectives which are reproduced literally:
“The trainer´s primary responsibilities are to facilitate the development of valid communication in the group and to help members make explicit the processes of that development.
The purpose of the former is to provide to members the experience of working in a group with a high potential for member satisfaction and problem solving;
the purpose of the latter is to ensure that members profit from the experience by gaining skill in observant participation so that they can improve the productive potential of other groups in which they participate. ”
Thus development of the group towards valid communication is not an end in itself: it is part of the training method for improving skills in observant participation.
By skills in observant participation are meant the abilities not only to act but also to monitor the action and accurately assess its consequences for the actor in relation to the others, and for the group in relation to its goals.
The skills are easier to describe than to learn. Barriers to learning are produced by the process of socialization. Maturation in any society entails learning to ignore certain matters just as it entails learning to notice certain things.
Such analyzes as D. Riesman´s (“Lonely crowd”; Yale - 1950) point to preoccupation with the consequences of action in terms of individual goals - popularity or power - and inattention to consequences in terms of collaborative achievement.
Cultural emphasis on individualism, that is, on the dangers of risking one's reputation on another's judgment, reduces potential for cooperating and sharing responsibility.
In a culture that makes personal isolation synonymous with personal autonomy, T-group training means the reawakening of painful processes which gave rise to present patterns of interpersonal adaptation. ”
“The ultimate value premise underlying the T-group is one which also underlies scientific work, namely, that it is a good thing to know what you are doing.
The trainee should come to have a better understanding of what takes place between himself and others; he should be able better to assess the consequences for himself and others of actions that he is moved to take; and with this enhanced alertness a wider range of action alternatives should become available to him. In short, he should gain greater control over his external and internal communication. ”
“Knowledge of what one is doing is never complete, but there are plateaus of understanding coordinate with degrees of self-acceptance. The T-group has a limited potency.
More modestly, then, its purpose is to increase understanding, possibly at the risk of certain defenses of the self; while providing a richer basis for self-esteem coupled with apperceptive habits for understanding more fully.
The T-group training should enable the member to see more, and to use what he sees constructively for himself and others. ”
Labs in sensitivity training (T-groups) usually involve groups of between 30 to 150 people that meet for about two or three weeks, where the groups to train meet for about 30 to 40 hours to study their own processes.
It is not easy to know about the results achieved through this method since it is not easy to get an appropriate control group.
In a research work carried out by MB Miles (“Human relations training: processes and outcomes”; Journal of counseling psychology - 1960) it was found that there were no differences between the experimental group and the control group within a behavioral scale based on leadership, between ante and post training. We must emphasize in any case that a useful technique that is frequently used in sensitivity training takes into account a particular rule: “before any participant can speak about his own ideas, he must first repeat what has been said and also felt by the person who spoke before him.
Hence, it is common that those participants who participated in this particular type of training can usually state that "For the first time in my life I am really listening to what other people are saying" (Henry C. Smith: "Empathy and Ideology"; Mc Nally - 1966).
Leadership and communication between a superior and a subordinate is intimately linked to education and training as highlighted by Warren G. Bennis (“Interpersonal Communication” in Behavioral decisions in organizations by Alvar Elbing - Scott, Foresman and Co. 1970).
Bennis points out that very often our communication is narrow and limited in scope because even though we are sometimes not fully aware of it, many times we try to train others in ways that we feel comfortable with.
That is, we tend to train others to respond to us in a very precise and defined way, despite the fact that such training is an involuntary type of reflective act where we try to extract from the other the behavior that we want.
This means that the subordinate who has a passive and meek behavior that is highly dependent is then in a situation where he works for a dominant and aggressive person.
And this situation tends to satisfy both the subordinate and the superior as they are both mutually compatible since both have trained each other to reciprocate their behaviors within the range of their preferred behaviors.
People within organizations are often trained by their peers through the often trivial tasks, meetings, and conversations that they have with each other and that managers unfortunately do not know or do not pay due attention to.
Many times the underlying values within organizations are communicated by peers as if they were “older brothers” where they let the most novice and experienced know how the boss really wants things to be done, how senior management feels about matters. Important, the type of things that can be done within the company and that are heroic, as well as everything that is taboo (Edgar H. Schein: “Organizational socialization and the profession of management”; Industrial management review - 1968).
Increasingly people within organizations visualize the need for continuous training and empowerment throughout their career development. Organizational participants attend in-company, off-company courses, open courses, specialization courses, interpersonal skills development workshops, and often return to universities for short-term crash programs or “refresher” courses.
The term drop-out (initially linked to those who have not completed their studies) can be seen very soon assigned to those who do not "return" to the University to study (Warren G. Bennis: New patterns of leadership for tomorrow´s organizations "; Technology review - Cambridge - 1968).
Another important variable that must be taken into account in the search for organizational efficiency is related to the inter-relationship between training and career development. See: TM Camden “Using outplacement as a career development tool”; Administrative Personnel - 1982;
Feldman: "Managing careers in organizations"; Dr. Donald Cole & Eric Gaynor Butterfield: "Professional Suicide or Organizational Murder"; The OD Institute International, LA - 2003.
Training has become a boom in the corporate world and also in public organizations, NGOs and SMEs, to which must be added the Cooperatives that allocate a special fund that is usually in proportion to the wages paid.
The Carnegie Foundation noted that the industrial corporate world in the United States of America spent more than $ 40 billion annually (NP Eurich: “Corporate classrooms” - 1985).
The Training & Development Journal carried out field work with the Human Resources areas of the 500 Fortune companies, finding that:
- 91% of corporations provided training to middle management; 75 of the companies developed sales training courses; 56% of the organizations sent their administrative and secretarial staff; 51% of the companies carried out executive development programs; 44% gave technical training to company personnel; Of all these types of training, the most frequently used method was the in-company seminar or others of the same internal company modality.
LT Ralphs & E. Stephan (Training and development Journal - 1986) found that the most frequently used training method in corporations was the discussion-based conference method and is followed by the method that makes use of films and videos followed by "Lectures with questions" and role playing.
On the other hand, they found that the evaluation methods most frequently used in companies is that carried out by the same participant as soon as the course ends (around 75 to 80% of cases) and that it is followed by the evaluation method carried out. conducted by the instructor (about 15% of the time).
Those who are interested in an “instructional system” can turn to the work of I. Goldstein (“Training and organizations: needs assessment, development and evaluation” Brooks-Cole; 1986), which starts from a “needs analysis ”Where the three main aspects to take into account are:
1. Organizational analysis;
2. Homework and KSA analysis; and
3. Analysis of the person who is to help define the "objectives subject to instruction".
McGehee & Thayer (“Training in Business and industry”; Wiley - 1961) have described these three main components of “needs assessment”.
There are nine different “needs assessment” techniques available according to SV Steadham: “Learning to select a needs assessment strategy” in Irwin L. Goldstein (“Training in work organizations”; in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991), and each of them offers advantages and disadvantages in its application.
The nine “needs assessment” techniques are (literally and in English):
1. " Observation "
“Can be used as technical as time-motion studies or as functionally or behaviorally specific as observing a new board or staff member interacting during a meeting.
May be as unstructured as walking through an agency´s offices on the lookout for evidence of communication barriers.
Can be used normatively to distinguish between effective and ineffective behaviors, organizational structures, and / or processes. ”
2. " Questionnaires "
“May be in the form of surveys or polls of a random or stratified sample of respondents, or an enumeration of an entire“ population ”ranking.
Can use a variety of question formats: open-ended, projective, forced-choice, priority-ranking.
Can take alternative forms such as Q-sorts, or slip shorts, rating scales, either pre-designed or self-generated by respondents.
May be self-administered (by mail) under controlled or uncontrolled conditions, or may require the presence of an interpreter or assistant. ”
3. “ Key consultation ”
“Secures information from those persons who, by virtue of their formal or informal standing, are in a good position to know what the training needs of a particular group are:
to. Board chairman
b. Related service providers
c. Members of professional associations
d. Individuals from the service population
Once identified, data can be gathered from these consultants by using techniques such as interviews, group discussions, questionnaires. ”
4. " Print Media "
"Can include professional journals, legislative news / notes, industry" rags ", trade magazines, in-house publications."
5. " Interviews "
“Can be formal or casual, structured or unstructured, or somewhere in between.
May be used in a sample of a particular group (board, staff, committee) or conducted with everyone concerned.
Can be done in person, by phone, at the work site, or away from it. ”
6. “ Group discussion ”
Resembles face-to-face interview technique, eg, structured or unstructured, formal or informal, or somewhere in between.
Can be focused on job (role) analysis, group problem analysis, or any number of group tasks or themes (eg, “leadership training needs of the board”).
Uses one or several of the familiar group facilitating techniques: brainstorming, nominal group process, force fields, consensus ranking, organizational mirroring, simulation, and sculpting. ”
7. " Tests "
Are a hybridized form of questionnaire.
Can be very functionally oriented (like observations) to test a board, staff, or committee member´s proficiency.
May be used to sample learned ideas and facts.
Can be administered with or without the presence of an assistant. ”
8. " Records, reports "
Can consist of organizational charts, planning documents, policy manuals, audits, and budget reports.
Includes employee records (grievance, turnover, accidents, etc.)
Includes minutes of meetings, weekly and monthly program reports, memoranda, agency service records, program evaluation studies. ”
9. " Work samples "
Are similar to observation but in written form.
Can be products generated in the course of the organization´s work (eg, ad layouts, program proposals, market analyzes, letters, training designs).
Written responses to a hypothetical but relevant case study provided by the consultant. ”
This analytical description of the different techniques of “needs assessment” carried out by SV Steadham (already mentioned) is accompanied by different advantages and disadvantages for each of them. Considering the extent of Steadham's very good work, we are going to mention some of them for each of the different techniques:
1. In the case of using the Observation technique, one does not interrupt the work routine within the organization and also offers the advantage of generating data on-site.
But it offers the disadvantage that a highly specialized observer is required, both in relation to the processes and content of the knowledge. It also has the limitation that information can only be obtained “within the company itself”.
2. Under the situation of using Questionnaires, one of the main advantages is that you can reach a very large number of people in a short time and it is also relatively inexpensive.
An additional advantage is that it provides opportunities for people to express themselves without fear. Finally, the information obtained is easy to summarize and report.
Among the disadvantages we can mention the fact that it does not provide enough for full expression in relation to "unanticipated responses".
This technique also requires a long time to develop instruments (questionnaires) that are really effective.
Another disadvantage is that they are of little use in identifying the causes of problems as well as possible solutions available.
An additional drawback is that it is common to find low rates of return to the administered questionnaires.
It is fascinating that many Human Resources managers when they dedicate their energies to training, consider that learning about the different options mentioned in terms of “needs assessment” techniques may not be very beneficial.
We will not tire of emphasizing the enormous importance of this phase as well as familiarization with the use of the different techniques available.
Something similar occurs in relation to what “happens the day after” the training course that is linked to the possibility of effectively transferring what has been learned. IL Goldstein (“Training in organizations: needs assessment, development and evaluation”; Brooks / Cole - 1986) has made it clear that people who attend a training are faced with a dilemma since they must learn something within a context and then they must apply it and put it into practice in another context (very rarely the context of the training is totally similar to the context of the participant's work).
Of great interest is the result of the research of the work team made up of Baumgartel, Sullivan & Dunn (“How organizational climate and personality affect the pay-off from advanced management training sessions”; Kansas Business Review - 1978) who found that managers they only make use of the “new” that has been learned when the conditions within the organization are really favorable.
If we take into account that usually those who attend courses are generally not accompanied by their peers, their superior and their subordinates when they return to their post, we can somehow anticipate the difficulties in implementing the new knowledge and practices as well as the Perception of the risks you take in implementing the changes.
What finally translates into non-change, which is the most usual situation within organizational contexts when participants return to their natural positions.
Luthans & Kreitner (1985) developed an organizational behavior model where they identify two main components regarding the “transfer climate”, that is, the predisposition that the participant must find within the company to apply the new knowledge and practices. They are:
1. "situational clues";
2. Consequences.
And JZ Rouillier & IL Goldstein (“The determination of positive transfer of training climate through organizational analysis” in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991) make use of these two components and show some specific examples for each of them (literally and in English):
1. "situational clues"
- Existing managers make sure that new managers have the opportunity to use their training immediately Existing managers have new managers share their training experience and learning with co-workers on the job The equipment used in training is similar to the equipment found on the job Existing managers assign an experienced co-worker to help trainees as needed back on the job Existing managers ease the pressure of work for a short time so new managers have a chance to practice new skills Training aids are available on the job to support what new managers have learned in training. ”
2. "Consequences"
- Existing managers let new managers know they are doing a good job when they use their training Existing managers refuse to accept statements or actions from new managers that are different from those learned in training More experienced workers ridicule the use of techniques taught in training (reverse scored) Existing managers do not notice new managers who are using their training (reverse scored) New managers who successfully use their training are likely to receive a salary increase New managers who use their training are given preference for new assignments. ”
A field work carried out by Eric Gaynor ("Organizational Development Congress", Argentina - 2003) shows that the vast majority of companies do not put into practice the situational clues or the consequences referred to above, and this is possibly a An additional reason why organizations - after the participant returns from a course - do not introduce changes to support their development and growth.
It is important that prior to the training and training of the organizational participants, due consideration be given to the “task analysis” which must be correctly described.
In Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991, Irwin L. Goldstein (“Training in work organizations”) summarizes the contributions of other authors in this matter, and highlights some main aspects:
1. You should use the present tense, avoid long sentences and make the description of the task clearly.
2. Each sentence should begin with a functional verb that identifies the main part of the task, which in turn has to do with the achievement to be achieved.
3. The sentence should describe:
- "What" is what the organizational participant does; "as it does; "for whom"; and because".
And in this sense highlights some examples, such as the following in the case of a supervisor:
- “What”: the supervisor informs “how”: by means of written reports “for whom”: for the supervisor of the next shift “because”: so that the number of people required to work in each operating unit can be determined.
The traditional way used to specify human capacities has been based on "skills, knowledge, habilities"
(SKA - knowledge, skills and abilities). Prien (1987) defines these three different categories as follows (Irwin L. Goldstein: Training in work organizations ”in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991):
- knowledge represents the foundational basis on which skills and abilities are built and have to do with an “organized whole” (of knowledge), characterized by its factual and procedural nature, which, to the extent applicable, makes possible achieve adequate performance in the execution of the task. It should be especially noted that the fact of possessing knowledge does not imply that it must be put into practice or used. the skills have to do with the ability to perform operations on the job with a certain degree of ease and precision, and have generally been associated with physical-motor activities.
The fact of specifying a skill implies the existence of a performance standard in relation to the execution of effective operations at work.
- skills refer to the cognitive abilities that are necessary to perform a function on the job. We can say that skills often require the application of some kind of basic knowledge.
Irwin L. Goldstein (“Training in work organizations”; in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991)
highlights the importance of being clear about the dimensions involved in the construction of SKA and for this the selector (of personnel, of training assistants) can make use of some practical questions, such as:
- How important is homework? How important is the task in relation to its impact on organizational results? How important are KSAs to efficiently execute tasks? At what point should the organizational participant acquire the SKA among the following options (among others): at the time of being recruited and selected, at the time of training, or when they are doing the job? Are SKAs required from the very first day you start doing company work? How often is this task performed within the organization?
And now, dear participants, I suggest you keep in mind an important distinction between what is a "theory of learning" and a "theory of instruction" that has been exemplary distinguished by JS Bruner ("A theory of instruction"; Educational leadership - 1963). Learning theories describe what has happened while an "instruction theory" represents a guide to what must be done in order to achieve certain objectives.
Those interested in education and training must take into account that developments in robotics, automation and artificial intelligence have increased the responsibilities and scope of the tasks of the machines and - paradoxically - also of the people since it gives them Ultimate responsibility for a smart machine.
It is extremely disappointing that many of the educational institutions at all three levels and traditional educational principles usually do not pay enough attention and their corresponding help in that people make inferences, diagnoses, evaluations and judgments, decision making, focus the attention and problem solving (WC Howell & NJ Cooke: “Training the human information processor: A review of cognitive models” in Training and development in work organizations: frontiers of industrial and organizational psychology; Jossey-Bass - 1989).
A question that those responsible for education and training should ask themselves has to do with the degree of “readiness” that the participant in question has (Trainee Readiness).
Participant motivation is a necessary precondition for effective training and goal setting is also important (Dr. Donald W. Cole & Eric Gaynor Butterfield: “Professional Suicide and Organizational Murder; The Organization Development Institute International, Latinamerica - 2003).
Irwin L. Goldstein: Training in work organizations ”(in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991) reviews different authors who established some characteristics and conditions that influence performance in terms of training and training (GP Latham & EA Locke - 1979; EA Locke, K. Shaw, L. Saari & GP Latham - 1981). Between them:
to. Those people who are assigned specific, difficult and challenging goals in contrast to easy goals or where you can do your best, or are not given any goals, tend to achieve higher performance.
b. Goals appear to have more predictable effects when given in specific terms rather than those given as a set of vague intentions.
c. The objectives must be in direct relation to the levels of ability of each person.
d. The provision of feedback regarding the degree to which the established objective has been achieved is necessary to achieve higher performance.
and. It is important that the individual accepts the objective assigned to her and this degree of acceptance is often related to the degree of support or commitment that the organization has regarding the objective setting program.
You can review the following texts and works (McGehee & Thayer; already quoted) and that of IL Goldstein (1974 and 1986 - already cited) where a reference is made to the different variables related to learning and also to the transfer of what has been learned. We have already seen how the climate “for transfer” is of utmost importance and it can be very useful to take into account the contributions of Irwin L. Goldstein: Training in work organizations ”in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991) who highlights the following aspects:
- The trainer must have a system that allows the trainer, the trainee, and the manager to be united during “the transfer process”. The expectations of both the “to train” and the manager must be clear before starting the training. It is necessary to identify the obstacles that may exist regarding the transfer as well as to have strategies to overcome the problems. You must work with those managers who are in a position to provide opportunities to the participants that allow them to maintain and consolidate the new knowledge learned within the company.
We have previously mentioned how instructional theory differs from learning theory.
Possibly the works of RM Gagné ("Essentials of learning for instruction" -1974;
“Learning outcomes and their effects: useful categories of human performance”; American Psychologist - 1984), RM Gagné & W. Dick (“Instructional psychology” in Annual review of psychology - 1983) and RM Gagné & LJ
Briggs ("Prijciples of instructional design" - 1979), are clearly distinguished in relation to instructional theory. Gagné and his collaborators have chosen five main “learning outcomes” (Irwin L. Goldstein: Training in work organizations ”in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991):
1. Intellectual skills that include concepts, rules and procedures, and which are frequently called "procedural knowledge". A common example is that of mathematics, which uses the “computation rules” as an example of a rule.
2. Verbal information that is commonly called “declarative information” that has to do with a person's ability to say, declare, or mention something in particular.
3. The cognitive strategies that have to do with the idea that the apprentices not only bring with them for a new task their intellectual abilities and their verbal information, but also the knowledge regarding how and when the information should be used.
Goldstein highlights that cognitive strategies make up a particular type of strategic knowledge that allows learners to know when and how they must choose which intellectual ability and what verbal information, they must take into account from time to time.
4. The motor skills that usually come to light in the actions that people perform in organizations in search of performance.
Writing and using different tools are clear examples of motor skills.
5. Attitudes that have to do with the fact that people's preferences in turn impact their attitudes.
In “Principles of instructional design” (RM Gagné & LJ Briggs; 1979), which in turn is included in Irwin L. Goldstein: Training in work organizations ”in Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Consulting Psychologists Press - 1991) they mention different "instructional events" and their relationship to the five types of abilities.
Each one of the five different capacities (intellectual abilities, cognitive strategy, information, attitude and motor ability) is linked to a specific "instructional event" that we suggest you take into account as it is an analytical work that deserves special consideration in order to effectuate the training. and training.
The different instructional events to which the authors refer are:
1. Cattle in terms of "attention"
2. Informing the learner about the objective
3. Encouraging memorization of prerequisites
4. Presenting the material that is stimulus matter
5. Eliciting performance
6. Providing feedback
7. Assessing performance
8. Achieving effective retention and transfer
We may suggest that it is also important to integrate the cognitive principles that relate to "instruction." WC Howell & NJ Cooke: “Training the human information processor: A review of cognitive models” (in Training and development in work organizations: frontiers of industrial and organizational psychology; Jossey-Bass - 1989) refer to the main cognitive principles:
to. automatic processing;
b. the use of mental models as training systems;
c. the use of organizational structures to produce improvements in “working” memory; and
d. metacognition and learning systems.
Possibly one of the most promising areas is related to metacognition, which tries to design systems that allow learners to understand what they do as well as what they do not know, at any specific moment.
There is something that those of us who belong to the Organizational Development Profession have learned and who are also responsible for courses, workshops or staff training days.
It is the participant's feedback that will make a noticeable difference regarding their “predisposition to learn” and their “predisposition to apply” the knowledge that has been shared (Eric Gaynor Butterfield: “Organizational Training and Development Workshop”; The Organization Development Institute International, Latin America - June 1993).
Taking this into account, we must try to apply it, and upon the return of this short break, we will enhance what has been seen through your contributions where active participation is expected.
They have to be organized in groups of no more than 6 people, which makes a total of about 4 groups, and we are leaving 3 people out of this activity to serve as "observers".
Don't worry, they have to have their work too. See you in about 15 to 20 minutes, and we start with those present.
