Training and development constitute a considerable area in an organization’s expenditures. An effective training program creates a foundation for the future standards of a company’s productivity and efficacy; nevertheless, this view could be considered a relatively new one. The domain has altered significantly over the last decades due to transformations in the labor market and the nature of work. The role of training and development shifted from improving individual capacities and the acquisition of needed skills to increasing the place of a team overall. Original approaches, such as technology-based training, are gradually incorporated in the development processes, while others (presentation and hands-on) constitute its core. For a company that is only in the initial stages of its growth, finding training methods that would suit its profile and essence the most fully may be complicated. Beefsteak is an example of an organization with limited history but well-established values that could benefit from an elaborated training program.
Beefsteak’s staff is comparatively small, which could be explained by how long the company has been active. This characteristic limits the number of training methods that could be considered effective in the organization’s case. For instance, hands-on methods help determine employees’ individual needs and serve as an informal setting for instructional activities. In a small-to-medium business (this label applies to the company under consideration) on-the-job learning could meet needs for specific and cost-effective training. However, with Beefsteak’s growth, different methods would need to be taken into account. Presentations may be viewed as a more traditional approach allowing to encompass a larger group of people than hands-on training. On the other hand, it may fail to engage employees and not provide enough practice opportunities. Group-building methods, such as team training, focus on improving the performance of already established units within a company, expressly, by examining communication models and behaviors within them. Technology-based training is an alternative to instructor-led training; however, the differences between the two do not influence employees learning outcomes (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). Therefore, a combination of various training methods seems to be the most effective solution.
The methods and techniques assessment is based on several criteria that allow determining their advantages and disadvantages. One of the most significant standards is appropriateness – it requires initial establishing of the individuals’ needs and selection of training that could meet these needs most completely (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). Presentations, for example, are not interactive as one-way commutation predominates in this case, but they can provide learners with substantial amounts of information in a short amount of time. On the contrary, apprenticeships necessitate large amounts of time; still, they seem to prepare a trainee thoroughly for their future responsibilities (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). Given the nature of Beefsteak’s products, hands-on training for its managers could allow them to understand in-depth the procedures and problems associated with vegetable-based food preparation. In this way, the overall value of a method can be assessed in relation to its effectiveness on a group of individuals with their specific needs. The choice of a training and development method should be dependant not only on an organization’s but also on trainees’ peculiarities – preferably; it should combine the needs of both.
Training evaluation is one of the final steps that provide program managers with an opportunity to reflect on how to improve techniques and their selection. It is stated that the process can be reduced to counting – such indicators as growth in revenue, customer base, employees’ motivation, and time-effectiveness are supposed to signify a success (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). One of the essential elements in the process is the usage of diverse criteria. In this case, a variety could help establish different facets of the training’s impact on attitude, performance, and interactions within a team. Additionally, the relationships between different criteria could be investigated to specify how changes in one indicator affect others. The collected data should be used accordingly to the primary goal of the measurement and signal the correlation between the outcomes and specificities in training. Consequently, an analysis of the training and how it caused the obtained results assists in creating a comprehensive picture of the shortcoming and strengths of the selected methods and techniques. It seems essential to acknowledge that after training, its results can be modified by further contacts within an organization.
Learning participation is crucial for the effectiveness of instructional activities – it can help memorize information, navigate learning material successfully, and enhance interest in it. The notion enables trainees’ to express their thoughts and do it in an efficient manner, which could be indispensable at the workplace. One of the key principles in instructional design that can heighten learners’ participation is providing them with opportunities for practice and feedback. How education material is presented and structured is supposed to be meaningful and straightforward, facilitating its understanding (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). Furthermore, in order to be motivated to participate, learners need to have some degree of control over the course of instruction – this principle should be balanced with the necessity to guide its content and procedures. Lastly, learners’ awareness of their cognitive process that results in metacognition gives them an opportunity to control learning processes, thus increasing participation (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). Hence, key principles of instructional design that encourage learners’ involvement can be potentially summarized by adequate information and presentation structures, a balance between learner’s control and guidance, occasions for practice and feedback, and metacognition.
The process of assessing training outcomes requires considering the impact of a time span of measurement, understanding types of criteria, their levels, and related procedures. To measure accurately the changes and effects induced by training, a considerable amount of time should pass, approximately three and a half months (Cascio & Aguinis, 2018). Subsequently, specifically-designed measurement techniques and instruments based on determined criteria should be applied. A practical perspective requires the assessment to demonstrate the value of training to an organization directly through changes in indicators signifying growth, customers’ and personnel’s satisfaction. This goal can be achieved by increasing customer loyalty, profitability, or decreased cost of a food item in Beefsteak’s case. Conversely, statistical significance does not directly correlate with the effects of practical significance and does not warrant it.
Beefsteak is at a critical stage of its development; when with the business’s growth, several essential alterations can happen, specifically in the domain of training and development. Hands-on training, seemingly widely practiced in small businesses due to its cost- and time-effectiveness can be replaced with instructor-led face-to-face or technological training that allows the participation of a more considerable number of people. Since technological training could dominate in this respect as its costs tend to decrease, and the technology itself improves, the likelihood of its incorporation seems higher. Generally, choosing appropriate training and development methods can increase the chances of an organization’s financial prosperity.
Reference
Cascio, W. F, & Aguinis, H. (2018). Applied psychology in talent management (8th ed.). Sage.