The learning and talent development department resolving an organisation’s problem
Learning and talent development form a critical function in contemporary organizations. Most organizations in the UK have departments that are dedicated to this function, with the human resource departments in other companies bearing the function. The following is an example of how the learning and talent development department can help resolve a problem in an organization. This first part also includes an implementation plan for the learning and talent development strategy proposed for the problem.
The organization whose use of the learning and talent development department is described is in the retail industry in the UK. The company has thousands of retail stores across the UK and in some parts of Europe. It is in the process of expanding to other parts of the world. Thousands of employees are working both at the local and international branches, with most of them being employed in the retail outlets.
The company is competitive with a large market share in the respective industry. It is the market leader in the industry. It is also experiencing growth in profit and operations. It has set up operations on the internet with efficient use of e-commerce. The operating environment is competitive, with the customers demanding better services.
The problem in the organization, just like in many organizations in the industry, is the recruitment of qualified employees to serve in various capacities. The company has been experiencing problems with the recruits in that the training that they have at the time of joining the organization is not sufficient to be productive in the organization (Stewart & Rigg 2011). Most of the recruits have little experience in the actual activities at the organization. They spend most of their time learning the processes. The new employees also tend to be slow and inefficient in many functions, hence leading to the overall loss of time and revenue.
This problem is not confined to the organization. Studies have shown that while the UK market is rapidly changing with globalization and technological advancement, there is little change in the training of future employees (Thomas 2000). Learning institutions are unable to predict the business environments that may prevail by the time their students are being discharged into the job market, and hence the poor preparation (Stewart & Rigg 2011). According to Stewart and Rigg (2011), institutions have to prepare students for unseen problems and functions that have not yet been established, hence presenting them with a challenge.
In the organization under discussion, the recruits have demonstrated gaps in business skills in general and leadership skills. Leadership is an integral part of any organizational performance based on how resources are spent to establish the best leadership skills to oversee the success of any organization (Tansley, Kirk, & Tietze 2013). The new employees also demonstrate a deficiency in frontline people management skills. This situation has also been a cause of concern for most other organizations (Stewart & Rigg 2011). In leadership, the main problem with the new employees is that they are unable to institute or withstand changes in the organization.
These employees are also unable to set relevant organizational goals and/or relate them to the overall organizational goals and that they are often unable to deal with the underperformance that is experienced on their part (Li & Huang 2011).
To solve the problem in the organization, a learning and talent development department is useful. The department will develop a learning and talent development strategy that will be implemented in the organization to oversee the equipping of new employees with the necessary job skills (Cairns 2012). According to Kolb (1984), the department should not over-rely on classroom training. The strategies that the department can apply include consideration of all the existing learning and development strategies in the organization and the implementation of the new strategy. Some of the main strategies that the department may employ include the use of on-the-job learning, self-managed learning, group learning, and tutor-led interventions (De Museet al 2012).
The most efficient of them according to Wang-Cowham (2011) is on-the-job learning, which consists of observation and practice, delegation, coaching, and monitoring. On the other hand, self-managed learning offers support to the on-the-job learning since it has the components of reading, e-learning, and further education (Guangrong, De Meuse & King Yii 2013; Olszewski-Kubilius & Clarenbach 2012). Group learning will also be relevant to the organization. The new employees should be managed as a group. After the development of a learning and development strategy, the next step is the implementation of the strategy in a manner that is relevant to the organization.
Implementation Plan
In the aforementioned organization, the problem of new employees not having sufficient training that is relevant to the organization can be solved through an efficient learning and talent development strategy. This section describes the implementation plan that may be used in the organization to solve the underlying problem. The learning and development department in the organization should implement the strategy mentioned above (Kolb 1984). However, other stakeholders must also be involved in the implementation strategy, including the management team and other employees in the organization.
The department must first set the objectives of the L&D strategy that is to be implemented. The specific objectives for the organization under discussion include equipping new employees with the relevant skills to enable them to perform their organizational duties. In the UK, samples of objectives in the L&D strategy include those listed in the L&D Framework for the Civil Service 2011-2014 (Stewart & Rigg 2011). Each objective must be accompanied by the relevant actions to ensure the realization of the goal.
After the development of the objectives, the next plan is the approval and rollout of the plan. The learning and development plan in the organization should be rolled out after consultation with the relevant stakeholders in the organization. There is a need for all of these members to agree on the same plan. A date should also be set for the review of the strategy. It should then be communicated to all stakeholders in the organization.
Evaluation of the strategy of the learning and talent development department
The learning and development strategy that is set in an organization should be in line with the overall organizational strategy. In the organization under study, the strategy is to increase the output of employees and ensure that they work towards achieving the organizational goals and objectives. The strategy of the learning and development department in the organization is to equip new employees with knowledge and skills that are relevant to the organizational functioning to ensure profitability. This section analyses how well the strategy of learning and talent development department in the organization fits with the organization’s strategy.
The strategy that is developed for the organization aims at increasing the employee output. Learning and training development strategies increase the skills of employees by making them fit the organization (Stewart & Rigg 2011). By training employees in the work environment as proposed in the department’s strategy, the organization ensures that the skills gained are relevant to the organization (Stewart & Rigg 2011). The strategy proposes that the new employees be trained on the relevant leadership qualities for better performance. This plan is in line with the organizational goal of instilling leadership skills in its employees.
The other way in which the learning and development strategy is relevant to the organization is that it ensures that the employees that join the organization get a quick orientation to the organization functions. According to Johnson and Wilson (2009), the strategy reduces the time wasted as the employees discover for themselves the roles and functions that they are supposed to undertake on their own. The reduction in this time means that the organization can increase the efficiency of the personnel. The increased efficiency will lead to better organizational performance in line with the organization’s strategy of being the leader in the retail market.
The learning and talent development strategy proposed by the department incorporates the participation of all stakeholders in the organization (Asebedo, & Asebedo 2013). The overall organizational strategy is similar in that it allows room for the participation of all stakeholders in key policy formulation and implementation. Stakeholder participation is an important part of the running of organizations.
There is a need to ensure that the relevant stakeholders get an adequate say in all policies in the organization (Malamud 2011). The strategy also seeks to provide the new employees with the information that they need to develop themselves and their competencies in line with the organizational goal and strategy to ensure continuous improvement of employees in their line of work. The organization considers the employee the most important assets, and hence the development of interest in their self-development activities.
Another way in which the strategy is in line with the overall organizational strategy is that there has been a growing need over the years to promote cooperation within the various departments. The learning and talent development strategy proposes corporation between the various departments in the organization in the fulfillment of the objectives of the strategy. This brings along the various stakeholders in the organization to promote cooperation among them (Haskins 2013). Interdepartmental cooperation is special in the development of an organizational culture that facilitates increased output in any organization.
The learning and talent development strategy introduces internship training in the organization. Internships in most organizations have been considered beneficial to the organizational performance in several ways (MacRaild 2002). The Introduction of the internship through this program allows the organization to train the future staff on the requirements and strategies of the organization, thus allowing the improvement of the organizational output. In the UK, internship programs provide employers with the opportunity to nurture talent and provide their future employees with the relevant skills in the market (Pless, Maak & Stahl 2012).
Internships also provide cost-effective resources to the organizations. Most companies here remunerate their internships at a pay that is higher than the national minimum for fulltime employees, although less than the fulltime workers in the organizations (McDonald’s Talent Management and Leadership Development 2010). This plan provides an efficient way of producing more output for lesser resources. Besides, it is in line with the organization’s strategy.
The organization has the strategy of improving its international services and the use of technology in its operations, thus coinciding with the new age of globalization and improvement in technology where contemporary organizations are required to train their staff members to operate in these environments (Karacapilidis 2010). The learning and training development strategy recognizes the training of technology and international relations in the organization as a key pillar to success and overall organizational competitiveness. Therefore, the department’s strategy is in line with the overall organizational strategy of increasing its competitiveness.
The other area that the learning and training development departmental strategy fits with the overall organization’s strategy is through the promotion of the development of a facilitative organizational culture. One way that the strategy does this, as mentioned earlier, is the promotion of shareholder participation. When a large number of the organization’s workforce is involved in a project, there is the creation of teamwork efforts, and this is crucial in the development of a culture that leads to better organizational performance. The learning and talent development strategy could also be used to correct some of the organizational problems that hinder the attainment of organizational objectives.
The organization has the strategy of increasing positive interaction between customers and employees (Sadler-Smith 2006). The learning and talent development strategy will be important to the employees since it will train them on the skills needed while interacting with clients. The strategy is in line with the plan stated above as one way of ensuring that the organization increases its market dominance. Through improved interaction between clients and employees, employee satisfaction is likely to increase and result in the amplified sale in the various outlets of the organization. Therefore, the discussion proves that the strategy of learning and talent development department in the organization fits very well with the organization’s strategy.
Impact of the Learning and Talent Development Intervention
The previous sections evaluated the use of learning and talent development as an intervention to some of the organizational problems. The learning and talent development strategy emerges as an important aspect of the achievement of the overall organizational strategies. This section evaluates the impact that a learning and talent development intervention can have on an issue within the organization, including an implementation plan. The problem that is discussed is the poor training of employees that are new to the organization. The relevant department proposes a learning and talent development strategy, which has potential impacts on the aforementioned problem.
The intervention will increase the skills of new employees in the organization. This impact will be beneficial to the organization in several ways. For instance, through the improved skills, the organization will achieve employee efficiency, thus cutting on operational costs while increasing output (Stewart & Rigg 2011). Learning and talent development are also intended to impart leadership skills in employees.
The successful implementation of the strategy will create a large pool of potential leaders in the organization, hence increasing leadership potential (Gent 2009). The presence of trained leaders in the organization will oversee the profitability of the organization through the development of adequate leadership decisions and strategies.
The introduction of an internship will also have a special impact on the organization. The internship will provide the organization with cheap labor in exchange for the training program. In the process, the organization will be able to achieve more output at a reduced cost. The potential effect of this strategy is the increased profitability and competitiveness. The internship is also an important avenue for organizations to select future employees that will be able to integrate adequately into the organization (Stewart & Rigg 2011). The strategy will be to note suitable future employees among the interns and further train them on the organizational strategies. The potential that this model has is the improved output on the organizational functions.
Traditionally, organizations selected employees based on their performance on the interviews. The assessment that is possible in interviews has in some cases not been important in establishing the right employees and most suited to the organizational functioning. The internship has the potential of providing the organizations with the most qualified employees since it allows a longer observational period, thus giving managers the necessary time to equip these future employees with the right skills (Intarakamhang & Peungposop 2014). Therefore, the organization will benefit from the interns through the provision of an adequate pool of employees.
The training and development strategy developed for the organization allows the training of new employees in this organization. This strategy will also have an impact on the organizational performance in that the employee efficiency will be increased. New employees, as previously stated, have inadequate knowledge of the organizational goals and the overall requirements. The strategy developed in the organization will ensure that the employees can incorporate the organizational goals and perform as required in the organization.
The training on the use of technology in the organization will boost the overall marketing performance of the organization, hence increasing the sales (Kalaiselvan & Naachimuthu 2011). E-commerce is a priority in the organization. Most of the new employees have demonstrated inadequate knowledge and skills in this area. The strategy put in place will ensure that the new employees are well equipped in e-commerce.
The overall strategy will be important in ensuring that employees work according to the organizational goals, with the implication being an improvement in the output (Ziegler, Qian, Wimmer, & Sutherland 2013). Although the initial costs of setting up and running the strategy may be significant, the long-term implications will cover these costs (Adler & Aspen 2010). The examples of ways that the costs will be covered include the increased revenue because of increased efficiency (Roberts 2012). The implementation of the strategy will also reduce the time wasted through personalized learning and apprenticeship that has traditionally not been guided by any organizational policy and/or has often been time-consuming (Kuehner-hebert 2013).
Implementation Plan
The implementation plan of any strategy is a key determinant of the success of the strategy. In the organization discussed above, the main problem of new employees not having sufficient training that is relevant to the organization can be solved through an efficient learning and talent development strategy. This section describes the implementation plan that may be used in the organization to solve the underlying problem. The implementation should be consultative with the different stakeholders being consulted before the strategy is effected (Dries, Vantilborgh, & Pepermans 2012). All stakeholders must also be involved in the implementation strategy, including the management team and the other employees in the organization.
The organization will have to first constitute a qualified team to oversee the functioning of the department through the recruitment of leaders. The financing of this department will be crucial in the determination of success in dealing with the organizational problem. The objectives of the department will be set to guide the learning and talent development strategy. The specific objectives for the organization are focused on the elimination of the problem that the organization is facing. One such objective is to equip the new employees with the relevant skills to enable them to perform their organizational duties. This move can be guided by the L&D strategy listed in the L&D Framework for the Civil Service 2011-2014 (Dai, & Speerschneider 2012).
The organization will implement e-learning in learning and talent development in the organization, with the new employees being required to use the e-learning resources that the organization will provide. The other strategy that the organization will put in place includes the employment of tutors in the organization to handle the training of the new employees. Some of the existing employees will also be trained on how to perform training and talent development activities in the organization. The other strategy that the organization will use to develop the talents and/or train the new employees is through seminars and training groups.
Value Added by the Learning and Talent Development Department
The learning and talent development department in the organization adds value to the organization. As stated above, the organization has the challenge of getting new employees that are ill-suited for jobs in the organization. There is also a deficiency in the leadership skills in the organization. A learning and talent development department in the organization will be crucial in the mitigation of these problems in different ways. For the leadership problem, the department will first introduce leadership development activities that are absent in the organization. The department will also be important in ensuring that the organization secures future leaders (Stewart & Rigg 2011).
The training of leaders must be in line with the organizational requirements (Stewart 2012). Through the leadership and talent development department, the leadership skills of the employees will be improved. The department will also be important in the achievement of the organizational goals (Stewart & Rigg 2011). Since employees will be trained in the organizational environment, it will be easy to incorporate the organizational goals in their training. These goals will then be a guiding principle in their work, thus enabling them to achieve the larger organizational goals. The training will also be a source of improvement in the organizational output in that there will be increased efficiency at the workplace.
Training and internship at the organization conducted by the department will also be important in the development of individuals who are well trained at the organization (Stewart & Rigg 2011). The training offered will increase the number of high-potential individuals. This plan is also likely to increase its competitiveness (Stewart 2012). The growth in technology is being experienced in all parts of the world, with the current organizational environment dictating that the organizations and their employees demonstrate skill in the utilization of this technology (Bowles 2004).
The organizational culture is an important aspect of any organization according to Stewart (2012). In the organization under discussion, the existing organizational culture has been a hindrance to the overall performance in all sectors. The learning and talent development department in the organization will be useful in the changing of this culture to ensure efficiency in the production process. Talent development was discussed as an important avenue for the inculcation of organizational values (Agbim, Owutuamor & Oriarewo 2013).
The appropriate organizational culture will be developed here. The other use of the learning and talent development department in the organization is the provision of links between the organization and other organizations in the industry. The department will require interaction between these organizations and collaboration in the area of training. Some of the employees in the other organizations can be trained here at a fee. The increased cooperation between organizations will likely cause improved performance in the industry, with the organization emerging as the leader (Stewart 2012).
At the start of the department, there is likely to be a net use in revenue at the organization as the various requirements are put in place. These include the recruitment of adequately trained staff and managers to oversee the implementation of the department strategy. According to Stewart (2012), any department in an organization is as good as employees and the leadership put in place, and hence the need to invest in qualified staff members at any cost. However, the long-term cost benefits of setting up the department will be in the organization’s advantage since there will be more adequately trained staff in the organization and hence better personnel efficiency (Marshall, McGee, McLaren & Veal 2011).
The learning and talent development is important to the organization in that it encourages employees while enabling them to develop a positive attitude towards the organization. It also acts as a source of motivation to employees, with the positive motivation being good for the business operation (Austin 2012). Hence, the organization is likely to experience increased productivity because of these measures. The department will also grow and discover the talents of new employees. These talents will then be utilized to the advantage of the organization. The organization will benefit from the talents of these employees. As a result, in the end, there will be improved performance.
The other way in which the department will be of benefit to the organization is through the reduction of employee turnover at the organization. According to Thomson (2014), learning and talent development is an effective way of reducing employee turnover at an organization because it increases the motivation of the employees, makes them suited to the organization’s environment, and that they become more likely to earn better because of the training (Yuen et al. 2010). Over the past years, the organization has had a significantly high turnover rate of employees, with this situation being attributable to several factors within the organization. The qualification of employees is a recognized determinant of how they adapt to the workplace. As a result, it also determines how motivated these employees are in the workplace (Yap 2011).
The presence of a learning and talent development in the organization will also be important in the development of teamwork within the employees in the organization. According to Dries and Pepermans (2012), learning and talent development can be used to develop an organizational team. Learning and talent development develops teams through the process of the employees being trained as a group.
The process encourages teamwork that can also be developed through the department teaching on the same while incorporating it as one of the pillars in its strategy. Learning and talent development also incorporates the values of the organization into the employees. These employees can be used to further the output of the organization. The few challenges that the department will present to the organization include the requirement of financial support and the presence of people who are well trained to manage it.
Learning and Talent Development Strategy
The development of a learning and talent development strategy is important in the process of solving some organizational problems. The strategy may be applied at the national, organizational, group, and individual levels. The success of a strategy is dependent on the people applying it and/or how well it was developed. The following section looks at the application of such a strategy to solve an organizational problem. The implementation plan is provided.
The problem that is discussed is the inability of an organization to attract and retain qualified staff and the poor skills observed in the new recruitments of one of the organizations. The learning and talent development strategy is in line with the vision, mission, and goals of the organization. It takes into consideration the external and internal factors at the various levels of organizational functioning.
Background
The organization is committed to employee development to develop a well-trained and equipped future workforce. There is also the objective of ensuring continued quality service delivery at the organization, with the management being keen to meet the growing expectations of the community, the government, and the clients (Stewart & Rigg 2011). There is also the desire to provide employees with the necessary opportunities in their careers, enabling them to improve their performance at the workplace.
However, the organization is faced with the challenge of poorly trained new employees who are slowing down the organizational functions. The learning and development strategy will be used to provide the organization with the necessary employee training while improving their suitability to the organizational functioning.
Learning and Training Development Strategy Objectives
The L&TD strategy that will be developed has several objectives, which are in line with the organizational objectives. The first objective is to ensure that the L&TD department and the organization as a whole can develop a workforce that can achieve the strategic goals of the organization to fit in the business model. According to Clifford and Thorpe (2007), organizational goals should be considered while developing any other strategies within the organization. However, these other strategies should be related. The second objective to ensure that the investments made in the strategy are in line with the business needs of the organization.
The third objective of the L&D strategy will be to ensure that organizational and individual performance is improved (Nelson, & Malerba 2012). Any learning and talent development strategy should lead to the development of individual and organizational excellence (Bass & Vaughan 1966). The organization is setting up a learning and development strategy for the first time. The fourth objective of the learning and talent development strategy that is being developed is to provide the organization with a framework against, which the future learning and talent development strategies can be evaluated.
A look into the organization reveals an apparent deficiency in leadership skills, especially for the new employees. Therefore, the learning and training development strategy developed will have the objective of developing leadership skills in the employees and developing the managers in the organization. Objective number six will be to develop a positive organizational culture at the organization, which incorporates the values of the same organization, thus allowing the continuous improvement of the new employees. Stewart and Rigg (2011) stated that the development of an organizational culture that is suited to an organization is one of the uses of learning and talent development strategy.
As stated above, there is little learning activity in the organization. The development of a learning and talent development strategy will set a precedent in the organization, thus creating a training culture. Therefore, the next objective is to integrate learning within the frameworks of the organization (Bass & Vaughan 1966). The last objective of learning and talent development strategy will be the provision of opportunities for all the staff members in the organization to develop their careers.
The establishment of talent in an individual allows the talent to be developed in one way or the other, hence enabling the organization to use these employees in higher capacities towards the organizational improvement (Nelson, & Malerba 2012).
The strategy developed will be crucial in the establishment of the strategic directions of the organization. It integrates with the overall organizational strategy. The current needs in the organization will be met through this strategy. It is in line with the business model (Bass & Vaughan 1966). The emerging needs of the organization will also be met in the strategy since it will ensure that the requirements within the organization are met. The individual performance of employees is further emphasized in the strategy. According to Caltone (2010), the learning and talent development strategy should be effective in the development of talent at the individual level. Thus, it should lead to more individualized performance planning.
Strategy Targets
For the successful implementation of learning and talent development strategy, there is the need to set goals and targets that will be used to measure the success of the strategy (Caltone 2010). For this particular strategy, the success of the implementation will be measured along using the targets set in the areas of the work environment, the employees, and leadership.
Work Environment
The work environment is an important measure of the effectiveness of learning and talent development strategy. The first target will be to ensure that the work environment is well managed, with appropriate strategies being aimed at improving the organizational performance (Caltone 2010). The other indicator of the successful implementation of learning and talent development strategy is when the workplace becomes resource-conscious and sustainable. Organizations with a resource-conscious workplace are advantageous to the running of the organization. One of how this is advantageous is through the development of cheaper methods of production.
Success will also be evident if the workplace integrates organizational systems and supportive knowledge frameworks (Knights & Wall 2013). According to Caltone (2010), a successful workplace has a positive culture and recognizes the contributions of individual workers. If the organizational culture at the workplace changes to one that values the contribution of each employee, the L&TD strategy will be deemed successful. The workplace will also demonstrate successful L&TD strategy implementation if there is a successful engagement between the various stakeholders and clients in service delivery (Knights & Wall 2013).
The last target that is set for the strategy at the workplace is to ensure effective communication and consultation. The implementation of learning and talent development strategy will ensure that the workplace is well suited to the appropriate communication strategies and consultation between the various stakeholders. If there is a success in the implementation of learning and talent development strategy at the organization, all factors in the workplace discussed above will change for the better. The other area used as a measure of success in the implementation of the strategy is the change that occurs in the personnel that is in the organization.
Employee Targets
Several targets related to the employees will be important to measure the success of the L&TD strategy implementation. The employees should be committed to the organizational goals by the time the implementation of the L&TD strategy is complete. They should also be familiar with these goals, as an effective L&TD strategy should constantly teach the employees these goals (Barcham 2011). The other function of a learning and talent development strategy that is discussed is the promotion of cooperation and teamwork in the employees (Caltone 2010). Therefore, an effective strategy should lead to the employees working cordially with their colleagues, clients, and other stakeholders in the organization.
An important measure that is related to the success of the implementation of a learning and talent development strategy to the employees is their work output. As Barcham (2011) states, the successful implementation of a learning and talent development strategy should result in the improved output of each employee, through improving their skills and knowledge at the workplace. The employees should also improve their understanding of how the work they do at the organization is important to the overall organizational objectives.
The result of a successful L&TD strategy about the employees is that it should lead to the development of innovative employees, focused, flexible, and well equipped to their work (Barcham 2011). The employees are the main targets for learning and talent development strategies. The estimation of how well they can carry out their work is an important measure of the success of the L&TD strategy. The other measure of success in the implementation of the strategy is through the estimation of how well the employees can adapt to the changes within the organization (Wu & Forrester 2004). This information will be used as a measure of the efficiency of the L&TD strategy at the organization.
The respective department will carry out the initiation of a learning process in the organization. However, it is the responsibility of each of the individual employees to participate actively in their professional development (Barcham 2011). The degree to which employees can participate in their individual development will be an important measure of the L&TD strategy success.
Leadership Targets
The quality of leadership at the organization will also be used as an important measure of the effectiveness of the learning and talent development strategy that is proposed. The first indicator of effective leadership is where the leaders can model the culture and values of an organization into the employees (Armstrong 2008). The effectiveness of instilling positive values into the employees will be one of the measures of the success of the L&TD strategy. The second measure in leadership at the organization is the commitment that the leaders have to the development of the people underneath them (Barrington & Reid 2007). The effectiveness of leadership in developing the skills of the employees will be an important measure in the strategy performance.
Successful leaders should be able to involve the employees in the organization in any of the organization’s activities (Moon 2013). How well the leaders can involve the employees will be measured to establish the success of the L&TD strategy at the organization. An efficient leader should also be able to guide the implementation of the organizational strategy and influence the outcomes (Caplan 2013). The success with which leaders can do this at the organization will be established also to determine the success of the strategy.
The other quality of good leadership in an organization is the respect that is accorded to leaders by the employees (Bullivant & Gadsby 2010). The L&TD strategy will also be measured by how well the leaders in the organization are respected by the employees. A successful learning and talent development in the organization will translate higher levels of respect for the leadership. The respect that the leadership gets from the other stakeholders within the organization and especially the clients will be an important indicator of the success of learning and talent development strategy at the organization. The efficiency of communication for leaders will also be a measure of the successful implementation of learning and talent development strategy.
Implementation Plan
The strategy that is proposed above will be implemented through the consultative interaction and collaboration between the management and employees. The strategy will also require human and financial resources, which should be adequately budgeted for. This section analyses the implementation plan for learning and talent development strategy at the organization.
Resource Requirements
The main resource that the implementation of a learning and talent development strategy will require is finance. Considering that the organization considered has no established L&TD department, the cost of putting this department will add to the overall cost of the strategy. The finance will be used in the acquisition of space for the department, the building of stations for the employees of the department and the purchase of the relevant training materials. The estimated start-up cost is in the range of $300,000, with this figure being an overestimation of the exact amount. The money includes the remuneration of some of the staff members who will constitute the initial trainers in the department.
Some of the training materials that will need to be purchased include writing materials, brochures, and an overhead projection machine. These materials will be used in the training of employees. The other requirements include training materials such as training videos, papers, and forms (Park, Maclean & Fien 2009). The finance will also be used to pay the bills for the utilities at the department and produce the marketing materials and other self-development materials.
Timescales
The strategy will only be useful if it is achieved within the necessary timescales for the organization. The first activity in the learning and training development strategy is the analysis of the organization to establish the performance gaps, which the learning and talent development strategy at the organization should be based on. This process requires that all the functions within the organization be evaluated. The process of analyzing the organization should be professionally done, with an internal audit being the best way of achieving this goal (Fukami & Armstrong 2009). Essentially, a neutral person or body should do the auditing of an organization.
It should be preferably an external one. The process should not tale for more than a month. The results of the analysis should be made available to the employees and management. For the organization under consideration, the performance gap established that the required the intervention of a learning and talent development strategy is the proper training of new employees at the organization.
The next step after the analysis of the organizational gap is the designing of an effective strategy. The process should be consultative and inclusive of all stakeholders. The timeframe for this activity should take at least three months. The limiting factors should be established at this stage. Using the information gathered at the previous two stages, the next stage in the implementation of a learning and development strategy is the creation of the performance solution (Scales 2011). This development of a solution should take less time. However, the process should be thorough enough to ensure that the right solution is provided to the established problem.
After the development of the solution, the next step will be the implementation of this solution based on the scope of the solution and the available organizational resources (Salas & Kozlowski 2011). The implementation phase will take about a year with the first successful graduates of the strategy being received into the organization. This period was selected based on the large amount of information that is to be passed to the employees since there is little information available on this strategy in the organization. The implementation stage will later be followed by the evaluation of the whole process. The evaluation process takes a shorter time compared to the other stages. The estimated time to be taken is about a month.
Accountabilities
The success of the strategy will depend on the accountability that is developed within the organization. In this section, the role of the various employees in the workforce is discussed about the implementation plan. Some of the roles discussed include those of senior managers, human resource representatives, and the jobholders.
Senior Management
This group of workers will play significant roles in the implementation of the L&TD strategy. Some of the functions that they will perform include setting the objectives and directions to be followed in the department. They will also provide direction for the department on key issues in the organization (Fee 2011). The other action of senior management in the department will be to allocate the jobholders to the various functions within the department. Therefore, they will have to have undergone training to ensure that they are familiar with the process. Senior management also has the role of ensuring that the right culture is promoted within the department and the organization as a whole. About the department, the desirable culture is the culture of learning within the organization.
Human Resource Manager
The role of human resource management in the department will be responsible for individual learning and talent development at the organization. The person will work in partnership with the senior management to produce a learning and talent development plan and objectives. The other function will be to mobilize the employee to support the strategy through participation in the plan. For the employees requiring personalized training, the human resource manager will have the capacity to train them. They will also directly organize the training process through contracting trainers and other experienced officials to conduct formal training.
Job Holders
The jobholders within the organization will also have responsibility for their learning. The success of a learning process is dependent on the willingness of the participating individuals, and hence the importance of participation for this group (Bassot, Barnes & Chant 2013). The employees will also be required to establish the learning and talent development needs within themselves through participation in regular discussions among themselves. The recommendations they provide to learning and talent development will have to be in line with the overall objectives of the organization (Barrington & Reid 2007).
The other role of jobholders is being in charge of their learning while participating in other learning initiatives such as on-the-job learning. This form of learning along with self-managed learning is effective in instilling the organizational goals and objectives in the employees (Wang & IGI 2014). They will also be required to avail themselves for training opportunities that the department establishes as being crucial. Another function of the jobholders in training is the provision of feedback on the training activities that they have been involved in (Knights & Wall 2013). The employees will be required to participate in the evaluation of learning that they have undergone and present a detailed report on the same.
References
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