Training and Development – Current or Future Skills

Training and Development – Current or Future Skills

  • A major role of human resource management is to establish effective training and development programs, train managers to implement them, and then evaluate these programs to determine whether performance, productivity, effectiveness and efficiency has improved as a result of them.
  • Training is focused on building the current skills, knowledge and attitudes of an employee for superior work performance.
  • Development focuses on preparing employees for future responsibilities within the organisation due to a change in the business’s strategies or a growth in its size or market share.

Formal training: involves employees taking on a role simile of a student and is shown how to apply themselves to the new operations of the business and is later assessed on their level of understanding. For example: Lectures, Trainee and apprentice schemes, seminars, etc.

Informal Training: occurs where the employee is either shown or modelled the correct skills through either a coach or mentor, or learning the work on the job.

Extract from Business Studies Stage 6 Syllabus. © 2010 Board of Studies NSW.