HRM - Training and Development?

Training can be defined as a refining process done with the selected candidates to make them perfect and adaptable according to the changing working environment of the company.
The complete process of identifying, selecting, recruiting and training individuals helps them in their overall professional growth and also contributes to the development of the company.

Career Development

Career Development is the process by which employees improve through a series of stages, each associated with a different set of development tasks, activities and relationship.
It can also be defined as an ongoing formalized effort by an organization that aims at developing and enriching the organization’s human resources in the light of both the employee and the organization’s need.

The Need for Career Development

From a company’s perspective, the failure to encourage employees to please their careers can result in a shortage of employees to fill open positions, lower employee commitment, and inappropriate use of money allocated for training and development program.
When a company helps employees in developing a career plan, the employees are less inclined to quit that company. Developing a career can boost the morale of the employee, enhance productivity and help the company become more efficient.

Career Development-Objectives

Career development has three major objectives −

• To meet the immediate and future human resource requirements of the company on a timely basis.
• To better update the company and the individual about potential career path within the company.
• To utilize existing human resource programs to the fullest by integrating activities and practices that select, assign, develop, and manage individual careers in alignment with the company’s plan.

Probably, the most important objective of any career development program is to facilitate the tools and techniques that will enable employees to gauge their potential for success in a career path.
Career development is also essential because career development can minimize unemployment and provide opportunity on the basis of performance & qualification. It tries to improve the overall personality of an individual solely as well as when in group.

HRM & Career Development Responsibilities

Career Development has its duties distributed at various levels and each level is answerable for their share of responsibilities. We have responsibilities assigned to the organization, employees as well as mangers.
Career development plays a crucial role in grooming an individual, group as well as the organization as a whole.

Organization’s Responsibilities

Organization’s responsibilities include instigation and ensuring in the first place that career development does take place. Specifically, organization’s responsibilities are to enhance career opportunities and improve interaction between employees.
The organization should promote the conditions and create a surrounding that will facilitate the development of individual career plans by the employees. Basically, the organization provides information regarding the mission and policies and helps employee prepare their career development plan and career path.

Employee’s Responsibilities

The only person who really knows what she or he needs is the individual and these desires differ from person to person. The duty of an employee varies with his/her designation.
While the individual is ultimately answerable for preparing his or her individual career plan, experience has shown that people make considerable progress only when they receive some motivation and direction.

Manager’s Responsibilities

The manager should act as a catalyst and sounding board. The manager should show an employee how to go about a process and then help the employee understand what is required of him in the position.
The immediate manager facilitates guidance and encouragement. The manager typically verifies the employee’s readiness for job mobility. Moreover, managers are often the primary source of information about position openings, training courses, and other development options.
These are the major career development responsibilities an HRM needs to take care of in an organization.

Career Development Process

Career planning entails an individual and organizational requirements and options that can be matched in a variety of ways. Thus, career planning is the process through which employees −

• Become aware of their interests, values, strengths and weakness.
• Collect information about job options within the company.
• Identify and choose career goals.
• Establish action plans to achieve those specific career goals and objectives.

Career development process may sound like just the qualifications that an individual gets throughout his/her educational field, but here we have unfolded a new side of it, as we see how an individual’s career gets affected by the place where he/she works.

Career Planning System

Career planning system can be defined as a step by step process of improving as an individual; we can also call it as a process of self-development.
This system consists of the following four different stages −

Evaluation Process

The evaluation phase includes activities like self-assessment and assessment by the company. The objective of having evaluation is to understand the employee’s strengths and weaknesses.

Self-Assessment

Self-assessment assists employees in determining their career interest, values, aptitudes and behavioral tendencies. In order to do self-assessment, employees often take psychological tests and conduct self-directed searches.
Large amount of self-assessment materials is available over the internet and other commercial outlets. Tests also assist employees identify the relative value they place on work and leisure activities.
Career counselors are often used to help employees in the self-assessment process and translate the results of psychological tests into measurable goals and activities.

Assessment by the Organization

Organizations have several potential sources of information that also help for assessing employees. One of the most frequently used sources has been the performance appraisal process.

Direction Phase

The direction phase includes determining the career desired by the employee. What exactly interests the employee? How can we match the employee’s interest with the desirable job in the organization?
Thus, the steps that should be taken in order to realize their career objectives are −

• Evaluation Process
• Direction Phase
• Goal setting
• Action Planning

The description given above says it all about career planning system. As we can see, not a single stage can be avoided, as all are interlinked and are crucial to career development.
As we end this chapter, we know what exactly career development is, why HRM needs to deal with career development management, and how it is important individually as well as for a team.