Class 16 - Career Development

What are the 3 ways to evaluate orientation programs and explain each.

1. Employee reaction - Employees’ opinions on the usefulness of the orientation and whether it helps job performance.

2. Socialization effects - Whether employees understand and accept the organization’s values, beliefs, and norms.

3. Cost-benefit analysis - compares orientation costs (printing handbooks, time spent) with benefits (reduced errors, increased productivity and efficiency).

What are common problems with orientation programs?
What is training?

• No orientation provided

• Too much information too quickly

• HR information too broad

• Supervisor information too detailed

• Too many forms

The process of teaching employees the skills and competencies needed to perform their jobs.

Why is training strategically important?
What are the five steps in the training process?

• Aligns training goals with business strategy

• Supports organizational strategic plans

• Increases employee commitment through investment in human capital

1. Training Needs Analysis

2. Instructional Design

3. Validation

4. Implementation

5. Evaluation

Step 1: Training Needs Analysis:

What is the goal of training needs analysis?
Why are training objectives important?

To establish clear training objectives.

• Specify what trainees should accomplish after training

• Provide focus for both trainee and trainer

• Provide a benchmark for evaluating the training program

Step 2: Instructional Design

What happens during instructional design?

What two major considerations exist in instructional design?
What are common types of training methods?

The training program is designed after training needs and objectives are identified.

1. Whether learning will be programmed or informal

2. What training medium will be used

• Programmed learning

• Classroom training

• Blended learning

• Informal training

• On-the-job training (OJT)

What is programmed learning?
Advantages of programmed learning?
Disadvantage of programmed learning?

Training delivered through textbooks or computer-based systems where learners are presented with questions, facts, or problems, respond, and receive feedback on answer accuracy.

• Reduces training time by about one-third

• Allows employees to learn at their own pace

• Provides immediate feedback

• Reduces risk of training errors

High cost of developing manuals or software.

What is classroom training?

What is blended learning?
What is informal training?

• The primary method of corporate training in Canada

• Quick and simple way to provide knowledge to large groups

combination of instructor-led training and online e-learning.

Learning that occurs without being formally designed by the organization, often through interactions with colleagues. About two-thirds of industrial training occurs this way.

What is on-the-job training?
Characteristics of OJT?

Learning a job by actually performing it.

• Almost everyone receives some OJT when joining a firm

• Relatively inexpensive

• No need for off-site training facilities

• Provides quick feedback

What are the two types of on-the-job training?
What is apprenticeship training?
What is job instruction training?

1. Apprenticeship training

2. Job instruction training

A learner studies under a master craftsperson.

• Jobs are broken into a logical sequence of steps

• Trainer lists all steps and key points

• Tasks are taught step-by-step

Step 3: Validation

What is validation in the training process?
How is validation conducted?

An often-overlooked step that ensures training objectives are accomplished.

• Pilot study or trial run

• Use a representative audience

• Collect feedback and assess participants

• Revise training based on results

Step 4: Implementation

What happens during implementation?

• Training program is rolled out or scheduled

• Delivered by professional trainers

• Trainers may attend train-the-trainer workshops

• Trainers must understand content and presentation method

Step 5: Evaluation of Training

What four criteria are used to evaluate training and what does each measure?

1. Reaction - Whether trainees were satisfied with the training.

2. Learning - Whether trainees learned the intended material.

3. Behaviour - Whether training was transferred to the job.

4. Results - Whether training produced intended organizational results.

Methods of Evaluating Training:

What is time-series design?
What is the best training evaluation method?
What happens in a controlled experiment?

Measuring employee performance before and after training over time.

Limitation: Cannot prove causality.

Controlled experiments.

• One group receives training

• One control group does not

• Performance measured before and after training

• Helps determine whether performance changes are caused by training.

How can organizations maximize training effectiveness?

• Provide an overall picture at the beginning

• Use visual aids and examples

• Make training situations similar to real work situations

• Provide adequate practice

• Manage trainee motivation

• Allow self-paced learning

• Provide feedback (e.g., “Well done”)

• Use engaging channels

• Prepare employees before training by explaining why training is needed and what to expect

What is a career?
What is career planning?

A series of work-related positions (paid or unpaid) that contribute to growth in job skills, success, and fulfillment.A deliberate process where individuals:

• Become aware of skills, interests, knowledge, motivations, and characteristics

• Gather information about career opportunities and choices

• Identify career goals

• Create action plans to achieve those goals

What is career development?

What assumptions did traditional career development make?
What characterizes modern career development?

A lifelong series of activities (such as workshops) that support career exploration, establishment, success, and fulfillment.

• Careers were stable, predictable, and linear

• Based on organizational hierarchies

• Career stages could be identified by age

• Frequent job transitions

• Less clearly defined linear career paths

• The individual is the primary stakeholder

• Emphasis on lifelong learning and flexibility

What does Holland’s theory propose?
How do vocational interests develop according to Holland?

• People can be categorized into six personality types or combinations of them

• Work environments can also be described by these types

• People choose careers that match their personality type

through environments that model and reinforce certain behaviours.

What did Campbell (1971) find about vocational interests and success?
What was Campbell’s conclusion?

Successful individuals (CEOs, psychologists, journalists, football coaches) had interest profiles similar to average workers in those occupations.

Interest inventories cannot effectively distinguish top performers from average performers within occupations.

What is a career anchor?

What are the 8 career anchors?

A core value or concern a person will not give up when making career decisions.

1. Technical/Functional Competence – Individuals want to develop expertise and remain in a specialized technical or functional field rather than move into general management.

2. Managerial Competence – Individuals are motivated to become managers, believing they have the ability to lead others, make decisions, and take responsibility for organizational performance.

3. Creativity – Individuals want to build or create something that is entirely their own, often associated with entrepreneurs who value innovation and new ventures.

4. Autonomy and Independence – Individuals want to work independently and avoid organizational constraints, preferring freedom and control over how they perform their work.

5. Security – Individuals value long-term stability and job security, often preferring to stay with one organization that offers steady employment, good benefits, and a predictable future.

6. Service/Dedication – Individuals want to contribute to something meaningful or help others, focusing on work that serves a greater social purpose.

7. Pure Challenge – Individuals are motivated by solving difficult problems, overcoming obstacles, and competing successfully. The challenge itself is the primary reward.

8. Lifestyle – Individuals want to integrate their career with personal and family needs, balancing work with other life priorities, often important for dual-career couples.

Explain the roles in career development for the individual, manager, and employer.

Career development is a shared responsibility between the individual, manager, and employer, each playing a different role in supporting career growth.

Individual:
The individual must take primary responsibility for their own career development. This includes self-motivation, independent learning, effective time and money management, and self-promotion. Individuals must actively seek opportunities to build skills and advance their careers. Networking is especially important, as it forms the foundation of effective career management.

Manager:
Managers support employees’ career development by providing timely and objective performance feedback, helping employees understand their strengths and areas for improvement. They may offer developmental assignments, which are formal opportunities to build knowledge, skills, and abilities beyond regular job tasks. Managers also participate in career development discussions and act as coaches, advisors, appraisers, and referral agents.

Employer:
Employers create an environment that supports career growth by providing career-oriented training and development opportunities, offering career information and development programs, and ensuring employees have access to a variety of career options within the organization. These initiatives help employees develop their skills while supporting the organization’s long-term talent needs.

What four decisions are involved in promotion?

1. Seniority vs competence

2. How competence is measured

3. Formal vs informal promotion process

4. Vertical vs horizontal promotions

What is succession planning?
Steps in succession planning?

Planning how senior or strategic job openings will be filled in the future.

1. Establish strategic direction

2. Identify required skills and competencies

3. Identify employees with potential and provide development opportunities

What is management development?
Why is management development important?
Common management development techniques?

Efforts to improve current or future management performance by increasing knowledge, skills, and attitudes.

• Many baby boomers retiring

• Need next generation of leaders

• Helps attract talent and build employer-of-choice reputation

• Developmental job rotation

• Coaching/understudy approach

• College/university programs

• In-house development centers

• Behaviour modelling

• Mentoring

• Reverse mentoring

What is developmental job rotation?

What is the coaching/understudy approach?
What are university-related development programs?

Moving trainees across departments to gain a broad understanding of the business and identify strengths and weaknesses.

• Trainee works directly with the person they will replace

• Coach is responsible for development

• Relationship between coach and trainee is critical

• Executive development programs

• Specialized courses (business, management, healthcare administration)

• Degree programs such as MBA or Executive MBA

Employers may support these through tuition refunds or sabbaticals.

What are corporate universities?
What are three steps to building an ethical career?

In-house development centers combining classroom training, assessment centers, and role-playing.

Examples include programs at GE, Apple, Disney, BMO, Canada Post, and the City of Richmond.

1. Prepare for moral challenges

2. Make good decisions in the moment

3. Reflect on successes and failures afterward

What are “resume virtues” vs “eulogy virtues”?
What is “if–then planning”?
What ethical tests can guide decisions?

• Resume virtues: achievements and skills

• Eulogy virtues: character and values you want to be remembered for

Preparing responses for ethical challenges in advance (e.g., seeking advice if asked to do something unethical).

• Publicity test (Warren Buffett)

• Generalizability test (Kant’s Universal Law)

• Mirror test