1. Human Resource Development
HRD is a system of developing in a continuous and planned way the competencies of
individual employees, dyadic groups (superior and subordinate), teams and the total
organization to achieve organizational goals. It maximizes the similarity between
individual and organizational goals of employees and develops an organizational culture
in which superior-subordinate relationships, teamwork and collaboration among various
units become strong and contribute to the professional well-being, motivation and pride
of employees.
Characteristics of HRD
1. HRD is concerned with employees both as individuals and as groups in attaining the
objectives of the business enterprise. It is also concerned with the behavior, emotions and
social aspects.
2. HRD is concerned with the development of human resources i.e.; the knowledge, skill,
capabilities and potential of people. This is then directed towards the achievement of
employee goals including job satisfaction.
3. HRD covers all levels (low, middle and high) and all categories (unskilled, skilled,
technical, professional, clerical and managerial) of employees. It covers both in the
organized and unorganized sector.
4. HRD is a continuous and never ending process. It requires constant awareness of
human relations and their importance in everyday operations. It aims at securing
unrestricted cooperation from all employees in order to attain predetermined goals.
5. HRD is the process of improving, molding and changing the skills, knowledge,
creative ability, aptitude, values commitment based on present and future jobs and
organizational requirements.
2. Role of Human Resource Development within Organizations
1. Getting the top management to think in terms of strategic and long
term business plans:
It may sound ironical that the HRD should begin with such strategic plans, but in some
cases it has compelled the top management to think about such plans. While some
companies started thinking about them, a few others started sharing these plans with a
larger number of persons.
2. Streamlining of other management practices:
Most often HRD process identifies the strengths and weaknesses in some of the
management systems existing in the organization. It is also points out to the absence of
systems that can enhance human productivity and utilization of the existing competency
base; for example, the MIS, rules and procedures, etc. which may have an effect on the
functioning of the employees. In a few cases HRD has helped the management to look at
some of these sub-systems and work procedures. Preparation of a manual of delegation of
powers, clarification of roles and responsibilities, developing or streamlining the manuals
of financial and accounting procedures, strengthening the information systems, and
sharing of information are some of the resultant activities in this direction.
3. Supply necessary inputs to HR department for better recruitment
policies and more professional staff:
Perfect HRD system sets the stage and gives direction for the competency requirements
of employees at various levels and thus provides a base for recruitment policies and
procedures. In some companies, it has resulted in strengthening the recruitment policies
and procedures. As a result of HRD practices, new recruitment and retention strategies
have been worked out.
3. 4. More planning and more cost-effective training
One of the aspects emphasized in the HRD system is to calculate the investment made in
training and ask questions about the returns. The process of identifying training needs and
utilization of training inputs and learning for organisation growth and development are
assessed. As direct investments are made in training, any cost-benefit analysis draws
attention of the top management and HRD managers to review the training function with
relative ease. One organization strengthened its training function by introducing a new
system of post-training follow –up and dissemination of knowledge to others through
seminars and action plans. Many organisations have developed training policies and
systematized their training function. Assessment of training needs has also become more
scientific in these organisations.
5. Increased focus on Human Resources and Human competencies
HRD focuses on new knowledge, attitudes and skills required by the employees in the
organization Comments are made about the technical, managerial, human and conceptual
competencies of the staff at various levels. This differentiation has been found to help
organisations identify and focus sharply on the competency requirements and gaps. HRD
System establishes a system of role clarity and fixing of accountabilities. This can take
place through separate role clarity exercises or through the development of an appropriate
performance appraisal system. The attention of the organization gets focused on
developing the competency base of the organization. More sensitivities are developed to
the missing aspects of competencies. For example, one organization has been found to
neglect human relations competencies of their staff, resulting in a large number of human
problems leading to wastage of time. Some of these got streamlined and various HRD
policies also got strengthened.
4. 6. Strengthening accountabilities through appraisal systems and other
mechanisms
HRD gives significant input about the existing state of accountabilities of employees.
This gets assessed through performance appraisals as well as through the work culture
and other cultural dimensions. A number of organizations have introduced systems of
performance planning, sharing of expectation and documenting the accountabilities of
staff.
Learning organization
One of the objectives of HRD is to create a learning organization. A learning
organization is a place where employees excel at creating, acquiring and transferring
knowledge
BUILDING BLOCKS OF THE LEARNING ORGANIZATION
There are three broad factors that are essential for organizational learning and
adaptability:
(1) A supportive learning environment: An environment that supports learning has
four distinguishing characteristics.
1.Psychological safety: To learn, employees cannot fear being belittled or marginalized
when they disagree with peers or authority figures, ask naïve questions, own up to
mistakes, or present a minority view points. Instead they must be comfortable expressing
their view points about the work at hand.
2. Appreciation of differences: Learning occurs when people become aware of opposing
ideas. Recognizing the value of competing functional outlooks and alternative
worldviews increases energy and motivation, sparks fresh thinking, and prevents lethargy
and drift.
5. 3. Openness to new ideas: Learning is not simply about correcting mistakes and solving
problems. It is also about crafting novel approaches. Employees should be encouraged to
take risks and explore the untested and unknown
4. Time for reflection: All too many managers are judged by their sheer number of hours
they work and the task they accomplish. When people are too busy or overstressed by
deadlines and scheduling pressures, however, their ability to think analytically and
creatively is compromised. They become less able to diagnose problems and learn from
their experiences. Supportive learning environment allow time for pause in the action and
encourage thoughtful review of the organization’s processes.
(2) Concrete learning processes and practices: Learning process involve the generation
collection, interpretation and dissemination of information. They include:
1. Experimentation: Experimentation to develop and test new products and services,
and experiments frequently with new ways of working.
2. Information Collection: The organization should collect information on customers,
competitors, economic social and technological trends, and it should compare its
performance with that of competitors and best-in-class organizations
3. Analysis: The organization should do a disciplined analysis and interpretation to
identify and solve problems. It should engage in productive conflict and debate during
discussions, and it should frequently identifies and discusses underlying assumptions that
might affect key decision.
4. Education and training to develop both new and established employees. Newly hired
employees in the organization should receive adequate training. Experienced employees
should receive periodic training and training updates, training when switching to a new
position, training when new initiatives are launched. In such organizations training is
valued and time is made available for education and training
5. Information transfer: In a learning organization, it has forum for meeting with and
learning from experts from other departments, teams or divisions ,experts from outside
the organizations, customers and clients, suppliers etc. it regularly shares information
with networks of experts within the organization and outside it. It quickly and accurately
6. communicates new knowledge to key decision makers. Here post-audit and after-action
review are regularly conducted
(2) Leadership that reinforces learning: Organizational learning is strongly influenced
by the behavior of leaders. When leaders actively question and listen to employees,
people in the institution feel encouraged to learn. If leaders signal the importance of
spending time on problem identification, knowledge transfer, and reflective-post
audits, these activities are likely to flourish. When people in power demonstrate
through their own behavior a willingness to entertain alternative points of view,
employees feel emboldened to offer new ideas and options. Such managers invite
input from others. They ask probing questions, listen attentively and encourage
multiple points of view. They provide time, resources and venues for identifying
problems and organizational challenges and for reflecting and improving on past
performance.
Changing role of HRD within organizations.
The new focus on employee learning changes the role of the Human Resource
Development function. The role HRD within learning organizations is becoming clearer,
but many uncertainties remain for HRD professionals, especially with regard to the
question of how to bring their new roles into practice. There are only a few instruments to
help HRD officers in this regard.
The “learning organization” is an important metaphor for HRD professionals to assist
them in:
Developing collective intelligence within organizations and organizational forms
supporting such a need thus eliminating the holding of knowledge in separate
compartments at different levels.
7. Understanding the importance of knowledge and in particular tacit knowledge, which has
to be recognized and valorized insofar as it is embedded in human resources.
Moving from training-based development policies towards new policies fostering
learning in different ways
Learning oriented organisations do employ a rich bouquet of change initiatives, in which,
no one type of change is particularly dominant.
The main motivator for wanting to become a learning organisation is the desire to
become more client centered by continuous improvement and innovation. However, more
people-oriented reasons such as improving the quality of working life seem to play a role
as well.
The envisioned role of HRD within learning organizations is to:
1. Support the business.
2. Support (informal) learning.
3. Support knowledge sharing.
4. Develop and coordinate training.
5. Should continuously design and experiment with new methods to build right type of
HRD.
6. Change HRD practices.
Barriers to change
1. Insufficient time for learning on the part of the employees
2. Insufficient time for performing HRD tasks on the part of the managers
3. Lack of clarity on the role of HRD
