Employee Training and Development: Sainsbury Supermarket Ltd
Employee Training and Development: Sainsbury Supermarket Ltd
Effective employee training and development is essential for quality job performance. The success of many organizations around the world can be traced to the presence of an elaborate training program within that organization. Effective training guarantees that the organization has adequately trained personnel. In most instances, training prepares an employee for future growth in his career. In case of job vacancies or new job opportunities within the organization, the management is guaranteed to seek qualified personnel from the pool of trained employees. Employee training also ensures that an organization has adequate human resource to cater for the changing needs of the company. It is the desire of any organization to grow and expand. The key to successful growth and expansion is the presence of adequate human resource. Employee training and development is an essential practice that organizations that desire to remain successful and competitive should embrace. Employee training and development not only encourages individual growth of the employees, but it also leads to improved productivity and efficiency within the organization.
The Need for Employee Training and Development
The nature and environment of the workplace has constantly been changing. Organizations that expect to thrive have no alternative but to change as well. The business environment is currently in need of skilled and highly qualified personnel. It is only by having skilled personnel that an organization can thrive and remain competitive. It is paramount that an organization has a highly skilled and knowledgeable workforce to guarantee flexibility and adaptability in the present and future organizational environment. In any organization, employee training and development is one of the ways to guarantee that organizational goals and objectives are met. It is the responsibility of management to encourage growth and career development. This helps students attain their personal as well as organizational goals. All workers desire to work in a company where there are opportunities for growth (Alkhaffaf, 2011).
Opportunities for growth guarantee employees that there is room for growth up their career, and into more managerial and supervisory roles. An organization can only encourage career growth and development through the provision of adequate training. The process of training is dynamic and ongoing. The management of an organization can choose to adopt the formal or informal form of training. The formal form of training involves class attendance away from the work environment. Informal training is done on the job and the employee acquires practical skills. Ordinarily, it is vital that an organization integrates the formal and informal mode of training for optimal success. The learners are adults and thus need to put into use what they acquire in a formal training session.
Training and Career Development Programs
The process of career development should be an ongoing process in which the organization strives to refine the skills and knowledge that employees already posses. The focus of the career development strategy is to improve the employee mastery at a job, enhance professional development and help employees plan the future of their careers. Job mastery skills refer to those skills that help employees to be more productive and efficient in their line of work. Job mastery skills help employees to accomplish tasks with ease and to the expectation of their supervisors. Professional development skills, on the other hand, refer to the skills that go beyond the current job description of the employees. Professional development skills create a foundation for the employee to access better job opportunities. An elaborate training and development system involves cooperation between the employees and the management (Shankar, 2006). The management should work with the employees, to assess the skills that the employees currently have. The management should utilize the existing skills of the employees to set a benchmark that the trainer will use. The training and development task must match the career development goals and needs of the employees and the organization.
All organizations that strive to remain productive and competitive must strive to training and development programs. These programs improve employee productivity and capabilities which in turn improves the organizations capabilities. An organization that invests in training and developing the employees’ benefit two folds, as the employees become more productive and efficient. Improved productivity and efficiency leads to increased sales and improved performance, which is evident with increased sales and subsequent revenues (Alkhaffaf, 2011). Training and development programs also reduce employee turnover. When employees realize that the organization considers them as valuable assets, they are motivated to keep working there. One way that an organization can show that it cares for its employees; is through introducing training and development programs.
Case Study: Sainsbury Supermarket Ltd
Karim, & Khan, (2012) conducts a research study on the effectiveness of training and development program on employees. They narrowed their studies to Sainsbury supermarket Ltd. Sainsbury supermarket is one of the oldest and the third largest retail chain store in the United Kingdom. Sainsbury supermarket is a store to reckon with as it has remained successful since its establishment in 1869. With approximately 15000 employees working across different stores in UK, the researchers aimed to determine the concepts of training and post training involved in the supermarket. The case study of Sainsbury was aimed at identifying the management perception and commitment in offering effective training program for employees at the supermarket.
The second objective was to analyze the vital issues related to post training based on the feedback that the employees provide. The third objective was to review Sainsbury perception of training programs and suggest any alternative and improvement strategies. The researchers desire to conduct the research study was driven by the need to establish effective employee training programs that help the organization attain its goal. In Sainsbury supermarket, for instance, the focus of the employee training program is to deliver superior values that align with the customer’s desire for quality (Karim, & Khan, 2012). As a supermarket, it is vital that the retail store uphold high level of quality in terms of customer relations and the services rendered.
Overall, the case study focuses on informing private sectors such as Sainsbury supermarket on the need to expand and adopt effective training evaluation practices. This will in turn guarantee that the supermarket enjoys sustainable organizational development. Analysis of the training methods at Sainsbury involved distribution of questionnaires to 26 employees who has acquired some form of training at the supermarket. The researchers also conducted semi structure interviews on respondents with positions such as a store manager and human resource and training manager. Individuals in these two job descriptions interact with the human resource and management. They are thus better placed to determine the preferred skills that employees need to be trained. Participants of the study revealed that the aim of training is to progress and improve performance. Training at Sainsbury supermarket is done so as to encourage employee working performance. Training at Sainsbury enables employees to keep up with any changes and developments that may affect their working environment. This could be development ion technology or introduction of new products into the supermarket (Karim, & Khan, 2012).
Training at Sainsbury is thus aimed at providing employees with skills which will in turn ensure that the organization has adequately trained employees. The management at Sainsbury conducts training, to ensure that the employees perform their required duties with predetermined standards. This means that the employees are already familiar with the expected results of them undertaking task. Familiarity with the expectation and adequate training, the employee will effectively perform tasks assigned to him.Mat, & Kamaruzaman, (2010)reviews the effectiveness of training within organizations. The authors acknowledge that training is a vital practice for new and existing personnel. Just like the store managers at Sainsbury, Mat, R. & Kamaruzaman, J. (2010)describe the process of employee training as the process where employees acquire new knowledge. New employees not only acquire new knowledge that assists them in executing various task within their organization, they also learn about the rules and cultures of the organization. For existing employees, training is vital to enhance performance.
Training is enhanced suing an instructor lead and content based intervention which leads to a desired work related conduct. In the case of training and career development, organizations such as Sainsbury engage in training strategies so as to work with productive personnel’s. Mat & Kamaruzaman, (2010), however, indicates that organizations should adopt other training strategies such as coaching, mentoring and peer group learning to enhance performance. The success of employee training is determined by the employees desire to improve. An employee who desires to improve will embrace the training strategies that an organization creates. An employee with the desire to improve will learn during the training period. He will also exhibit changes in concepts, skills and attitudes, that relate to the duties and responsibilities that he undertakes. By adopting relevant concepts skills and attitudes from the training program, the employee workplace performance will improve.
Improvement in work performance subsequently results to changes in organizational effectiveness. Sainsbury, for instance, has been known, for decades, to provide customers with quality services and products. This would not be achievable without an elaborate training program that emphasizes on employee development and core ideals of the organization. The management at Sainsbury also believes that training is the solution towards building confidence in the workforce. Confidence when performing task is crucial as it guarantees that the employee perform different tasks as required. Training ensures that employees are confident with their capabilities. Confidence, subsequently, leads to job satisfaction thus reduce employee turnover. Investing in effective employee training and development program shields the organization from employee turnover. Employee turnover occurs when the employee is dissatisfied with their job.
It can also occur when employees feel that their careers have plateud and that there is no more room for career advancement within the organization. Employee turnover is costly especially in organizations where the management has invested in the training of the employees (Shankar, 2006). Effective training program offers employee opportunities for personal and career growth which leads to job satisfaction. They are thus eager to keep working for the same organization. In return, the organization benefits from investing in employee training and development strategies.According to Noor & Baharein (2012), training enhances the employees capabilities in that they become more productive and efficient in their assigned duties. Effective training programs within organization guarantee that employees become efficient in time management. Through training, employees are able to plan and manage their time. This leads to reduced time wastage that is costly for organizations that desire to be successful. Overall, training and development program not only benefit the individual employee, but they also benefit the organization.
Training program within organization help employees focus on their individual career growth which in turn helps the organization achieves its short and long term goals (Noor, & Baharein, 2012). Training of employees should thus be regarded as a vital task that all companies, which desire to excel, must adopt. Employee training and development is a two-way symbiotic relationship where both the organization and the individual employee benefit. Training also improves the productivity of employees. With training, employees gather new knowledge; they are also able to polish up on knowledge that they had acquired in the past. The employees then apply the knowledge gathered in their respective duties hence increased efficiency and productivity. A trained employee has a high level of morale to work harder and implement the new knowledge at his work station.Noor & Baharein (2012), also point out that effecting training leads to reduced expenses and costs. This can be analyzed in terms of employee turnover. It is costly for an organization to hire and train new employees. Regular training and strategies, geared at career development help employees to remain focused on their jobs.
The presence of training and career development programs offers employees a dream of career growth within the organization (Noor, & Baharein, 2012). At Sainsbury, for instance, a retail cashier can be trained to take oversee different managerial responsibilities. This training creates a pathway for the individual employee to move up the ladder in terms of career advancement. In return, the employee will not seek employment in other areas hence reduced employee turnover.The management at Sainsbury value the element of employee training as it is the building block of successful organizations. According to the management of Sainsbury, there is no alternative to training. An organization has to strive in selecting the most qualified candidates for different posts within the organization. Having the right candidates for different responsibilities guarantees that organizations such as Sainsbury soar to success. Sainsbury stores adopt the on and off job training strategies for it employees.
This helps the employee learn while still executing tasks assigned to them. On the job training, guarantees that an employee acquires appropriate job experience. However, Sainsbury also values off the job training for the purposes of career development where an employee sees beyond the current position that he holds within the supermarket (Karim, & Khan, 2012). Other than adopting an off or on the job training strategy, the management at Sainsbury looks at the preferred learning style of every of its employee. Overall, Sainsbury supermarket has remained successful to-date due to the emphasis on training. Based on the ideology that training is the bedrock of every successful organization, the organization has constantly engaged its employees on different training. Among the training that employee receive include customer service, health, and safety and replenishment training. The supermarket relies on qualified trainers, to train employees on courses that are relevant to the job requirement of the employees.
Training is a continuous development cycle. It is vital that organizations lay emphasis on the main stages involved in training and development of employees. The first involves identification of training needs. Different organizations have different training needs; it is vital that the management of each organization determines the training needs of the workforce and company. The training needs will be used as the podium where an elaborate training and development program will be established. Identifying training needs within an organization helps in accomplishing the second main state of training i.e. planning and designing. The management must establish how it will efficiently deliver the training, after planning and designing the training (Farooq, & Khan, 2011). This includes determining the qualification of the trainers, the types of training methods that the organization will adopt and the duration of the training. The final state is evaluation. The outcome of the training process is analyzed against the expected outcomes. If successful, the organization adopts the training program for future application. A successful training program yields positive results. For instance, the morale of the employee improves as they become more efficient task they perform within the organization.
However, a training process may be unsuccessful and may not yield any result. This requires that the organization reviews the process and makes any necessary modifications. In the case of Sainsbury, majority of the employees agreed that the training process was relevant. However, a small number felt that the training course they received were not relevant. In such a situation, the management should engage the employees in determining which courses are vital for their growth and development. The management should also look at employee who responded that they had not received various training courses provided by the organization (Kari & Khan, 2012).Training programs in organizations are costly and with this in mind organizations should strive to ensure that the training and development programs running are reliable. Evaluation on training program involves locking at the training activities, the trainer’s ability and the relation of the training program to the job the employee’s do. Improvement and modification must be done to ensure that the training matches to the employee career direction. The training should also be relevant to achieving the organizations goals and objectives. Evaluation also guarantees that the training course that are no longer relevant have been dropped and replaced (Shankar, 2006).
Recommendation
Though Sainsbury supermarket has embraced the aspect of training and development, it should strive to engage the employee in designing training methods and modules within the organization. Involving the employees in designing the employee training and career development strategies helps the management to include aspects of training that are relevant to the human resources. The workers are share and give their views on what they prefer. The management can then compare the desires and needs of the employees to the overall objective of the supermarket. Strategies that benefit both the employee and the supermarket will then be adopted. Involving the employees to engage in designing the training program encourages objective learning, which increases performance development. An effective training program has a post training evaluation program.
Sainsbury has a training program, but it should strive to engage the employees in correcting and improving the training program to meet the future training needs.It is recommended that Sainsbury adopts a more diverse training and development strategy. Currently, the training courses that the employees undertake only focus on satisfying the immediate needs of the organization. This explains why some employees found the training course irrelevant. Training and development programs should focus on improving the employee and establishing an elaborate path for his future career (Kari & Khan, 2012). Encouraging the employee’s to train on management jobs is also necessary. It not only prepares the employee for any future job opportunities that may arise, but is also guarantees the human resource department of well trained personnel. The management at Sainsbury supermarket should also elaborate on their post training strategy. It is impossible to determine whether a training program is effective or not without first determining the content that is to be reviewed.
Adopting an elaborate culture of assessment of the training program guarantees that all the employee’s needs will be met. It will also guarantee that the training program is restructured if the need arises. It is impossible for an organization to exist on a standard training program (Mat, & Kamaruzaman, 2010). Times are changing and training that was relevant five years ago may be irrelevant today. Training and career development program should be constructed to meet the changing needs of the employees and the direction that the organization desires to take in the future. Sainsbury supermarket should also strive to provide its employees’ with training and development strategies that they can apply in their current and future careers. An employee will only be motivated to train if he is aware of the importance of training to his future. The management of the supermarket should thus strive to motivate employees to enroll for formal and informal training. The employees must be able to see the training process as a career investment that will benefit them in the future. This will avoid a scenario where some employees have never received any form of training while other have been trained and were 100% satisfied with the training process and the content.
Conclusion
Employee training and development should stand as one of the main priorities for organizations. On face value, training and development strategies may appear costly and time consuming. However, the overall impact of employee training and development is unmatched. Training enhances job satisfaction among the employees. Employees are able to prepare their career path while still in their respective careers. With job satisfaction, the employee becomes motivated, productive and more efficient in their tasks. In return, the organization experiences improved quality and consumer satisfaction which means more sales and profits. Training also prepares the organization in terms of expansion and growth. By training it employees, the management is assured that there is adequate personnel to take up vacancies and positions that may be established in the course of expansion. Recognized companies such as Sainsbury supermarket in UK have remained successful due to their emphasis on employee training and development. The management has been determined to see it employees attain training courses in various fields that enable them to be better performance of tasks. Though there are numerous recommendations such as the adoption of training strategies that help employees define their careers, the presence of a training strategy show the interest that management has over it employees. The interest of the management results to increase competitiveness and productivity which has seen the company recognized in terms of growth and success.
Reference
Alkhaffaf, M. (2011). The impact of empowering employees on organizational development. A case study of Jordan ICT sector. Journal of US-China public administration. Vol. 8(7); 808-814: access no. 65297432
Farooq, M. & Khan, M. (2011). Impact of training and feedback on employee performance. Far East journal of psychology & business. Vol. 5(1); 23-33 Accession Number: 67713984
Kari, M. & Khan, R. (2012). Significance of training and post training evaluation for employee effectiveness. An empirical study on Sainsbury’s supermarket. International journal of business management. Vol. 7(18); ISSN 1833-8119
Mat, R. & Kamaruzaman, J. (2010). The determinant of training effectiveness in Malaysian organizations. Interdisciplinary journal of contemporary research in business. Vol. 2(2); 66-77: Accession Number: 59543255
Noor, M. & Baharein, K. (2012). Leveraging training to maximizing employers performance and potential benefits. Journal of business & management review. Vol. 1(11); 19-26;Accession Number: 78392130
Shankar, S. (2006). Cultural factors and beliefs influencing the transfer of training. International journal of training & development. Vol.10 (2); 88-97; DOI:10.1111/j.1468-2419.2006.00246.x
Is this your assignment or some part of it?
We can do it for you! Click to Order!
