Job Training Methods and Process

Submitted to

Shaheen Ahmed Chowdhury

Assistant Professor

Dept. of Marketing

University of Dhaka

Submitted by

Tanvir Ahmed Khan-BIT0305

Arif Ibne Ali-BIT0308

Nadia Nahar-BIT0327

Ahmad Tahmid-BIT0332

Date of Submission: 3rd December, 2012

Institute of Information Technology

JOB TRAINING METHODS AND PROCESS: STUDY ON A IT FARM

Introduction:

Sending employees to training opportunities, or bringing opportunities into the company,

actually infuses a business with new ideas and creative ways of solving old problems.

Sometimes, just getting employees out of the day-to-day grind of their everyday work schedule

is enough to jump-start energy and encourage employees to recommit to their jobs and the

company. But learning new skills and interacting with new and different people has a direct

impact on the productivity and development of the work environment.

Training is one of the major activities of the largest organizations including IT/ Software Firm.

As we are conducting Training procedures running on IT firm, we need to judge the training

methods that applied in the generic Software or IT firm.

Background of the Study:

The IT sector is growing at a very fast pace and is expected to earn a revenue of US $87 billion

by 2008. In 2006, it has earned revenue of about US $ 40 billion with a growth rate of 30%. IT

sector is expected to generate 2.3 million jobs by 2010, according to NASSCOM (National

Association of Software and Service Companies)

With this rapid expansion of IT sector and coming up of major players and new technologies

like SAP, the need of human resource development has increased.

According to the recent review by Harvard Business Review, there is a direct link between

training investment of the companies and the market capitalization. Those companies with higher

training investment had higher market capitalization. It clearly indicates that the companies

which have successfully implemented training programs have been able to deliver customer

goals with effective results. It shows that good training results in enhancement of individual

performance, which in turn, helps the organization in achieving its business goals. Training is a

tool that can help in gaining competitive advantage in terms of human resource.

With the growing investment by IT companies in the development of their employees many

companies have now started their own learning centers. As an example, Sun has its own training

department. Accenture has Internet based tool by the name of “My Learning” that offers access

to its vast learning resources to its employees. Companies are investing in both the technical

training, which has always been an essential part in IT industry, as well as in managerial skills

development. Companies now kept aside 3-5% of revenue for training programs. As an example,

some of the major players like Tata Elexi and Accenture are allocating 7% and 3% respectively

of the company’s overall revenue.

Importance of Training:

Training is essential to the achievements of a business. Perhaps its most positive benefit is better

employees. A company develops the potential of an employee, and part of the way a company

encourages improvement is through training. Often, good training is just as important as a good

benefits package for an employee.

For employers, training allows them to locate a wider range of people with the kind of outlook

that matches the company mission statement. The right kind of perspective is a hard thing to

cultivate, whereas workplace specific proficiencies are easier to nature. The other advantage

employers should remember about training is it offers them an improved retention rate.

Employees are more loyal to companies that value their growth and want to cultivate it, and

thusly provide a better performance and decrease the rollover rate at any company, no matter

how small or large. If an employee thinks a company values him or her, that sentiment will go

into whatever the employee is designing, selling, manufacturing, etc.

Every single part of the management at a company must completely sustain the training.

Otherwise, there is no point in wasting even a shoddy effort at training. Cheap training will

result in cheap work: quality employees require quality training programs, which means

spending a bit more money. Excellent training programs emphasize a correlation between

personal development and official evaluations, allowing an employee to discern that career

growth and success means evolving their expertise with training.

There are numerous benefits from having a training and learning program for your business'

bottom line. Here are the top tier-items that come to mind -

Increase productivity. Ongoing learning & training will ensure your team has the ability to

get more done and continually improve.

Create a safe environment. While not glamorous, safety matters, and will enable you to

reduce risk and insurance costs.

Enable you to hire the person with the right attitude and best fit with your team. Skills

like programming languages or database management can be taught; it's harder to teach a

strong work ethic or good attitude.

Boost employee engagement, and in turn effectiveness . Investing in training improves

employee engagement, and engaged employees are more productive. An engaged employee

is one who has a feeling of personal connection or pride in their work.

Innovation & nimbleness. Connecting your employees to opportunities to develop skills

and abilities on an ongoing basis means that your organization will be prepared to respond to

changing circumstances.

Show them you care. Investing in employee development is connected to increased job

satisfaction and thus increased employee retention rates.

Training and Development Objectives:

The principal objective of training and development division is to make sure the availability of a

skilled and willing workforce to an organization. In addition to that, there are four other

objectives: Individual, Organizational, Functional, and Societal.

Individual Objectives – help employees in achieving their personal goals, which in turn,

enhances the individual contribution to an organization.

Organizational Objectives – assist the organization with its primary objective by bringing

individual effectiveness.

Functional Objectives – maintain the department’s contribution at a level suitable to the

organization’s needs.

Societal Objectives – ensure that an organization is ethically and socially responsible to the

needs and challenges of the society.

Methodology:

The three model of training are:

1. System Model

2. Instructional System Development Model

3. Transitional model

System Model:

The system model consists of five phases and should be repeated on a regular basis to

make further improvements. The training should achieve the purpose of helping employee

to perform their work to required standards. The steps involved in System Model of

training are as follows:

1. Analyze and identify the training needs i.e. to analyze the department, job, employees

requirement, who needs training, what do they need to learn, estimating training cost, etc

The next step is to develop a performance measure on the basis of which actual

performance would be evaluated.

2. Design and provide training to meet identified needs. This step requires developing

objectives of training, identifying

3. Develop - This phase requires listing the activities in the training program that will

assist the participants to learn, selecting delivery method, examining the training material,

validating information to be imparted to make sure it accomplishes all the goals &

objectives.

4. Implementing is the hardest part of the system because one wrong step can lead to the

failure of whole training program.

5. Evaluating each phase so as to make sure it has achieved its aim in terms of subsequent

work performance. Making necessary amendments to any of the previous stage in order to

remedy or improve failure practices.

Instructional System Development Model:

Instructional System Development model or ISD training model was made to answer the

training problems. This model is widely used now-a-days in the organization because it is

concerned with the training need on the job performance. Training objectives are defined

on the basis of job responsibilities and job description and on the basis of the defined

objectives individual progress is measured. This model also helps in determining and

developing the favorable strategies, sequencing the content, and delivering media for the

types of training objectives to be achieved.

The Instructional System Development model comprises of five stages:

1. Analysis – This phase consist of training need assessment, job analysis, and target

audience analysis.

2. Planning – This phase consist of setting goal of the learning outcome, instructional

objectives that measures behavior of a participant after the training, types of training

material, media selection, methods of evaluating the trainee, trainer and the training

program, strategies to impart knowledge i.e. selection of content, sequencing of content,

etc.

3. Development – This phase translates design decisions into training material. It consists of

developing course material for the trainer including handouts, workbooks, visual aids,

demonstration props, etc, course material for the trainee including handouts of summary.

4. Execution – This phase focuses on logistical arrangements, such as arranging speakers,

equipments, benches, podium, food facilities, cooling, lighting, parking, and other training

accessories.

5. Evaluation – The purpose of this phase is to make sure that the training program has

achieved its aim in terms of subsequent work performance. This phase consists of identifying

strengths and weaknesses and making necessary amendments to any of the previous stage in

order to remedy or improve failure practices.

The ISD model is a continuous process that lasts throughout the training program. It also

highlights that feedback is an important phase throughout the entire training program. In this

model, the output of one phase is an input to the next phase.

Transitional model:

Transitional model focuses on the organization as a whole. The outer loop describes the

vision, mission and values of the organization on the basis of which training model i.e. inner

loop is executed.

1. Vision – focuses on the milestones that the organization would like to achieve after the

defined point of time. A vision statement tells that where the organization sees itself few

years down the line. A vision may include setting a role mode, or bringing some internal

transformation, or may be promising to meet some other deadlines.

2. Mission – explain the reason of organizational existence. It identifies the position in the

community. The reason of developing a mission statement is to motivate, inspire, and inform

the employees regarding the organization. The mission statement tells about the identity that

how the organization would like to be viewed by the customers, employees, and all other

stakeholders.

3. Values – is the translation of vision and mission into communicable ideals. It reflects the

deeply held values of the organization and is independent of current industry environment.

For example, values may include social responsibility, excellent customer service, etc.

The mission, vision, and values precede the objective in the inner loop. This model considers the

organization as a whole. The objective is formulated keeping these three things in mind and then

the training model is further implemented.

Domain of Training in IT:

The specific areas where training is given in IT/Software Development sector are:

Computer Manufacturing

EDP/ E- Commerce

Designing

Maintenance Service

Operating jobs, Computer operators, Data Entry

System Developing /Programming /Software Engineering

Networking

Application Programming

Research and Development in Peripheral Integration

Product Quality Control and Reliability Testing

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

Database Warehousing and Management

Training Courses in Software Development Industry

B. Tech

BCA

BSc. (H) Computer Science

M. Tech

MCA

MSc. (H) Computer Science

M.E. in Computer Technology & Applications

Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Application (P.G.D.C.A)

Preferred Training Methods:

Computer Based Training

Internet Based Learning

Lectures

Labs

On-the-job (OTJ) Training

Distant Learning

E-Books

Mentoring

Coaching

Job Rotation

Concern in Information Technology Training:

One of the major concerns for training companies is to create professionals who are better able

to go in for a technology in a specific domain area. Other than that, there are various issues that

are affecting the IT training sector such as, lack of conviction regarding training, unplanned

training approach, uncertain quality focus, and lengthy decision-making process.

With the coming up of various new technologies, it has become a challenge for the training

institutes to offer effective, updated, latest, planned training to candidates in a shortest-possible

time. To increase the market share, most of the training institutes are now strategizing to launch

new product and are marketing aggressively.

As an example, New Horizons is establishing partnership with its customers and delivering

quality training. The company regularly conducts surveys of training needs in Indian job market.

On the other side, NIIT has invested in product development to create product segmentation and

is customizing them to address IT/ITES education area.

Aptech is venturing into colleges, research firms, and universities. Another opportunity that has

been identified by Aptech is the field of developing content and the company is offering these

services to third-party clients for customization.

Essentials in IT Industry:

To survive in long term there are some definite essential things such as-

Good infrastructure

Trained trainers

Quality of content

Certification of training course

Effective Training evaluation

Post training support

Emerging Scenario in IT Industry:

With the rapid expansion in IT sector, now there is enough scope of IT training courses and

institutes. IT sector is soon going to face a huge shortfall of skilled employees, if the growth in

the software industry goes by as expected. According to recent report of NASSCOM (The

National Association of Software and Services Companies) on software industry, the IT

services sector will see a shortfall of 2,35,000 people by 2008. IT spending in the global

business world is expected to grow by 6 to 7 % in the next 3 years, which will be enough to give

boost to the IT training sector.

This huge IT spending is largely because of uptake in IT recruitment.

According to a recent IDC report, India alone spends $216 million, i.e. 21% of the total spending

of IT training in the region, and is expected to be one of the largest contributors in the coming

years. This is largely because India alone accounts for 60 % of the total Asia-Pacific demand for

IT professionals.

Currently, the IT training market is valued at Rs 100 crore, and is expected to reach Rs 500 crore

over the next 3 years.

The major factor that is responsible for growth in IT sector is the e-governance initiatives

introduced by central government and various other state governments.

Now there is a notable shift from long-term course to short-term training certifications. Due to

this, the focus is now on hiring professionals with expertise in particular domains. The demand

has largely for JAVA and .NET professionals. And on the NETWORKING end, network storage

and Linux demand is taking a toll.

Variation of Salary of Trainers in IT Industry:

The following table describes the salary offered to the trainers according to the experience &

variation of Salary with Experience in Software Services Industry.

In Software Services Industry

Salary offered to the trainers according to the relevant experience fall in the range of:

Variation of Salary with Experience in BPO/KPO/ITES Sector

Salary offered to the trainers according to the relevant experience fall in the range of:

Surveys on Training:

MIT TRAINING DELIVERY METHODS SURVEY:

Purpose and Methodology: In 2006, the Training Alignment Team (TAT) sponsored a survey

to understand which training delivery methods are experienced as most effective for learning by

MIT employees. Administrative, sponsored research, and support staff were surveyed because

they predominate as participants in MIT training programs. The overall goal in gathering these

data is to ensure that choice of delivery methods optimizes learning for work at MIT. The

Training Delivery Methods project team included members from four different departments who

develop and deliver training at MIT. In the survey, respondents were asked to rate the

effectiveness of seven training delivery methods. Respondents were also asked to rate their level

of experience as well as the effectiveness of the delivery methods for several subject matter

areas. Finally, respondents were asked to provide written comments regarding their choices. The

methods were chosen by a set of criteria that included current usage, survey brevity, and

commonality of language across departments. These seven methods include:

- Lecture/demonstration

- Classroom training with instructor

- One-on-one tutorial

- Self-paced learning, non-electronic

- E-learning, self-paced

- E-learning, facilitated

- Blended learning.

Survey Question:

The survey questions were divided into four main areas.

1 - Experience level. Question one asked which types of training method respondents had

experienced. They were asked to check all that apply.

2 – Effectiveness by subject matter. Questions 2-5 asked which method was most effective for

learning the following different types of subject matter:

• Question 2.Computing skills or a software application.

• Question 3.Financial or accounting skills.

• Question 4.Interpersonal communication or leadership skills.

• Question 5.A procedural or policy change.

It is understood that many kinds of subject matter could be chosen. The intention in choosing

these subject areas was four-fold:

• To vary the type of subject matter.

• To reflect current types of training subject matter (though not exhaustively).

• To keep the list short to ensure greater survey participation.

• To vary the type of learning.

3 – Effectiveness by method. Question 6 asked how effective each of the methods was

experienced on a scale of 1– 5. For this question, 1 is "Not at all effective" and 5 is "Highly

effective.” Also for this question, respondents were asked to rate each of the six methods for

effectiveness on this scale, not to choose one over another.

4 – Most/least effective and why. Questions 7 and 8 asked which method was most effective

and which was least effective and why. Question 7 asked which one method, and only one

method, respondents found most effective. Question 8 asked the same question for least

effective. For both questions 7 and 8, respondents were also asked to answer “why” in written

responses. Finally, respondents were given the opportunity to add additional written comments

(Question 9).

Experience Level: Question 1:

The survey asked respondents about their experience with the different training delivery

methods. Question 1 asked, “Which of the following types of work-related training have you

participated in, either inside or outside MIT?” Thus, the survey asked specifically about work-

related training as opposed to other possible types of training, college, or other possible types of

study.

The results (Figure Q1) suggest that nearly 80% of respondents have experience with

“Classroom training with an instructor,” the most experienced method. “Lecture demonstration”

appears to be the second most experienced method (just under 70%), and “e-learning, self-

paced” the third most experienced method (just over 40%). “Blended learning” was least

experienced at approximately 10%.

Subject Matter Areas: Questions 2-5:

In questions 2-5, respondents were asked to choose one of the seven methods as most effective

for learning specific subject matter. These subject matter areas included:

• Question 2: Computing skills or a software application

• Question 3: Financial or accounting skills

• Question 4: Interpersonal communication or leadership skills

• Question 5: A procedural or policy change

Question 2: Choose one that best describes the most effective learning method for

computing skills or a software application.

Question 3: Choose one that best describes the most effective learning method for financial

or accounting skills.

Question 4: Choose one that best describes the most effective learning method for

interpersonal or leadership skills.

Question 5: Choose one that best describes the most effective learning method for a

procedural or policy change.

Question 6: How effective in general do you feel each training method is for you?

Question 7: Overall, if you had to choose one training method, which would be most

effective for you? (Choose one.) Why?

Question 7a: Which method is most effective. Why?

- Asking Questions. Almost a third (31%) of all respondents noted that having the opportunity

to ask questions, feeling comfortable asking questions and having someone available to answer

questions is what they value in their training. Specifically, these comments were in reference to

“classroom training with an instructor,” “blended learning,” and “one-on-one” methods.

- Learning with others. Next highest (over 14%) were comments associated with the synergy of

being with others in the classroom. These comments suggest there is a benefit from hearing other

participants’ perspectives, opinions, and experiences. These respondents noted that working with

others adds to the overall learning experience. This was especially noted in the “classroom

training with an instructor” and “blended learning” methods.

- Interaction with a human instructor. Closely related to being able to ask questions, was

having a “human instructor,” in their words, who is available to answer questions. Nearly 12%

indicated this was a significant factor for effective learning.

- Pace. Other written comments (12%) suggest the importance of pace geared to individual

needs. Being able to go at one’s own pace, as well as not being slowed down or pressured to

keep up was seen as positive in “blended learning,” “e-learning, selfpaced,” and “one-on-one”

methods.

- Learning by Doing. Approximately 10% wrote that “learning by doing” or “hands-on”

practices were important when learning new skills, especially technical skills. This was

associated primarily with “classroom with instructor” and “one-on-one” methods.

Questions 8: Overall, which method is LEAST effective for you? (Choose one).

Question 8a: Which method is least effective. Why?

Comments written about which method is least effective also supported quantitative findings.

These comments supported and were congruous with responses about why methods were most

effective.

- No accountability or motivation. The most reported reason (13%) for not finding selfpaced

methods (“e-learning, self-paced” or “self-paced, non-electronic”) to be effective was that

participants found it easier to procrastinate or not prioritize the training. These comments also

suggested that lack of accountability gave respondents less motivation to start or complete

training.

- Pace. Not being able to go at one’s own pace, specifically being held back by others’ skill

levels and questions, lessened the effectiveness of training for 5% of respondents. This was

associated primarily with “e-learning, facilitated” and “lecture/demonstration.”

- Not having questions answered. 7% of respondents wrote comments suggesting that not

having questions answered or difficulty asking questions made “e-learning, selfpaced” and

“lecture/demonstration” least effective methods of training.

Overall, written comments were supportive of other findings. Comments written about methods

seen as most effective and those seen as least effective confirmed and explained quantitative

findings.

Question 9: Please share any additional thoughts you have about training methods

Written responses to Question 9 asking respondents to share additional thoughts varied, but

supported other findings. Some respondents commented further on the positive aspects of

instructor- led training, while others suggested that the most effective method depends on the

subject at hand.

Other comments suggested the timing of the training or the facilities of training also mattered. As

one respondent wrote, “I prefer NOT to have classes held over lunch time since that is supposed

to be a time for employees to take a break rather than continue to work.” Another wrote, “Make

sure the place is not hot and crowded.”

Still others made general comments about the value or quality of training at MIT. As one

respondent wrote in reference to classroom experiences at MIT, “They have all been excellent.

Better than any other place I have worked.” Another respondent wrote, that “MIT in general has

done a good job with the training courses I have taken.”

Still another wrote that, “Training is great!!! Thanks for providing the opportunities.” And,

as one other respondent wrote, “Thanks for asking our opinions!”

Conclusion:

Overall, this finding suggests that all seven methods surveyed can be utilized successfully for IT

employees learning. Along with this, in according with adult training theory, it appears important

to provide optimal time for training participants to interact with each other, to talk and interact

with live instructors, to be able to listen to and ask questions not only of a live instructor, but of

their fellow participants as well. Finally these data suggests that live class room training with an

instructor and other participants is seen as most effective for learning by most IT employees

surveyed.

References:

1. Training and Development in IT/Software Development Industry:

http://traininganddevelopment.naukrihub.com/training-scenario/it/

2. MIT Training and Development: http://web.mit.edu/training/trainers/

3. Oxford Journal:

i. The effects of general and firm-specific training on wages and performance: evidence

from banking :

http://oep.oxfordjournals.org/content/64/1/151.full?maxtoshow=&hits=10&RESULTFO

RMAT=&fulltext=Training&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT

ii. Quick Job Entry or Long-Term Human Capital Development? The Dynamic Effects of

Alternative Training Schemes:

http://restud.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/06/25/restud.rds022.full?maxtoshow=

&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=Training&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&res

ourcetype=HWCIT