Training and Development Roles and Practices: Public vs. Private Sector

Introduction

Training and development (T&D) of human resources is offered by a growing number of companies in both the private and public sectors — both as an incentive for employees and as a means of increasing an organization's value through possession of the most capable and highly skilled staff members.

A first step in discussing the role and importance of T&D is highlighting its main areas and identifying what makes a T&D program effective for an organization. To shed some light on the matter, several aspects will be discussed, including the identification of a T&D need, the selection of employees to be trained, the training programs to be implemented, the training methods to be used, and the evaluation of the T&D program. A particularly important point is that T&D must be implemented as an ongoing process rather than a sporadic activity, and the reasons for this will be addressed throughout the paper.

A discussion on training and development would not be complete without a brief presentation of the historical background behind these programs. As such, a short timeline of the main events and the emergence of T&D will be presented. The paper will then move on to presenting and discussing the most important theories related to the training and development of staff in both state-owned and privately owned organizations.

The final part of the introduction addresses the issues faced by emerging countries in training and developing their personnel. Are these countries affected by industrialization or resource limitations in ways that constrain their T&D programs? Do they possess sufficient technologies to support their T&D initiatives? From a more social standpoint, how do managers and employees perceive these programs, and how open are they to change and new approaches?

The primary issues and practices of training and development center on identifying a training need and the means of satisfying it — namely, the types of methods used to develop and implement T&D programs. The continual nature of these programs will also be discussed. The issues and practices will be analyzed within both the private and public sectors, and general conclusions will be formulated regarding the differences and similarities between the two.

Statement of the Problem and Research Objectives

The primary questions to be answered within the study concern the types of T&D practices implemented within the public and private sectors, as well as the roles these programs play in each. The research hypothesis will examine whether these roles and practices are similar or differ based on the public or private nature of the organization, and subsequently on the nature of the activity conducted, the audience served, and any other features that differentiate the two organizational types.

In searching for a relevant answer, various sources of information will be studied. This will begin with a brief literary review presenting the matter from a specialized standpoint. The writer will identify any similarities and differences in the analyzed material and present findings accordingly. Once a general opinion has been formed, a rationale for the study will be offered, explaining the relevance of the literary works in answering the posed questions.

The main objective of the study is to identify the roles and practices related to the training and development of human resources within organizations belonging to both public and private sectors. The secondary objectives, or sub-objectives, are as follows:

The actual study will revolve around a comparative analysis of ten organizations — five from the public sector and five from the private sector. The analysis will identify training categories, methods, and other training features. It will then examine the T&D budgets allocated by each entity. Do private companies allocate more than public ones because they generally have greater access to financial resources, or is that assumption incorrect?

Design of the Study

Third, the study will focus on the number of employees trained each year within each organization, as well as management's perspective on T&D programs. Are these programs purely technical, or are they also designed to integrate employees into the organizational culture? What kind of culture do the ten organizations exhibit, and how do they perceive and support the training and professional development of their staff? Is institutional culture different or similar across the two sectors? Finally, how much commitment does management demonstrate toward these programs?

In answering these questions, as well as any others that may arise during the study, both quantitative and qualitative methods will be used. The most relevant example of quantitative data is financial analyses and ratios, including management performance and efficiency indicators. Qualitative information could be obtained through direct discussions with staff members to identify how they genuinely feel about T&D programs. Discussions could also occur with operational managers, who would be best positioned to qualitatively evaluate staff performance before and after training.

The first step will be to identify the ten organizations. They will be selected from well-known entities to ensure that sufficient information is available about them. The selection will also consider the diversity of activities conducted, so that the study contains varied data and supports the formulation of an unbiased, objective opinion. Once selected, the writer will gather information from various sources. Primary sources will include secondary data such as articles on the companies and their human resource practices. Direct discussions with employees at the ten companies will also be pursued within feasible limits. Staff members may be reluctant to answer questions from an outsider, but they and their organizations could be encouraged to participate in a survey. A questionnaire could be developed, with employees answering anonymously, giving them the freedom to express their views. Management would also be more likely to permit such questionnaires, as they would gain access to the results and be better equipped to identify and improve employee satisfaction and perceptions of T&D programs.

However willing employees and managers may be to participate in the study, it is quite unlikely that they will do so. They are generally extremely busy individuals and seldom have time to take surveys they do not consider compulsory. As a result, the primary research tool will consist of the analysis of secondary data. Journals and magazines will be examined to identify articles on the training and development of human resources within the selected ten organizations. The primary advantage of this method is that the information is generally easily accessible. This does not mean that the volume of information is large, but that existing material does not impose access restrictions. Unlike with organizations, one does not need to be a corporate employee to access the necessary information. Furthermore, it is generally unbiased and current.

The primary disadvantage of analyzing media sources is that the number of specialized works on the treatment of human resources — and consequently on the roles and practices of T&D — remains quite limited. The daily media does not place much emphasis on such topics. As a result, the amount of research to be conducted is considerable and the work is tedious. There also exists the risk that the desired information is only briefly mentioned in specialized journals and magazines, meaning hours of research could yield limited results.