ImPlications for HRD
The need for effective learning and development in managing change and fostering employee wellbeing and engagement has been highlighted by a number of researchers. (Shuck et al., 2011) simply that increasing employee engagement through development and learning should become an objective of all organizational change programmes. But Mitchell (2010) highlights the fact that less than 20 percent of managers have received training in how to engage with the bring out the best in people. This need for training is also stressed by the CIPD (2012), which found that three quarters of employees report a lack of leadership and management skills. This CIPD survey also reported difference in perceptions of how managers thought they managed their people and the views of their employees. For example 90 percent of managers said thry coached their staff, whilst only 40 percent of employees agreed, Millar (2012) suggests that management training alone does not change behavior, organizations have to create the right climate and conditions for successful implementation through coaching, mentoring and empowerment.
Avey et al. (2008) further suggest that training interventions to develop positive attitudes could be effective in facilitating engagement leading to positive organizational change.
Research into wellbeing at work identifies that provision of wellbeing programmes could address some of the attitudinal aspects of employee wellbeing engagement and burnout.
(Cooper and Robertson, 2011; Young and Bhaumik, 2011) However as Young and Bhaumik (2011) found in their survey for the UK Department of Work and Pensions many organizations limit wellness programmes to health and safety training and see the cost of any such provision as outweighing any benefits. Yet employees see wellbeing as the key to a better engaged and more productive workforce but do little to train their managers in facilitating the process. A fundamental aspect of wellbeing is building resilience particularly in stressful times and Seligman (2011a,b) posits that these issues can readily be addressed by the provision of training.
Gebauer and Lowman (2008) comment that the lack of training and development of managers is a potential barrier to engaging employees and that the HRD function can contribute to development of appropriate management skills by tailoring management training coursed to increase levels of engagement. Fairlie (2011) builds on this concept by suggesting a number of ways that HRD professionals can facilitate engagement; thought through the development of training programmes for managers; assisting in culture change initiatives; redesigning jobs and by revising career development programmes that better assist employees in achieving their long-term career goals. But Fairlie (2011) also considers the wider benefits to both managers and employees of effective learning and development interventions, argueing that levels of engagement can be both passively and actively increased by developing talent.
Learning and development does not just take place in the classroom. Spreitzer and Porath (2012) identified ongoing learning at work as fundamental to creating sustainable performance. In their research into what makes for a consistently high-performing workforce, they found that happy workers were more productive. They argue that organizations need to create “thriving” workers who are not just satisfied and productive but are also engaged in creating the future and are less susceptible to burnout. They believe that learning is a vital component to achieve this because people who are developing their abilities are likely to believe in their potential for future growth. The implications of their research for organizations is to create opportunities for employees to learn and grow by fostering practices that encourage individual and organizational learning. A view supported by Keller and Price (2011) who add that “healthy organizations” (as defined by their capacity to adapt and change quicker than the competition) do not merely learn to adjust themselves to their current context or challenges that lie just ahead; they create a capacity to learn and change over time.
Soane et al. (2012) argue that employee engagement has implications for all areas of HRD practices that can enhance the experience of work by fostering task performance, organization citizenship behavior and reducing turnover intentions.