Human Resource Development Cultural Change Program In Military Hierarchical Organization (Other (Not Listed) Sample)

Human Resource Development Cultural Change Program
In Military Hierarchical Organization
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University
Human Resource Development Cultural Change Program
In Military Hierarchical Organization
The success in war and peace registered by several military organizations all over the world has for a long time depended on leadership, training, personnel and technology or an integration of some or all the factors (Biddle, 2004). Most recently, the idea of culture and attitude has been added to the initial variables and it is proving to be very promising as far as improving the learning and training efficacy in the military organizations. While military culture is used as a way of enforcing strict discipline, maintaining the hierarchical structure, adhering to a particular way of thinking and conducting day to day activities according to values, there is no enough literature that validates its effectiveness.
Human resource development cultural program consists of a set of experiences and ideas as well as methods that the military should be exposed to in order to have efficacy in their day-to-day operations and during war. The program is structured in a way that it realizes its objectives within a given time frame. Studies in culture of the military field have shown several practices and principles. These include: use of limited force during war, effects of institutional growth in military units, impact on doctrine, impediments to military innovation, implications for development of leaders, ramifications of insubordination, effect on learning abilities of military organization and the source of disagreements with provincial reconstruction teams (Legro, 1995). Despite the extensive literature on military culture, the application of the term has always been underutilized and is yet to attain its potential in promoting positive attitude and improving learning abilities. The program targets all individuals in the military and is structured in a way that different cadres in the military have varying learning objectives. In the event of execution, the program uses a variety of methods to ensure that learning is made easy and interactive. Objectives that are used in the sub-sections the contents are specific, measurable, achievable, and realistic and time bound. The program endeavors to change most of the aspects of the military culture so that full potential of the military can be realized.
Human resource development program has several objectives: firstly, it provides new employee orientation. Human resource development programs ensure that new employees get the tools and information they need to be successful on the job. This includes presentations on company history and its strategic objectives, organizational structure and job-specific policies and procedures. By providing instruction on how to complete operational tasks such as sending email, setting up and attending meetings or submitting status reports, this overview information allows new employees to minimize the time it takes to function effectively. Turning to culture, the new employee orientation ensures that the military personnel properly and efficiently use the communication systems and the new technology. Military has had a culture of stagnation and conservativeness thus introducing new methods and techniques of performing duties is greatly recommended.
Secondly, human resource development helps employees to progress in their careers. Career development programs help ensure employee retention, saving the company the money it costs to recruit, interview, hire and train new staff. By providing opportunities for employees to register for courses, obtain reference and resource material, access online training and get the coaching and mentoring they need to advance in their careers, human resource development organizations help employees improve their skills and knowledge. By clearly defining job descriptions and associated competencies, Human resource professionals let employees know what they need to work on in order to get a promotion, secure a new role or advance into management. By encouraging employees to align their development objectives with the company’s strategic goals, human resource professionals ensure that all development supports the company’s mission. In the military environment where the best is required for the sake of winning wars and employing the best tactics, human resource development should be a regular practice. This is important more so when it comes to the changing of military culture. Lastly, human resource development serves the purpose of identifying performance gaps. Human resource development professionals help managers develop long-range plans. By assessing the skills of existing staff, these professionals help identify performance gaps and design programs to mitigate those issues. For example, if the company seeks to decrease product defects, increase customer satisfaction and eliminate waste, but employees lack skills in process improvement, Human resource development professionals need to purchase or develop programs that develop skills in quality management. By enabling employees to get certified as Six Sigma professionals, human resource development teams contribute to the company’s growth and sustainability. They also implement initiatives, such as diversity training and coaching or mentoring programs, to ensure that employees share their knowledge and experience to function effectively as a team (Craig, 1996). This enables employees to achieve strategic goals.
Second, there is improved learning capacity and employee performance. Patricia McLagan (1983) defines human resource development as "the integrated use of training and development, career development and organizational development to improve individual and organizational effectiveness." According to this and related definitions, the main focus of HRD lies in improving the capabilities of employees and training. Organizations that focus on training and improving the skills, attitudes, values, knowledge and perspectives of their workforce are likely to retain employees that contribute it to the benefit of the organization and utilize their full potential for its success. Swart et al. (2005) asserts that human resource development activities reduces staff turnover by 7.05 percent yearly.
Third, employees who undergo human resource development experience general effectiveness. This in turn makes the organization to be effective. According to C. S. Lakshmi (2005) human resource development increases organizational effectiveness; Trained and talented workers contribute directly to the success of an organization. Human resource development stresses on continually improving the competencies and motivating, effectiveness and dynamism and of its employees; developing problem solving skills and positive attitudes; upgrading collective and individual experience, perceptions and knowledge; and improving their competitive skills. These and related activities fine-tune workers to integrate and align their personal goals with company goals.
Lastly, military staffs that undergo the process of human resource development usually depict increased involvement and communication. Juani Swart et al. (2005), asserts that human resource development improves employee involvement and intra-organizational communication. Human resource development practices focus on continually improving the culture of organizations and measuring, improving involvement, enhancing teamwork and participation activities.
The military can be trained using different methods and techniques depending on the nature of the training and the resources available. These methods may include:
Simulators. These are used to copy real work experiences. Many of the simulators are quiet expensive but are indispensable for jobs like learning to fly a 747 airplane. The training of astronauts also involves a wide use of simulators to copy the challenges and gravitational changes experienced on a space tour. Similarly the military can also use video games, especially those that train people on driving and shooting for training of soldiers.
On-The-Job Training. Sometimes training experts recommend that one train through undergoing the actual experience or meeting the real challenge. Some of the examples of on-the-job training include reading a manual – which is quite boring, but intense way of acquiring knowledge about a task. On-the-job training involves a combination of observation, explanation and practice. Some parts of the military training is always done as apprenticeship where they train by doing the actual activity. These may include understanding some instructions during the war or how to understand the techniques used by an enemy.
Coaching/Mentoring. This provides the employees with an opportunity to get training one-on-one from professional. Caching/mentoring method is normally done after the employees have been taken through a more formal process aimed at expanding their knowledge. In the military environment coaching is appropriate and effective when there is a formal coaching program between officials at a higher rank and their immediate juniors. Coaching/mentoring provides trainees with an opportunity to ask questions and receive detailed and straight forward answers - something they may not receive in a learning environment with a large group of learners.
Lectures. This method of human resource development is usually done in a classroom-format. The main advantage of lecture method is that large chunks of information can be disseminated to a lot of people within a short period of time. It has been said to be the least effective of all training methods. Lecture method is characterized by one way movement of information and in most cases there is no interaction between the trainer and the trainee. It is also known to be quite boring. R...