Running Head: EMPLOYEE TRAINING PROGRAM 1

Developing a Training Program for an Organization

Name

University

Lecturer
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Introduction

Human resource management refers to the process of managing the workforce through

employing, training, compensation, developing of policies that relates to them and also coming

up with strategies which guarantees retention. A major role in human resource management is

training of employees. This ensures effective performance, economic growth and also optimizes

employees’ contribution to organization goals. With increased globalization, organizations need

to embrace cultures which encourage curiosity, learning and knowledge sharing. Training refers

to activities involving transfer or modification of skills, knowledge and attitude of employees

through a learning process. Employees require training for various reasons which include

maintaining competence as well as meeting the demands of a changing business environment

such as technology and new business approaches. Designing a training program involves doing a

training needs assessment, defining the training objectives of the program and also creating and

implementing the training program. This paper will provide an overview of designing a training

program through analysis of training program adopted by Fujitsu, while providing

recommendations based on the approaches and learning objectives.

Framework Development of a Training Program

Training is an activity that needs to be planned in advance and developed in such a way

that it fulfils the needs of both the organization and the employees. As such, there are a number

of considerations that need to be observed. The first thing is assessing the needs and learning

objectives of the training program. This framework involves finding out the kind of training

needed for the organization and its staff. This helps in setting up the learning objectives which

are measurable by the end of the training program. Needs assessment is done on three levels

which are organization, occupation as well as individual level of assessment[ CITATION Uni11 \l
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1033 ]. Organizational level determines the kind of skills and knowledge the company needs in

order to fulfil its goals. Occupational level determines the kinds of skills needed to accomplish

certain tasks, while individual level looks at an individual and the training needed for better

performance.

Once the training is determined, there should be learning objectives for the training. This

involves what the learner needs to do, demonstrate or explain by the end of their training.

Examples of learning objectives include to be able to take customer order, to demonstrate an

understanding on how to use finance software or to explain ethics when handling conflicts. Once

the objectives are set, the next process is finding out the best learning style which will best

accomplish the stated objectives. Learning styles can either be visual, auditory or

kinesthetic[ CITATION Uni11 \l 1033 ]. Visual learner usually learns better by seeing something,

auditory learners are better at listening while kinesthetic learners use feelings to learn, hence, are

better at learning through doing an action.

Determining a learning style will help in the next step which is choosing the delivery

mode of the training. This is the core of the whole training program because it is the actual

learning process. Such an example is, sexual harassment may be done better through web-based

training, while orientation may be better through mentorship or On-the-job coaching. Other

important considerations when choosing a delivery mode is the audience as well as the budget.

Learning does not need to be through one mode, for instance, PowerPoint, but rather look into

the best way to deliver what is needed. It can involve a variety of learning methods such as

discussion groups, activities and icebreakers. If it is an on-job training, it can involve mentorship

and job swapping or job shadowing.

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The final framework is measuring the effectiveness to ensure that the stated objectives

were met. Effectiveness can be measured by Kirkpatrick model which has four levels[ CITATION

Uni11 \l 1033 ]. Reaction level refers to how the participants reacted to the training program.

Learning is the impact of the learning program to their skills and knowledge. Behavior involves

finding out if there was any behavior change as a result of the program. The final level is the

results of the training to the organization. It is important to review employee performance for

both who received the training and also those who did not receive the training to be able to

compare and measure the benefits.

Case Study of Fujitsu

Company Overview

As discussed, organization transformation requires training so that employees can be

better skilled at the new business approach that is being introduced. Fujitsu is a Japanese

multinational company which deals with information technology equipment, products, solutions

as well as services. Its headquarters are based in Tokyo. It was ranked as the 4th largest IT

Company in provision of IT services in 2018. The training needs for the company came as a

result of business integration issue. Fujitsu SSL provides IT solutions and system integration to

large corporates through two separate units, namely, system integration and solutions.

With the evolution of the IT world, however, the two service lines could not continue

existing as separate departments and had to be integrated and work together in order to meet the

needs of the clients. This, therefore, called for change in the organization. The challenge was not

just about the need for training, but also ensuring that a seamless change occurred across the

whole organization such that everyone performed well while the organization achieved its

goal[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. They therefore settled for a peer coaching program because it
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ensured managers were brought together in learning new skills which was relevant to the

transition while it strengthened relationships and common understanding.

Training Program

The training program that was used to accomplish this task was peer coaching. This

refers to a confidential training process whereby two or more employees work together to

analyze current organization practices and reflect on where they can expand, refine or build

better skills[ CITATION Ver20 \l 1033 ]. During this process, the colleagues teach each other, share

their ideas and also conduct research on how to solve various problems in the work place. Peer

coaching is a powerful tool of learning and development. It also ensures better employee

engagement and team work[ CITATION Ful14 \l 1033 ]. One of the main benefits of peer coaching is

that it provides individuals with a 360 degree view of how they are performing. It also empowers

employees to learn and acquire new skills as they work with their peers. In addition, it boosts

leadership skills as individuals gain confidence in explaining and directing one another to do

various tasks.

Peer coaching was applied on a large scale and for an extended period at Fujitsu. The

business objective of the company was to enhance alignment between the systems integration

and solutions group. The training program of Fujitsu was developed by Professor Henry

Mintzberg, who is one of the most cited professors in management. In an effort to create a

method that would develop better managers, he launched the International Master’s Program for

Managers (IMPM), from which the peer coaching method was developed, named, ‘coaching

ourselves’. In this approach, leaders met in small groups for 90 minutes two times a month so

that they could learn from one another. These were called learning meetings rather than planning

for normal managers’ meetings. The managers would proceed to work together by covering
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topics such as ‘sources of motivation’ or ‘becoming a visionary leader’[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ].

Fujitsu thereby viewed this method as the best way for their managers to develop skills through

such kind of interaction in the context of their business model and proposed changes. More

importantly, such discussions could enhance relationships, trust and understanding within the

organization.

In most companies, peer coaching is more accepted and respected as compared to using

outsiders to come to the organization and coach employees. An example of a company that has

been using peer coaching is Microsoft which uses the method for both college hire and high

potential programs. According to one of the managers who runs the program, the millennial

generation is better at peer coaching because they are not intimidated by the approach[ CITATION

Ful14 \l 1033 ]. The use of structured peer coaching provides a platform for learning and feedback

beyond certain education programs. The participants are given an opportunity to share what they

are working on in Microsoft as well as their career and working experience.

The most common topics in peer coaching are career advancement, managing up,

handling difficult team members and strategic influence. It should be noted that peer coachers do

not necessarily need to have the same skills or even use the same techniques as experienced or

professional coaches. What they need is guidance and techniques which are simple and

understandable[ CITATION Ver20 \l 1033 ]. Despite this, they need to develop a mindset for peer

coaching so that they can maintain the basic principles of coaching. An outside professional

coach is needed frequently in order to assist in guidance, especially during the first few sessions

of peer coaching.

Methods Used
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The main objective of the training program was for managers to work together in

providing a long term solutions and seamless integration to the anticipated business changes in

the organization. The main part of the change intervention was for the managers to work together

in teams through weekly peer coaching meetings[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. The weekly meetings

increased the intensity of the training program to indicate the urgency of business objectives that

needed to be achieved. Within 9 months, the teams had attended a total of thirty peer coaching

sessions.

The peer coaching program was developed by a Tokyo consultancy referred to as J-Feel.

The facilitation was not very interactive[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. This is because peer coaching is

not like traditional training or coaching methods whereby the facilitator talks to the audience or

relays information to them. The purpose of the facilitator is to ensure that all the groups involved

are moving in the right direction and that they are utilizing the materials provided in the right

manner. An observation at a peer coaching session will ascertain that it is more of a problem

solving activity rather than a classroom.

The prepared topics were discussed as they presented the team members with ideas as

well as questions to tackle. In addition, they drew on individual experience while sharing what

they felt was relevant to the main issue. This ensured that their learning and understanding was

consolidated from peers, while at the same time, were able to learn about the work challenges

that their peers were facing[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. By the end of it all, all the managers came up

with a strategy to ensure simulation of both departments while ensuring that members of staff

were also integrated into the new changes.

Assessment of the Impact of the Peer Coaching Program

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Since the training program approach was wide and took a long duration, it was easy to do

an analysis of the impact of the program to both the organization and the employees. From the

findings, the program was a success and touched various departments positively. It was noted

that the departments which had higher participation reported higher profits. During the program,

each department was required to send some managers for the program. Some departments sent

many managers while other departments sent few managers[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. The

department profits versus the participation rate indicated that there is a correlation between peer

coaching and business profitability.

With increased overall participation of peer coaching in the organization, the revenue and

profits also increased. Fujitsu continued with the program over the course of nine years, with a

steady increase in participation. The overall revenue and profits of the organization increased

while organization transformation goals were achieved. The managers also provided their

feedback on the program stating that it was very valuable[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. Peer coaching

is a new learning approach and were particularly impressed with modules which were centered

on reflection. Furthermore, it was noted that from an individual’s perspective, the managers who

participated in the training program improved on their performance. Most of them admitted to

gaining new skills, knowledge and insights due to the interaction with other managers.

The peer coaching program participation is linked to enhancement in various engagement

measures assessments. With increased participation in peer coaching, a positive score was noted

on various engagement surveys especially in terms of cross-functional communication and

teamwork[ CITATION Iij19 \l 1033 ]. From this case study, it can be noted that peer coaching has a

meaningful impact and drives organizational success. The training is a wise investment and goes

a long way in ensuring a smooth organizational transformation.

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Recommendation

Peer coaching is not just a training tool, but it can be a very powerful tool that drives

organizational success[ CITATION She15 \l 1033 ]. The learning in peer coaching is not an

individual knowledge acquisition, but rather, a process of interaction which involves employees

and the organization as a whole. Therefore, this means that the organization has more to gain

from peer coaching. This would be the best method to use because it focuses on a problem

solving tactic through interacting with peers. It involves sharing of ideas about the organization,

reviewing processes and there is need to change certain things. In addition, unlike mentorship or

normal classroom training, peer coaching is interactive and less intimidating. It allows

individuals to express themselves.

The ability for peer pressure to run over a long period of time also presents it with an

advantage against other training methods. This is because peer coaching can be done after every

two weeks or monthly over a long period of time. Moreover, it is easier to change the face of the

organization through peer coaching while driving it to success because the sessions act as

meetings on how to move the company forward[ CITATION Man12 \l 1033 ]. It is difficult for peer

coaching to be monotonous or boring to employees because of its interactive nature. It is also

much easier to measure its success as compared to other methods.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it can be noted that training is a very important aspect of human resource

management in every organization. It ensures improved performance, low employee turnover,

learning and increased profits for the organization. When coming up with a training program, it

is necessary to take into consideration various steps to ensure its success. These are, assessing

the needs of the training program, creating learning objectives, finding out the best learning
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style, choosing the appropriate method of delivering the training, for instance, coaching, on-job

training, classroom or mentorship, come up with a budget, doing the training itself, and finally,

assessing the impact of the training to the employees and the organization as a whole. The case

study analyzed has highlighted the importance of instituting a training program. The company

selected is Fujitsu which adopted a peer coaching method of training its personnel. The purpose

of the training was to ensure seamless assimilation of systems integration and IT solutions. Peer

coaching involves confidential training process whereby two or more employees work together

to analyze current organization practices and reflect on where they can expand, refine or build

better skills. This was done by top managers as they interacted in order to find out how to best

ensure that both the organization and employees adopted the new business approach. The method

was quite effective as it reported a positive correlation between participation and higher

profitability.
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References

Fulmer, R. M., & Brock, J. E. (2014). Developing Peer Coaching. Graziadio Business Review,

17(2).

Iijima, K., & Senda, K. (2019). Fujitsu’s Experiment with Peer Coaching Pays Off. Retrieved

from https://trainingindustry.com/magazine/sep-oct-2019/fujitsus-experiment-with-peer-

coaching-pays-off/

Management Science for Health. (2012). Designing and Implementing Training Programs.

Retrieved from https://www.msh.org/sites/msh.org/files/mds3-ch52-training-mar2012.pdf

Sherwani, K. H., & Mohammed, N. H. (2015). An analysis of training and employee

performance: A case study of a telecommunication company in Erbil. International

Journal of Social Sciences & Educational Studies, 2(2), 74-85.

University of Minnesota. (2011). Designing a Training Program. Retrieved from

https://open.lib.umn.edu/humanresourcemanagement/chapter/8-4-designing-a-training-

program/

Verlinden, N. (2020). What is peer coaching? A definition. Retrieved from

https://www.digitalhrtech.com/peer-coaching/