HRM0092-1

TEACHING NOTE

Training & Development Effectiveness at Big Bazaar

CASE SYNOPSIS
The case describes the Training & Development process at Big Bazaar aimed at improving the
level of performance of its employees by overcoming the emerging challenges as a new entrant in
the market. It captures the various methods of training and development along with the framework
used by Big Bazaar. Big Bazaar realized that customers were not happy with the response they
received from employees at the stores. To provide training to the employees, a systematic process
was carried out by the Human Resource Department. Identification of training needs was
important from both the organizational as well as the individual’s point of view. Big Bazaar laid
out a detailed process for the training and development of its employees. The programs like Zonal
office training and in-store training helped the employees to evolve and had a positive impact on
the company’s productivity and profitability as a whole through methods like coaching, mentoring
and on-the job training.

TARGET AUDIENCE
The case has covered various issues related to the subject matter of Talent Management,
Effectiveness of training programs, and Customer relationship management. It is intended to help
students understand the various training and development concepts. This case can be useful for
different segments including students of undergraduate, postgraduate management programs, and
executives working in the organization.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

 Understand the importance of Training & Development programs and customer relationship
management to succeeding in business
 Identify the Training needs of employees at Big Bazaar
 Understand the different types Training methods at Big Bazaar
 Study the Training process at Big Bazaar

TEACHING STRATEGY
The case should be distributed prior to the case discussion in the class so that the students will have a
better understanding and the discussion will be more productive. The case can be used while
discussing the concepts of training & development and customer relationship management. The
concepts can be thoroughly addressed through the case and by way of a group discussion. Readers
will be able to put forward their point of view and can evaluate it in light of real-life issues.

This teaching note was written by Niraj Kishore Chimote and Anugya Rakesh Jain, under the direction of Sanjib Dutta, IBS Hyderabad. It is only an
illustrative orchestration of the case study “Training & Development Effectiveness at Big Bazaar”. It is never meant to limit the learning outcomes.
© 2021, IBSCDC.
No part of this publication may be copied, stored, transmitted, reproduced or distributed in any form or medium whatsoever without the permission of
the copyright owner.
Teaching Note: Training & Development Effectiveness at Big Bazaar

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1. Comment on Big Bazaar’s Training & Development Program.
2. In light of the case, discuss the various pros and cons associated with a training &
development program.
3. Discuss Big Bazaar’s Training and Development program in light of The Kirkpatrick
Evaluation Model

ANALYSIS
1. Comment on Big Bazaar’s Training & Development Program.
A. Big Bazaar rolled out an effective training and development program after realizing that its
services were not providing quality to its customers. To fulfil the demands of its customers and
to come up with the desired level of performance, Big Bazaar conducted training &
development programs on the basis of the Kirkpatrick Model by doing the Training Need
Analysis for all of its employees band-wise. Different methods and types of training are
discussed in the case. Big Bazaar also focused on the development of a framework for training
and development and harnessing their abilities, technical sales/customer service and
managerial skills to its employees. The company’s policies were also directed at providing
support to the employees so that they could take care of their families and stay engaged in their
jobs and perform better.
2. In light of the case, discuss the various pros and cons associated with a training &
development program.
A. Pros of developing a Training & Development program:
 The emphasis is on store management and the band-wise training need of each Big Bazaar
employee
 Better training can reduce long-term staffing costs for Big Bazaar
 Training brings everyone onto the same page and gives opportunities to employees to
build a team
 Big Bazaar has a separate section dealing with product returns. Returns policy guidelines
also form a major part of the training program
Cons of developing a training & Development program:
 Big Bazaar must factor in additional expenditure for individual training programs across
bands
 The cost of training is expected to go up as it involves multiple training programs rolled
out every year or the same training program being repeated
 Ineffective training creates ineffective results and may not achieve the desired outcome
3. Discuss Big Bazaar’s Training and Development program in light of The Kirkpatrick
Evaluation Model
A. Training Evaluation Model - Kirkpatrick Model: The Kirkpatrick Evaluation Model was
created by Donald Kirkpatrick, Ph.D., to define the four levels of training evaluation. The four
levels are Reaction, Learning, Behavior, and Result. Each of the four levels is explained here:
Level 1 – Reaction: Level 1 solicits opinions of the participants on the learning experience
following a training event or course. Typical questions concern the degree to which the
experience was valuable (satisfaction), whether they felt engaged, and whether they felt the
training was relevant.

2
Teaching Note: Training & Development Effectiveness at Big Bazaar

Level 2 – Learning: Level 2 measures the degree to which the participants acquired the
intended knowledge, skills, and attitudes as a result of the training.
Level 3 – Behaviour: Level 3 measures the degree to which participants’ behaviours change as
a result of the training – basically, whether the knowledge and skills from the training are
being applied on the job. This measurement can be, but is not necessarily, a reflection of
whether participants actually learned the subject material.
Level 4 – Results: Level 4 seeks to determine the tangible results of the training such as:
reduced cost, improved quality and efficiency, increased productivity, employee retention,
increased sales, and higher morale.
Figure: The Four Levels of Training Evaluation

Level 4: Results To what degree targeted outcomes occur, as a result of the learning
event(s) and subsequent reinforcement.
Level 3: Behavior To what degree participants apply what they learned during training
when they are back on the job.
Level 2: Learning To what degree participants acquire the intended knowledge, skills,
and attitudes based on their participation in the learning event.
Level 1: Reaction To what degree participants react favorably to the learning event.
Source - Kirkpatrick, Donald. and James. 2008. Evaluating training programs, Tata McGraw-Hill
publishing company limited. 3rd edition
An attempt was made to achieve these levels by administering a questionnaire survey on Big
Bazaar employees including questions on all four levels of Kirkpatrick model of training
effectiveness.
Factor Analysis: KMO and Bartlett’s Test

Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. 0.634

Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 135.199
df 21.000
Sig. 0.000

The Kaiser- Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of Sampling Adequacy is found to be 0.634, which
indicates that factor analysis is appropriate.
(Varimax) Rotated Component Matrix

Component
1 2
Facilities 0.570 -0.39
Subject 0.480 0.616
Ot Of 0.579 0.081
Contenty 0.795 -0.06
Confident 0.070 -0.67
Boost 0.128 0.020
Useful -0.11 0.682

3
Teaching Note: Training & Development Effectiveness at Big Bazaar

Summary Table of Factors

Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 1: The following are the variables (Item
numbers 1, 2, 5, 6 and 7 from the Questionnaire) that
Facilities Subject have the highest loading on factor 1 after rotation.
Confident Useful This factor has been named as Official Factors as all
Content the variables are related to the workplace.
OTOF (online & offline) Factor 2: The following are the variables (Item
Numbers 3, and 4 from the Questionnaire) that have
Boost
the highest loading on factor 2 after rotation. This
factor has been named as Other Factors.
Regression: Model Summary
Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate
1 0.402 0.561 0.607 0.49649

R2 – Coefficient of Determination, shows the dependency of variables that can be predicted

F-test - ANOVA
Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
1 Regression 2.181 3 0.727 2.949 0.042
Residual 11.339 46 0.247
Total 13.520 49

It can be concluded from the above tables that null hypothesis can be rejected and thus Y
depends on at least one of the Fi’s.
Inference about an individual slope (β)
Null Hypothesis: Fi is not a significant explanatory variable i.e H0: βi=0
Alternate Hypothesis: Fi is a significant explanatory variable i.e H 1: βi ≠0

Regression Coefficients
Unstandardized Standardized
Model Coefficients Coefficients t Sig.
B Std. Error Beta
1 (Constant) 2.323 0.95 42.429 0.01
REGR factor score 1 for
0.259 0.09 0.368 2.694 0.01
analysis 1 – Official Factors
REGR factor score 2 for
0.190 0.13 0.197 1.441 0.15
analysis 1- Others Factors

The regression equation is found to be:

Y= 2.323 + 0.259 F1
It can be concluded from the above tables that null hypothesis can be rejected and F1, is
significant explanatory variable.
Effectiveness of training evaluation decision depends on the variables F1 (Official Factors) as
mentioned above. The coefficient of (multiple) determination (R2) is 0.561 and the F-ratio is
found to be 2.949, which is significant. Thus, one can conclude that regression model is

4
Teaching Note: Training & Development Effectiveness at Big Bazaar

significant to explain the effectiveness of training evaluation at Big Bazaar. It was also found
that the factor 2 which was named as other factors was found to be insignificant by the
employees of Big Bazaar during the training programs.
Questionnaire
On a scale of (1) Strongly disagree (2) Disagree (3) Neither agree nor disagree (4)
Agree (5) Strongly agree, please circle (O) the appropriate rating.
1. Training goals and objectives clearly stated before you started the
1234 5
course.
2. The instructors were well prepared and were effective
1234 5
communicators.
3. Time allocated was sufficient to cover all topics. 1234 5
4. The subject covered in the program were relevant to my job. 1234 5
5. The facilities in the training program were appropriate. 1234 5
6. Online training is more effective than offline training. 1234 5
7. You become more confident in similar tasks after training. 1234 5
8. The course’s content was too challenging for you to understand. 1234 5
9. Learning in training is useful for you and your organization. 1234 5
10. Training has boosted your morale and increased retention period in
1234 5
the company.

Suggested Readings and References:

1. Dessler, Gary. 2005. Human Resource Management. Pearson Education. 9th edition: Pp

226.
2. Kirkpatrick, Donald. and James. 2008. Evaluating Training Programs, Tata McGraw-
Hill publishing company limited. 3rd edition.
3. Levin, Richard. and Rubin. 2002. Statistics for Management. Prentice Hall of India
Private Limited. 7th edition: Pp: 468-470,568-569, 728.
4. Armstrong, Michael. 2008. A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice.
Philadelphia, Kogan Page. 10th edition. Pp 575.
5. Cole, N. 2007. How long should a training program be? A field study of “rules-of- thumb”.
Journal of Workplace Learning, 20 (1), 54-70.
6. Bhattacharyya, Dipak Kumar.2007. Human Resource Research Methods. Oxford
University Press. 1st edition. Pp: 258.