Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance
Introduction
Working in an organization in today’s tough
business environment is not as easy as it
used to be in previous years. There have
been quite some intriguing changes in the
way organizations carried out their business.
Previously the focus of the business was
somewhat whole heartedly devoted to get
profit and to keep on maximizing it. Then
the approached changed and customers were
given preference for they were thought to be
the backbone of the business. But over time
another perspective has been brought in to
the spectrum of competitive business and
this new approach is about giving value and
consideration to the employees. Catering the
needs of employees is now considered one
of the primary constituents of a business. It
is because taking care of employees interests
has farfetched effects on the outcomes of the
business. Healthy relations with employees
and taking into consideration their priorities
lets the organizations have their
commitment and willingness to be of use.
There is quite a no. of promising factors that
help to get the employees motivated and to
streamline their efforts for the betterment of
the organization. Some of these convincing
factors are compensation, proper incentive
plans, fringe benefits etc. But one of the
most proper ways to induce a sense of
urgency in the employees and to let them
know that they are valued at the
organization is to subject them to some
proper training and development, having
been trained and being given the opportunity
to grow in the organization by development
options is the right of the employees. What
1 Human Resource Development
really matters is the extent to which
employees lean the contents of the training
material and to apply it effectively in the
organizational work setting. It has become a
sort of tool for measuring the conformance
of the organizations whether they are
subjected to take care of the employees or
not. If they are arranging for proper training
opportunities then it means that employees
are being given importance and that they
will commit their efforts for the greater good
of the organization. If the case is vice verse
then the consequences might be devastating
like employee dissatisfaction, greater
turnover and so on. So it is proposed for the
organizations to arrange for proper training
and development opportunities for the
employees. The costs encored for doing so
might be huge but their impact is of equal
magnitude. So this will be the focus in this
paper. There will be discussed ways of
arranging proper training environment for
the employees and to discuss what happens
if the organizations fail to understand the
importance of this phenomenon.
Literature Review
Carrying out training programs are not just
important for infusing desired competitive
attributes in the employees but it is also an
important way of carrying out performance
management mechanism. By providing
training to the employees, care is taken that
the desired motives are achieved and
effectively implemented on the work setting.
This not only helps in maximizing the
aftermaths of the training program but also
help to assess the performance of the
 Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance
employees and to evaluate whether they
have been up to the required mark or not.
According to human resource specialists,
one of the most important means of
improving employees’ performance is to
provide them training. Provision of training
is not only supposed to bring into the
employees a sense of performing better but
it is also sort of a touch stone which acts as
an evaluation tool ( Bonnie Eleve,
University of Maryland University College).
It is because the sole motive of training is to
let the employees learn an advanced way of
doing things and to successfully implement
them in the organizational context. So as
long as employees don’t learn the desired
objectives of the training program the
motives will not be achieved thus eventually
resulting in poor performance of employees
and so on. It is also a fact that organizations
which employ training and development
programs should tailor these programs to not
only assist the upper management in
achieving the desired state for the company
but these training programs should also
foster the needs of the employees. Some of
the important gains of such companies can
be increased productivity, particularly in
areas such as sales, customer services and
IT, also improvement in retention rate, and
higher levels of personal job satisfaction
(Baldwin-Evans, 2007). Now it can be well
imagined that the attainment of these
artifacts will assist the organizations to not
only maximize their profits but also to give
room to their employees to get better and to
work more vigorously. It is because getting
the training modules help the employees to
work more efficiently, it helps them to refine
2 Human Resource Development
the ways they perform their duties and also
to keep on getting better by being responsive
to all the latest trends. All of this is possible
because of the development potential that is
present in the training program. It is true that
training is seen as a challenge in the
organizations. Employees consider the
training as a threat and as a way of
undermining their performance but once
they are inside it, they come to know of its
potential attributes. Organizations now a
day’s see training as a mean to
institutionalize the desired change behavior
in the employees. (Kumpikaite and
Ciarniene, 2008). One logic for this behavior
is that by getting training the knowledge or
skills of the employees get better. Once this
is done, employees are performing with new
learnt behaviors thus making it easy for
them to respond to organizational demands.
Here it should be kept in mind that training
is specifically meant to help the employees
improve their performance on their jobs they
are performing while development is meant
to help the employees learn the behaviors
that will help them to respond to the
demands of some future jobs and endeavors.
Development also enables the employees to
learn about any new change brought unto
them by any new technology, work design,
products or customers. So its now proven
that by subjecting the employees to training
and development the organization become
able to fine tune their performance not only
for the current jobs they are undertaking, but
also it is easy for the top management to
make sure that in future when a place is
filled in by a personal he or she will be
 Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance
already equipped with what it takes to
perform that job finely and efficiently.
In context of the training one thing should
be kept in mind that just providing the
training and designing different modules of
training does not always work. This
phenomenon not only works in inter
organizational context but in intra
organizational context. Even two
departments of an organization can react
variably to a designed training program. So
where does the difference lie? Why is it so
that one organization gets huge benefits
from the training module and the other gets
negative or low returns on investment for
the training programs.
The answer for this question lies in the way
the training program is designed. The better
an organization organizes, plans,
implements, follows up and supports the
desired training module the greater will be
the return on investment and more will be
the benefits reaped from these training
programs.
All things done, the questions then arises
that how are we supposed to evaluate the
results of the training and measure its
outcomes? One perspective that is supposed
to be associated with the outcomes of the
training is refined capabilities or the ability
to perform. A good managerial skills course,
for example, can increase the managers’
skills and knowledge related to key
supervisory tasks, such as coaching, or
resolving conflict. But this is capability
only, not yet value or results. The value
3 Human Resource Development
from this training comes when capability is
transformed into improved job performance,
when the newly trainer supervisor effective
uses the new skills in important situations.
Training that is well learned, but never used,
or poorly used, produces no value for the
business that invested in the training. This
issue is, in a nutshell, the challenge for
increasing the return on training investments
(Robert O. Brinkerhoff, Western Michigan
University, 2006) It is true because as it has
been mentioned earlier that if the employees
learn the desired attributes of the intended
training program but are not yet able to
implement the learnt behaviors in the actual
organizational work setting it will be of no
use. Impact from training is a function of a
high quality training intervention that
operates in conjunction with a healthy,
aligned and integrated set of performance
system factors. The principal requirement
for the training program is that it must
efficiently and effectively help participants
acquire new and robust skills and knowledge
that are important for adopting new job
behaviors or improving effectiveness of
current job behaviors. Imagine, for example,
an organization that is implementing new
software systems as part of an effort to
provide more effective customer service. In
this example, training in the new software
must help participants fully understand the
features of the new system and it must help
them master certain skills in using the
system to effectively complete certain key
job tasks.
Another thing that should also be kept in
mind is that it must be very clear to point out
all the stake holders of the training programs
or identifying all the parties who are
involved in the transition and who are going
to get the benefits. It is because that by
doing so it becomes clear that whose role is
what, what is expected from all parties and
 Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance
in case of failure who will be held
responsibly and who will act to eradicate the
problem. We all think we know what we,
and others, mean when they talk about
learning, teaching, development, training,
coaching, mentoring, teamwork, feedback
and talent – but do we?
And where does one end and the other begin
and how do they interrelate? Are some of
them interchangeable? And what about that
relative newcomer ‘‘lifelong learning’’?
Where does that fit into the picture? If you
are a puzzled boss, not knowing the best
way to acquire, keep, develop and profit
from a trained, knowledgeable, skilled and
intelligent workforce, the fact that you
recognize there are questions and answers
puts you well on the road to finding the right
answers for your organization. It is the
bosses who are stuck in a mindset that
training should be left to the trainers and its
impact on the company will take care of
itself who will get caught out
(DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING IN
ORGANIZATIONS, 2006). As discussed
above, when all the proponents of the
training program are very much clear about
their respective roles in the training program
then it becomes very much easy to follow up
and to work for any anomalies and to sort
them out.
First things first, so far the importance of
training programs has been discussed and it
is clear that just applying training programs
is not enough but a proper planning,
organizing and follow up should be there.
Yet it is subjected to failure and limitations.
Training programs still fail and there are
certain reasons for the anomaly. The
research indicates that this shortfall has
existed for decades and that it isn’t limited
to leadership development. It has become
known as the “transfer of training problem.”
4 Human Resource Development
Mosel (1957) reports “mounting evidence
that shows that very often the training makes
little or no difference in job behavior,”
concluding that skill mastery requires not
just training, but a workplace environment
that encourages using the skills: “rewards
and punishments, incentives and deterrents
in the job situation. One of the key problems
in this regard is the transfer of training. It
refers to implementing the desired behaviors
to be implemented successfully in the
organization. But what happens is that
employees do learn the new behaviors but
when the turn comes to implement these
new behaviors on the organizational work
setting it is hard for them to do so (Baldwin
and Ford, 1982). It might be due to many
reasons. One of them might be the
difference of the class room training with
the actual work setting. Although employees
perform well in the virtual environment in
front of the trainer but when it comes to
implement the learnt behavior in the work
setting the trainees find it intricate to
exercise these practices. One other reason
might be the lack of the top management as
discussed above that they delegate the task
to the trainers and think that it is their sole
duty to take care of the rest. Here arises the
conflict between the trainer and the
management. Another reason might be that
after the trainees learn new behavior and
implement them in the work setting, they
don’t get a positive reinforcement. As there
is no response from the top management it is
hard for the proponents of the training to
carry out the desired features of the training
any further. So implementation becomes
interrupted and nothing good happens to the
organization despite spending huge amount
of funds.
Transfer of training should thus be
considered essential for training
programmes to be effective and efficient,
 Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance
and intended return on investments in
training programmes will only be achieved
to the extent that training is transferred
It has often been argued that the workplace
itself could be a major force in hindering or
enhancing transfer ( Rouiller and Goldstein,
1993), and especially managers and
supervisors might play a crucial role in the
achievement of transfer of training. Support
from supervisors has
therefore been suggested to be one of the
most powerful tools of enhancing transfer of
training. The supervisor is mostly believed
to affect transfer outcomes directly, or
indirectly by means of the trainees’
motivation to transfer or different factors in
the transfer climate (Cromwell and Kolb,
2002). Brinkerhoff and Montesino (1995)
examined the transfer outcomes of some
training programmes on behavioural skills,
differing between trainees who received
experimentally-controlled support from
supervisors and trainees who did not receive
specific supervisor support. Trainees in the
experimental group not only achieved higher
transfer outcomes, but also mentioned fewer
transfer-inhibiting and more transfer-
facilitating factors in their work
.environment
While supervisor support does have a
positive effect on motivation to learn, it is
suggested that its positive effect on transfer
outcomes is merely indirect, by means of
motivation to learn. In other words, the
relationship between supervisor support and
transfer outcomes in this study depends at
least partly on trainees’ motivation to learn.
This implies that the effects of supervisor
support on transfer outcomes might not only
be direct, thus irrespective of other transfer-
influencing factors, but also indirect, in
which case supervisor support affects
5 Human Resource Development
transfer outcomes by means of its effect on
one or more other variables (Nijman, 2004).
Clearly, the development process needs to
continue well beyond the classroom. What’s
needed is an extension of these programs
into the workplace: a structured, supervised
framework for applying and reinforcing
desired skills over time. What’s needed is
for performance improvement to become a
routine aspect of work itself.
Another reason for the training program to
fail is the age factor (Emerald Group
Publishing Limited, 2006). Employers often
hesitate to offer their older employees the
opportunities for training considering certain
factors. These might be: employers do not
offer older workers the same opportunities
as their younger colleagues, and secondly,
that older workers themselves fail to take up
such opportunities due to low- or over-
confidence in their abilities. Older people
might lack confidence, If they lack
confidence, they can be reluctant to train
since they fear looking foolish. In essence,
they may doubt their ability to learn. A
problem that arises is the self-fulfilling cycle
such feelings create: if people have not been
involved in learning for some time, they
then tend to find it harder, which in turn
makes them more fearful about future
learning activities.
However, low confidence is not the only
barrier. It can be difficult to motivate older
or more experienced employees to engage in
training, unless they can be convinced that it
will have real value, since they may believe
that their length of experience discounts the
need for training. As a consequence of either
confidence barrier, it would seem that older
workers are less likely to identify their own
training needs.
 Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance
Whatever the matter may be, it is a fact that
if a training program is designed carefully,
keeping in consideration all the related
aspects which have a direct or indirect
impact on the employees, it can bring the
wonders. It can make the employees flexible
enough to respond to organizational needs
and to use their learnt expertise and
behaviors appropriately and effectively that
is the sole motive of designing a training
program.
Finally following are some suggestion tips
by following which organizations can ensure
that delivering training and development
meets its objectives.
Get the positioning right
Training and development must have a high
profile within the organization and be
integral to operation.
Analyse your target audience
Understand their training needs and develop
delivery mechanisms that will best meet
them.
Tailor training programmes
To job roles within the organization.Use
examples from the workplace to
demonstrate the applicability of the training.
Research is important before and after
training
Find out what employees hope to achieve
through the training, and after, to what
extent did the training meet these needs.
Feedback can help evolve training content
so it meets both the needs of the
organization and the participants.
Make sure people have the chance to use
their new skills
Align training with role
6 Human Resource Development
development to help employees find their
best position in the company.
Capitalise on in-house material resources
Multiple mechanisms of delivery allow you
to adapt to an individual’s learning
preferences.
Capitalise on in-house human resources
Experienced workers understand the
company’s expectations of quality and
performance as well as the nature of work.
In addition, workers who are developed to
lead training find the experience beneficial
and rewarding.
Conclusion
Finally having discussed the implications of
training and development it can be
concluded that a proper homework should
be done before undertaking the training
program because just designing a training
program is not enough. Training should be
tailored to the needs of the employees i.e. a
proper training need analysis is supposed to
be done. If done properly it will enable the
organization to implement the training out
comes for the benefit of all. But this is not
also enough. After catering the needs of the
employees and designing an appropriate
training program the need then arises to
transfer the learnt skills or behaviors to the
work setting. Training is an all time need of
the employees and it should not be denied to
them. Because if employees feel that they
are taken care of and that they are being
entrusted with the funds of the organization.
So it is legitimate for them to work
accordingly to the learning acquired over the
training. So training does bring the wonders
not just for the employees but for the
organization as a whole as well.
 Impact of Training and Development on Employees’
performance

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transfer of training”, Proceedings of the
Academy of Human Resource Development
2002 Conference, Academy of Human
Resource Development, Bowling Green,
OH, pp. 537-544.

8. Brinkerhoff, R.O. and Montesino, M.U.

(1995), “Partnerships for training transfer:
lessons from a corporate study”, Human
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No. 3, pp. 263-74.
References
9. Nijman, D.-J.J.M. (2004), “Supporting
transfer of training: effects of the
1. Brinkerhoff, Robert O, VOL. 38 NO. 6
2006, pp. 302-307 Western Michigan supervisor“, doctoral dissertation, University
University of Twente, Enschede.

2.Ciarniene and Kumpikaite, 2008 10. Emerald Group Publishing Limited,

(Reference with in reference, THE IMPACT
OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT by
Bonnie Eleve).
3. Baldwin-Evans, 2007
4. DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING IN
ORGANIZATIONS, 2006
5. Baldwin, Tim, and Kevin Ford. “Transfer
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Future Research,” Personnel Psychology
(May 1982), pp. 63-105
2006).
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Programs Fail to Carry Over,” Personnel
(1957), pp. 56- 64. (Baldwin and Ford,
1982. Reference with in reference, “When
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12. Bonnie Eleve, University of Maryland
University College.

6. Rouiller, J.Z. and Goldstein, I.L. (1993),

“The relationship between organizational
transfer climate and positive transfer of
training”, Human Resource Development
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7. Cromwell, S.E. and Kolb, J.A. (2002), in

Egan, T.M. and Lynham, S.A. (Eds), “The
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7 Human Resource Development