Every week, I review blogs that cover talent development to find the very best talent development posts. This week, you’ll find pointers to pieces about designing a training program, assessment tools, motivation, selecting new managers, and development.
From SmartBlog: Design a training program that works
“So, you’ve just hired someone — they have a great attitude and you’re feeling pretty good about yourself. What are your plans for training that new employee — not just orientation, but job skills training? Do you know what training they really need?”
Wally’s Comment: This guest post is by Arte Nathan, a veteran HR professional. It highlights the importance of doing training right. Nathan also thinks that using line managers and others from inside the company as trainers is a good idea.
“A recent survey from Kelly Services found that more than half of all Americans surveyed believe they would be more productive if they had greater interest in the companies that employ them, through benefits such as profit sharing. In previous posts, we’ve established the many benefits pay for performance programs provide when they are done well, but this survey helps to clarify who pay for performance matters to and why.”
Wally’s Comment: This issue fascinates me. We’ve known for decades that money is not a motivator, except for a brief period of time or a special set of circumstances. We know that money is a hygiene factor. That’s what Chris Argyris would call the “Theory Espoused.” The “Theory in Use” is quite different. We create programs that are pay for performance just as if the pay would motivate better performance.
From Great Leadership: Selection vs. Development Assessments
“This post is written for the everyday manager, HR manager, coach, or consultant that doesn’t have the time or interest to learn about validation, reliability, confirmatory factor analysis, correlation coefficients, and adverse impact. However, you’re using assessments, and you know just enough to be dangerous. Oh yeah, that pretty much describes me. Maybe you too.”
Wally’s Comment: Dan McCarthy uses common language to outline what you should know about how to use development assessments. He also tells you what not to do with them and why.
From Customer Think: Promoting Your Best Salesrep to Manager? Not So Fast
“The skills and traits for success in a sales management position overlap but are very different for success in a direct selling role. That means that if that salesrep, no matter how well they have performed, does not possess the specific skills and traits required for success in that management job, they are likely going to fail.”
Wally’s Comment: This isn’t just about salespeople and sales managers. In most companies these days we move individual contributors into a management position based on almost anything except what we know about what it takes to succeed in the new job. Hear me, ambitious souls! Being a sales manager is not a higher and better form of being a salesperson. It is a different kind of work.
From Open Forum: How to Use Projects to Develop Your Employees
“Nearly everyone loves a challenge, especially your best employees. I’m wagering that they want to contribute more, and guarantee that the most motivated hope to showcase their talents and develop their capabilities.”
Wally’s Comment: The things that make for success at work are mostly learned on the job. If a person only does their basic job, they only have a single source of learning. But projects can provide additional learning and development. They also give you additional ways to evaluate both performance and readiness for moving up.
