Approaches to Employee Development and the

Planning Process
By: Dr. Poonam Khurana

Development refers to formal education,

job experiences, relationships, and
assessments of personality and abilities

that help employees perform effectively in

their current or future job and company.

Approaches to Employee Development

Assessment

Formal
Education
Interpersonal
Relationships

Job
Experiences

Formal Education
Formal education programs include:
off-site and on-site programs designed specifically for the

companys employees
short courses offered by consultants or universities
executive MBA programs
university programs in which participants actually live at the
university while taking classes

Examples of development programs at GE

Program

Description

Target Audience

Courses

Executive
Development
Sequence

Emphasis on strategic
thinking, leadership,
cross-functional
integration, competing
globally, customer
satisfaction

Senior professionals and

executives identified as
high-potential

Manager Development
Global Business
Management
Executive Development

Core Leadership
Program

Development of functional
expertise, business
excellence, management
of change

Managers

Corporate Entry Leadership

Professional Development
New Manager Development
Experienced Manager

Professional
Development
Program

Emphasis on preparation
for specific career path

New Employees

Audit Staff
Financial Management
Human Resources
Technical Leadership

Important trends in executive education:

Increasing use of distance learning by many companies and

universities
Companies and the education provider create short, custom courses,
with content designed specifically to needs of the audience
Supplementing formal courses from consultants or university faculty
with other types of training and development activities

Assessment involves collecting

information and providing feedback
to employees about their behavior,
communication style, or skills

Assessment (continued)
Used most frequently to:
identify employees with managerial potential
measure current managers strengths and weaknesses
identify managers with potential to move into higher-level

executive positions
work with teams to identify members strengths and
weaknesses, and factors that inhibit productivity

Popular Assessment Tools

Myers-Briggs Type
Indicator
(MBTI)

Assessment Center

Benchmarks

Performance
Appraisals and
360-Degree Feedback
Systems

Assessment Tools: Myers-Briggs (MBTI)

Most popular psychological test for employee development
Used for understanding such things as:
communication
motivation
teamwork

work styles
leadership

Examples of MBTI Use:

Can be used by salespeople who want to become more

effective at interpersonal communication by learning things

about their own personality styles and the way they are
perceived by others
Can help develop teams by matching team members with
assignments that allow them to capitalize on their
preferences
Can help employees understand how the different
preferences can lead to useful problem solving

Assessment Tools: Assessment Center

The assessment center is a process in which multiple raters

or evaluators evaluate employees performance on a number

of exercises
usually held at an off-site location
used to identify if employees have the abilities, personality, and

behaviors for management jobs

used to identify if employees have the necessary skills to work
in teams

Examples of Skills Measured by Assessment Center

Exercises
EXERCISES
SKILLS

In-basket

Leadership

Problem
solving

Scheduling
Exercise

Interpersonal
Administrative
Personal

Leaderless
Group
Discussion

Personality
Test

Role Play

X
X

X
X

X
X

Assessment Tools: Benchmarks

Benchmarks is an instrument designed to measure

important factors in being a successful manager

Items measured are based on research that examines the
lessons executives learn at critical events in their careers
This includes items that measure managers skills in dealing
with subordinates, acquiring resources, and creating a
productive work climate

Skills Related to Managerial Success

Resourcefulness

Confronting problem subordinates

Doing whatever it takes

Team orientation

Being a quick study

Balance between personal life and

Building and mending

relationships
Leading subordinates
Compassion and sensitivity
Straightforwardness and
composure
Setting a developmental climate

work
Decisiveness
Self-awareness
Hiring talented staff
Putting people at ease
Acting with flexibility

Assessment Tools:
Performance Appraisals
Performance appraisal - the process of measuring

employees performance
Approaches for measuring performance:
ranking employees
rating work behaviors

rating the extent to which employees have desirable traits

believed to be necessary for job success (e.g., leadership)

directly measuring the results of work performance (e.g.,
productivity)

Conditions under which performance

measurement is useful for development:
The appraisal system must give employees specific
information about their performance problems and
ways they can improve their performance
Managers must be trained in providing
performance feedback
Managers must frequently give employees
performance feedback
Managers also need to monitor employees
progress in carrying out the action plan

Assessment Tools: 360-Degree Feedback

System
Peers

Rating
Form

Rating
Form

Manager

Self

Customers

Rating
Form

Rating
Form

Subordinates

Activities involved in development planning using

the 360-degree feedback process: (1 of 2)
1.

Understand strengths and weaknesses

2.

Review ratings for strengths and weaknesses

Identify skills or behaviors where self and others ratings agree and
disagree

Identify a development goal

Choose a skill or behavior to develop

Set a clear, specific goal with a specified outcome

Activities involved in development planning using

the 360-degree feedback process: (2 of 2)
3.

Identify a process for recognizing goal accomplishment

4.

Identify strategies for reaching the development goal

Establish strategies such as reading, job experiences, courses, and

relationships
Establish strategies for receiving feedback on progress
Establish strategies for receiving reinforcement for new skills or
behavior

Factors necessary for a 360-degree

feedback system to be effective:
The system must provide consistent (reliable) ratings
Feedback must be job-related (valid)
The system must be easy to use, understandable, and relevant
The system must lead to managerial development

360-Degree Feedback:
Important Issues to Consider
Who will the raters be?
How will you maintain the confidentiality of the raters?
What behaviors and skills are job-related?
How will you ensure full participation and complete

responses from every employee who is asked to be a rater?

What will the feedback report include?
How will you ensure that managers receive and act on the
feedback?

Job Experiences
Job experiences refer to relationships, problems, demands,

tasks, or other features that employees face in their jobs

Most employee development occurs through job experiences
A major assumption is that development is most likely to
occur when there is a mismatch between the employees
skills and past experiences and the skills required for the job

To be successful in their jobs,

employees must stretch their
skills.

They must be forced to learn

new skills, apply their skills
and knowledge in a new way,
and master new experiences.

Job Demands and Lessons Learned from Them

Making transitions

Unfamiliar responsibilities
Proving yourself

Creating change

Developing new directions

Inherited problems
Reduction decisions
Problems with employees

Having high level of responsibility

High stakes
Managing business diversity
Job overload
Handling external pressure

Being involved in non-authority relationships

Influencing without authority

Facing obstacles

Adverse business conditions

Lack of top management support
Lack of personal support
Difficult boss

How Job Experiences are Used for Employee

Development:
Promotion

Enlargement of
Current
Transfer

Job Rotation

(Lateral Move)

(Lateral Move)

Job
Experiences

Downward
Move

Temporary
Assignment
with Another
Organization

Characteristics of Effective Job Rotation

Systems (1 of 2)
1.
2.
3.
4.

Job rotation is used to develop skills as well as give

employees experience needed for managerial positions
Employees understand specific skills that will be
developed by rotation
Job rotation is used for all levels and types of employees
All employees have equal opportunities for job rotation
assignments

Characteristics of Effective Job Rotation

Systems (2 of 2)
5.

6.

Job rotation is linked with the career management process so

employees know the development needs addressed by each job
assignment
Benefits of rotation are maximized and costs are minimized
through managing time of rotations to reduce workload costs and
help employees understand job rotations role in their
development plans

Interpersonal Relationships
Employees can also develop skills and increase their

knowledge about the company and its customers by

interacting with a more experienced organizational member
Two types of interpersonal relationships used to develop
employees:
Mentoring
Coaching

Characteristics of Successful Formal

Mentoring Programs: (1 of 2)
Mentor and protg participation is voluntary
relationship can be ended at any time without fear of punishment
Mentor-protg matching process does not limit the ability

of informal relationships to develop

Mentors are chosen on the basis of:
their past record in developing employees
willingness to serve as a mentor

evidence of positive coaching, communication, and listening skills

Characteristics of Successful Formal

Mentoring Programs: (2 of 2)
The purpose of the program is clearly understood

The length of the program is specified

A minimum level of contact between the mentor and

protg is specified
Protgs are encouraged to contact one another to discuss
problems and share successes
The mentor program is evaluated
Employee development is rewarded

Coaching Relationships
Coach a peer or manager who works with employees to:
motivate them
help them develop skills
provide reinforcement and feedback

Coaches need to be able to suggest effective improvement

actions

The Development Planning Process

The development planning process involves:
identifying development needs
choosing a development goal
identifying the actions that need to be taken by the employee

and the company to achieve the goal

determining how progress toward goal attainment will be
measured
investing time and energy to achieve the goal
establishing a timetable for development

Development Planning (continued)

An emerging trend in development is that the employee must

initiate the development planning process

The development approach used is dependent on the needs

and development goal

Responsibilities in the Development Planning

Process: (1 of 2)
Development
Planning Process

Employee Responsibility

Company Responsibility

Opportunity

How do I need to improve?

Assessment information to identify

strengths, weaknesses, interests, and
values

Motivation

Am I willing to invest the

Company assists in identifying
time and energy to develop? personal and company reasons for
change.
Manager discusses steps for dealing
with barriers and challenges to
development.

Goal Identification

How do I want to develop?

Company provides development

planning guide.
Manager has developmental
discussion with employee.

Responsibilities in the Development Planning

Process: (2 of 2)
Development
Planning Process

Employee Responsibility

Company Responsibility

Criteria

How will I know I am making

progress?

Manager provides feedback on criteria

Actions

What will I do to reach my

development goal?

Company provides assessment,

courses, job experiences, and
relationships

Accountability

What is my timetable?
How can I ask others for
feedback on progress
toward my goal?

Managers follows up on progress

toward developmental goal and helps
employees set a realistic timetable for
goal achievement