Introduction to

Human
Resource
Development
 Evolution of HRD
• Early apprenticeship programs
• Early vocational education programs
• Early factory schools
• Early training for unskilled / semiskilled
• Human relations movement
• Establishment of training profession
• Emergence of HRD
 Early Apprenticeship Programs
• Artisans in 1700s
• Artisans had to train their own workers (without
vocational & Technical Schools)
• Apprentices who mastered all the necessary skills
were considered “Yeomen” and could leave their
masters and establish their own shops however, most
remained their master.
• Yeomanries (early worker unions)
Collective voice, higher wages, better working
conditions
 Early Vocational Education Programs
• 1809 – DeWitt Clinton’s manual school
(Purpose: occupational training to unemployed or
had a criminal record) and came popular because
they were a public solution to a social problem:
what to do with “misdirected” youths.
• 1917 – Smith-Hughes Act provides funding for
vocational education at the state level
(agricultural trade, home economics, industry,
and teacher training)
 Early Factory Schools
• Industrial Revolution (Scientific Management, late
1800) increases need for trained workers to design,
build, and repair machines used by unskilled workers.
• Companies started machinist and mechanical schools
in-house
• Factories made it possible to increase productivity by
using machines and unskilled workers. Machines
began to replace the hand tools of the artisans.
Increase production (BUT created the demands of
engineers, machinists, build and repair the machines)
 Early Training for Unskilled / Semiskilled
Workers
• Mass production (Model T by Ford in 1913)
– Semiskilled and unskilled workers
– Production line – one task = one worker
• World War I
– Retool & retrain (machinery and workers)
– Huge demand of military equipment.
– Before that nonmilitary goods
To facilitate the training process, Charles
Allen, director of training, instituted a
four-step instructional method referred to
as “show, tell, do, check” for all of the
training programs offered by the
Shipping Board. This technique was later
named job instruction training (JIT) and
is still in use today for training many
workers on the basic elements of their
job.
 Human Relations Movement
• Factory system often abused workers
(unskilled workers and including children, low
pay, long hours, unhealthy working condition)
• “Human relations” movement promoted better
working conditions and importance of human
behavior.
• Start of business & management education
• Tied to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
The human relations movement highlighted
the importance of human behavior on the
job. This was also addressed by Chester
Barnard, the president of New Jersey Bell
Telephone, in his influential 1938 book,
“The Functions of the Executive”. Barnard
described the organization as a social
structure integrating traditional
management and behavioral science
applications.
 The movement continued into the 1940s, with
World War II as a backdrop. Abraham Maslow
published his theory on human needs, stating
that people can be motivated by both economic
and noneconomic incentives. He proposed that
human needs are arranged in terms of lesser to
greater potency (strength), and distinguished
between lower order (basic survival) and higher
order (psychological) needs. Theories like
Maslow’s serve to reinforce the notion that the
varied needs and desires of workers can become
important sources of motivation in the
workplace.
Establishment of the Training Profession
• Outbreak of WWII increased the need for
trained workers
• Federal government started the Training
Within Industry (TWI) program
• In 1942, the American Society for Training
Directors (ASTD) was formed to establish
some standards within this emerging
profession
 Emergence of HRD
During the 1960s and 1970s, professional trainers
realized that their role extended beyond the training
classroom. The move toward employee involvement
in many organizations required trainers to also coach
and counsel employees. Training and development
(T&D) competencies therefore expanded to include
interpersonal skills such as coaching, group process
facilitation, and problem solving. This additional
emphasis on employee development inspired the
ASTD to rename itself as the American Society for
Training and Development (ASTD).
Early 1980s, discussions centered on this rapidly
expanding profession. As a result, ASTD
approved the term human resource development
to encompass this growth and change. Further,
since the 1990s, efforts have been made to
strengthen the strategic role of HRD, that is,
how HRD links to and supports the goals and
objectives of the organization.
• If you plan for a year, plant a seed
• If for ten years, plant a tree
• If for hundred years, teach the people.
• When you sow a seed once, you will reap a
single harvest. When you teach the people,
you will reap hundred harvest.
 Definition of HRD
• A set of systematic and planned
activities designed by an organization
to provide its members with the
necessary skills to meet current and
future job demands.
 Relationship Between HRM and HRD
In some organizations, training is a stand-alone function or
department. In most organizations, however, training or
HRD is part of a larger HRM department. HRM can be
defined as the effective selection and utilization of
employees to best achieve the goals and strategies of an
organization, as well as the goals and needs of employees.
An important point to stress is that the responsibility for
HRM is (or, at least, should be) shared by HR specialists and
line management. How the HRM function is carried out
varies from organization to organization. Some organizations
have a centralized HRM department with highly specialized
staff, but in other organizations, the HRM function is
decentralized and conducted throughout the organization.
 Primary Functions of HRM
Primary functions are directly involved with obtaining,
maintaining and developing employees.
• Human resource planning
• Equal employment opportunity
• Staffing (recruitment and selection)
• Compensation and benefits
• Employee and labor relations
• Health, safety, and security
• Human resource development
 Secondary HRM Functions
Secondary functions either provide support for
general management activities or are involved
in determining or changing the structure of the
organization.
• Organization and job design
• Performance management / performance
appraisal systems
• Research and information systems
 Line versus Staff Authority
One of the primary components of an
organization’s structure is the authority delegated
to a manager or unit to make decisions and utilize
resources.
Line authority is given to managers and
organizational units that are directly responsible
for the production of goods and services.
Staff authority is given to organizational units
that advise and consult line units. Traditionally,
HRM functional units, including HRD, have staff
authority.
 HRD Functions
• Training and development (T&D)
• Organizational development
• Career development
 Training and Development (T&D)
• Training – improving the knowledge, skills
and attitudes of employees for the short-term,
particular to a specific job or task – e.g.,
– Employee orientation
– Skills & technical training
– Coaching
– Counseling
 Training and Development (T&D)
• Development – preparing for future
responsibilities, while increasing the capacity
to perform at a current job
– Management training
– Supervisor development
 Organizational Development
• The process of improving an organization’s
effectiveness and member’s well-being
through the application of behavioral science
concepts
• Focuses on both macro- and micro-levels
• HRD plays the role of a change agent
 Career Development
• Ongoing process by which individuals
progress through series of changes until they
achieve their personal level of maximum
achievement.
– Career planning
– Career management