Paper Example: HR Development Plan at Titanic Gym Equipment: Nurturing Employee Growth

I have been hired by a new company called "Titanic Gym Equipment" as the H.R. director to design a human resource development plan that will ensure all employees will have the opportunity to maximize their potential. The company aims to supply all types of gym equipment suitable for commercial gyms, home gyms, and any specific demands for strongmen contestants. It will need a mix of skilled and semi-skilled workers. The company warehouse is based in West Galway. They take orders by phone or email or also from the website that they have set up. The founder of the company is a man called David O' Connell who is a qualified personal trainer. David has hired 12 employees since starting the business at the end of April 2020. The business idea sprung to David's mind at the start of the nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19. With gyms closed, David saw that there was a huge demand for gym equipment. His clients had continuously contacted him about where they could source any equipment, and as the virus spread around the world and with most countries in lockdown, it was next to impossible to purchase any equipment. At the start of April, David emailed all of his clients, asking them if they would be interested in purchasing equipment for him if he went into making it. Through word of mouth, David received over 100 requests for all sorts of different equipment within seven days; David quickly put a business plan together and had his company up and running three weeks later.

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Having spoken to David about the way he wants his company to run, it is clear to me that he wants all of his employees to feel equal and that they can talk to him at any time about any of their work or personal problems; he wants to be a very "hand on" type of boss. I recommended that he hold a meeting every Monday morning to discuss the most important items coming up that week and discuss any problems or improvements that can be made for the future. I also recommend to him that he holds individual meetings with each employee every 2-3 weeks; in the meeting let the employees speak first and give their input, and then David must respond with his input. To keep the employees engaged and motivated for each order, there will be a date set for when the item will be delivered to the customer; if this deadline is not met, the employees who worked on that order will get a tick; if an employee reaches three ticks David will re-evaluate them and hold a meeting with them, but on the flip side if the warehouse goes two weeks in a row without missing a single deadline they will be rewarded with the first 6 hours of the following Monday with double pay, David hopes that this will keep the employees focused and motivated and that they will work as a team. No individual will want to let the team down. It will be a very general appraised performance management style.

Performance Management System

Planning

The performance management process will begin with this planning stage. Together with the management, we will be required to explain what the business entails, including complete descriptions, of short-term and long-term goals, identify the main objectives, and develop a metric with a clear showing of how the goals and objectives will be achieved. The goals should be set clearly. The goals will also apply the SMART method (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based, and clear standards of performance should be outlined (Werner & DeSimone, 2011). After completing the defining stage, we will give our employees chances to provide input concerning this material. Employees are the ones who will do the job; therefore, there is a need for central insight into what goals, skills, and competencies will assist the productivity of the business. Then there will be the approval stage where together with the management and the employees, we will agree to the definition of the objectives, goals, and roles of all the participants.

Coaching

Coaching is significant and must be done frequently. We will be holding meetings quarterly, even though monthly meetings will be ideal. There is a need to provide necessary coaching, training, and solutions during the sessions. These meetings should focus on the solutions and opportunities for coaching rather than punitive measures to employees' performance.

Revisiting the Objectives

Revisiting the objectives is significant. The management should review the goals to identify the adjustments that should be incorporated (Martocchi, 2011). This step is also essential because it will also ensure more attention is given to development opportunities. This step will involve reviewing the employee's general performance.

Reviewing Employee Performance

At the end of the annual performance management cycle, the company will be reviewing the employee; this is also known as the performance appraisal. Typically we will be holding this process once a year and check how the employees have performed for that duration. Clear records from the prior check-ins will show the progress of the employee throughout the year. There is also a need to have monthly check-ins, which will be vital in solving the employees' problems. Besides, it will be essential to adjust the goals and plans. Therefore, this step is looking backward in assessing the behaviors of the past years.

How the Employee Performance will be Appraised

There are some modern and common appraisal methods that the company will be gravitating towards, including:

Self-Evaluation

Employees first need to conduct their assessment of performance by themselves using their preferred criteria. This method will help the employees prepare their performance assessments and then create an increased dialogue on the performance during the interview (Noe et al., 2017). On the other hand, this method will be subjective to the employees. They may have many struggles with rating themselves; they may have too low or too high ratings.

Behavioral Checklist

A No or Yes checklist will be given to employees against a sequence of their traits. If the administrator believes that the employee has shown a trait, he or she will tick YES. Simultaneously, if the supervisor thinks the employee is not shown the exhibited attribute, it will be marked NO. If the administrator is not sure, space will be left without a mark. This method is the simplest in appraising employees' performance; it focuses on the behaviors and the actual work-related tasks. On the other hand, if the analysis is not detailed concerning what the employee is doing, it will not be accurate. Also, it does not discuss the goals.

Planning for Employee Engagement and Motivation

I will change my workplace into my work community. I will give abundant induction on experience to help reduce the time required by the new employee settling duration, ensure they are welcomed, and be familiar with the task and their roles. The staff will be allowed to discover and share their opportunities for organizational progression and professional growth. The management will let meaningful relationships increase productivity, collaborative work, better innovation, and increase knowledge transfer. Besides, I will create long-term relationships with the employees who will have left the company to bring back their talents, encourage the brand's advocacy, and identify warm business opportunities.

Learning and Development

Differences Between Development and Training

Development is the process of training the existing company's employees to have a development that is all around. Simultaneously, training is the process of learning for new employees, which will help them get the primary skills vital for the job. Training is considered a short-term process taking three to six months, while development is a process that will continue; therefore, it is a long-term process (Cascio, 2015). Additionally, training focuses on the current job knowledge and skills dissimilar to development, which focuses on overcoming challenges that may come in the future and building understanding, knowledge, and competencies. Training has a limited scope; it is oriented for a particular job.

On the other hand, development is oriented toward the career; subsequently, the scope is relatively broader than training. In development, the manager offers self-direction and assignments, while in training, the trainers are getting a trainer who instructs them during training periods. Finally, development is regarded as a self-assessment process, unlike training programs collectively attended by many people.

Training Needs Analysis

Training needs analysis is the utmost significant stage in all the training. The objectives are ensuring the business works on the priorities. It is all about ensuring that the business is working on the areas with great need. This will help in understanding the behaviors and skills the business needs and advance on them. The management can also identify behaviors and skills that are missing. Training analysis will ensure that the gym will avoid wasting too much time on training that is irrelevant. This gives the big picture and vibrant understanding. With a clear understanding, I will point out that the employee does not need to help the business save money and time.

Additionally, increasing the R.O.I. will fuel the areas of the company investment and increase productivity. This ensures that extra training is pinpointed to perfect the L&D strategy. It is important because the business will not waste a lot of resources on training that is ineffective.

How to Use the Addie Training Model

The A.D.D.I.E. model is used all over the world by instructional designers. Ultimately, "A.D.D.I.E." comes from a modest acronym (Choi & Ruona, 2011:36). It is a five-step model for training. The name "A.D.D.I.E." is referring to five different stages. These stages include analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. All the steps should be applied in their order; however, revisions are integral to the model. It is a pattern that is circular, repeating itself until the trainees become perfect. The last step in A.D.D.I.E. is ensuring that feedback will help improve the employees' experience and skills. This model is the key process that I will use to identify the training needs and create learning materials and courses for the employees. Comparing A.D.D.I.E. with other models, it stands to be the best because the steps are in order, and in the end, there is essential feedback for the business. A.D.D.I.E. is the model that I will implement for the business and monitor the performance for productivity.

How the Learning and Development Requirements Fit in With the Management Process

A proper managing process is significant in connecting with the learning and development process. The effective process will involve prioritizing learning, planning, and creating initiatives for developing the staff, and the results are measured. The management process will analyze training interests and needs. The management should understand the requirements for training and interest in the whole workforce, the entire team, and specific employees (Snell et al., 2010). Training requires surveys and assessments to identify competence and skills in which the employees are not that proficient, interests, and collective training needs. Another is prioritizing training needs and interests. Having several training needs will of more benefits in prioritizing interests and needs. The management should ensure that the most vital priorities are identified, and applied in the workforce.