chapter 8 socializing, orienting, and developing employees

Fundamentals of Human Resource Management 8e, DeCenzo and Robbins

Chapter 8Socializing, Orienting, and Developing Employees

Fundamentals of Human Resource ManagementEighth Edition

DeCenzo and Robbins


Introduction• Socialization, training and

development are all used to help new employees adapt to their new organizations and become fully productive.

• Ideally, employees will understand and accept the behaviors desired by the organization, and will be able to attain their own goals by exhibiting these behaviors.


The Insider-Outsider Passage

• Socialization – A process of adaptation to a new

work role. – Adjustments must be made

whenever individuals change jobs– The most profound adjustment

occurs when an individual first enters an organization.



The assumptions of employee socialization: – Socialization strongly influences employee

performance and organizational stability– Provides information on how to do the job

and ensuring organizational fit. – New members suffer from anxiety, which

motivates them to learn the values and norms of the organization.



The assumptions of employee socialization:– Socialization is influenced by subtle

and less subtle statements and behaviors exhibited by colleagues, management, employees, clients and others.

– Individuals adjust to new situations in remarkably similar ways.

– All new employees go through a settling-in period.



The Socialization Process – Prearrival stage:

Individuals arrive with a set of values, attitudes and expectations which they have developed from previous experience and the selection process.


The Insider-Outsider Passage• The Socialization Process

– Encounter stage: Individuals discover how well their expectations match realities within the organization.

– Where differences exist, socialization occurs to imbue the employee with the organization’s standards.



The Socialization Process– Metamorphosis stage: Individuals have

adapted to the organization, feel accepted and know what is expected of them.



A Socialization Process


The Purpose of New-Employee Orientation

• Orientation may be done by the supervisor, the HRM staff or some combination.

• Formal or informal, depending on the size of the organization.

• Covers such things as:– The organization’s objectives– History– Philosophy– Procedures– Rules– HRM policies and benefits– Fellow employees



• Learning the Organization’s Culture – Culture includes long-standing, often

unwritten rules about what is appropriate behavior.

– Socialized employees know how things are done, what matters, and which behaviors and perspectives are acceptable.



The CEO’s Role in Orientation • Senior management are often visible

during the new employee orientation process.

• CEOs can:– Welcome employees. – Provide a vision for the company. – Introduce company culture -- what matters. – Convey that the company cares about

employees. – Allay some new employee anxieties and help

them to feel good about their job choice.



HRM’s Role in Orientation • Coordinating Role: HRM

instructs new employees when and where to report; provides information about benefits choices.

• Participant Role: HRM offers its assistance for future employee needs (career guidance, training, etc.).


Employee Training

Definitions – Employee training

a learning experience designed to achieve a relatively permanent change in an individual that will improve the ability to perform on the job.

– Employee development future-oriented training, focusing on the personal growth of the employee.


Employee Training

Determining training needs • Specific training goals should be based on:

– organization’s needs– type of work to be done– skills necessary to complete the work

• Indicators of need for more training:– drops in productivity– increased rejects– inadequate job performance– rise in the number of accidents


Employee Training

• Determining training needs– The value added by training

must be considered versus the cost.

– Training goals should be established that are tangible, verifiable, timely, and measurable.


Employee Training

Determining Training Needs


Employee Training

• On-the-job training methods– Job Rotation– Understudy Assignments

• Off-the-job training methods– Classroom lectures– Films and videos– Simulation exercises– Vestibule training


Employee Development

• This future-oriented set of activities is predominantly an educational process.

• All employees, regardless of level, can benefit from the methods previously used to develop managerial personnel.



Employee development methods – Job rotation involves moving

employees to various positions in the organization to expand their skills, knowledge and abilities.

– Assistant-to positions allow employees with potential to work under and be coached by successful managers.



Employee development methods – Committee assignments provide

opportunities for:• decision-making• learning by watching others• becoming more familiar with organizational

members and problems– Lecture courses and seminars benefit from

today’s technology and are often offered in a distance learning format.



Employee development methods– Simulations include case studies, decision

games and role plays and are intended to improve decision-making.

– Outdoor training typically involves challenges which teach trainees the importance of teamwork.


Organization Development

• What is change? • OD efforts support changes that are

usually made in four areas: – The organization’s systems– Technology– Processes – People



• Two metaphors clarify the change process. – The calm waters metaphor describes

unfreezing the status quo, change to a new state, and refreezing to ensure that the change is permanent.

– The white-water rapids metaphor recognizes today’s business environment which is less stable and not as predictable.



OD Methods • Organizational development facilitates

long-term organization-wide changes. • OD techniques include:

– survey feedback– process consultation– team building– intergroup development



• Survey feedback assesses organizational members’ perceptions and attitudes.

• The summarized data are used to identify problems and clarify issues so that commitments to action can be made.



• Process consultation uses outside consultants to help organizational members perceive, understand, and act upon process events.



• Team building may include:– goal setting– development of interpersonal

relationships– clarification of roles– team process analysis

• Team building attempts to increase trust, openness, and team functioning.


Organization DevelopmentThe Learning Organization • Values continued learning and

believes a competitive advantage can be gained from it.

• Characterized by: – capacity to continuously adapt – employees continually acquire and share

new knowledge – collaboration across functional

specialties – teams are an important feature


Evaluating Training and Development Effectiveness

Evaluating Training Programs: • Typically, employee and manager opinions

are used, – These opinions or reactions are not necessarily

valid measures– Influenced by things like difficulty, entertainment

value or personality of the instructor. • Performance-based measures (benefits

gained) are better indicators of training’s cost-effectiveness.



Performance-Based Evaluation Measures – Post-training performance method.

Employees’ on-the-job performance is assessed after training.

– Pre-post-training performance method . Employee’s job performance is assessed both before and after training, to determine whether a change has taken place.



Performance-Based Evaluation Measures • Pre-post-training performance with

control group method. – Compares the pre-post-training results of

the trained group with the concurrent job performance of a control group, which does not undergo instruction.

– Used to control for factors other than training which may affect job performance.


International Training and Development Issues

Cross-Cultural Training • Necessary for expatriate

managers and their families:– before assignments (to learn

language and culture)– during, and after foreign

assignments (to adjust to changes back home).



• Cross-cultural training is more than language training

• Involves learning about the culture’s:– History– Politics– Economy– Religion– Social climate– Business practices

• May involve role playing, simulations and immersion in the culture.



Development • Often, organizations do not do a good

job of planning for the return of overseas managers.

• Leads to the managers’ being frustrated• Returning expatriates can:

– be assigned a domestic position– prepare for a new overseas assignment– retire or be terminated

chapter 8 socializing, orienting, and developing employees

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