How training and development of academic staff impact on employee performance for organisational effectiveness at a selected college in the Eastern Cape Province

Abstract

This study focused on the importance of training and development and its impact on employee performance and organisational effectiveness. Training and development play a very important role at Ingwe Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) College in the Eastern Cape Province. Academic staff training and development is essential for staff’s personal development and organisational effectiveness. Ingwe TVET College has a serious problem regarding the training and development of academic staff. Although the college sent academic staff for training, they did not produce skills that make a significant contribution to the college development. There were numerous complaints from top management and Heads of Department that employee performance at Ingwe TVET College is not up to the required standard. This problem has not been rectified and the same complaints are made when the students’ throughput rate is evaluated. Through training and development, new knowledge, skills and changing attitudes are communicated to employees in order to raise awareness of their current knowledge and skills. The findings of this study will contribute towards improving the training and development of academic staff at Ingwe TVET College. All academic staff working at Ingwe TVET College were targeted to participate in this study. The total population for this study is 360 academic staff. This study used the survey method because the target population was too small. A quantitative research approach was used in this study. The personal method was used to administer the questionnaire to 350 target respondents. To test the validity and reliability of the questions, a pilot study was conducted with 10 academic staff members. The data was analysed by means of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24.0 for Windows. SPSS was used to analyse the primary data obtained from responses to the questionnaire after data capturing. Various statistical tests were used to test the hypotheses as well. The Cronbach Coefficient Alpha test was used to provide a value for reliability. The results present the descriptive statistics in the form of graphs, cross-tabulations and other Figures for the quantitative data collected. Inferential techniques included the use of correlations and chi-square test values, which are interpreted using the p-values. Findings from the study indicate that for academic staff performance, managers must distribute the resources needed by them in order for them to be able to perform their tasks. The lack of knowledge on what employees were trained on and are expected to implement leads to failure by the supervisor to follow up on learning transfer. Effective organisational development programs also allow for employees to cope with newly developed technology and ensures that adequate human resources are available for expansion into new areas. Employers or service providers should take steps to eliminate obstacles that prevent employee learning or physical barriers that may have impact on employee learning. Top management should ensure that training and development improves employee performance by assessing the type of training provided to employee in order to check if it meets the required standards. Management must also make sure that the training provided is aligned with the required skills by employees and the organisation in order to help employees in performing their tasks. Top Management should send employees on training and development programs that will assist them when they perform their tasks in order to be productive. Avoid sending them to training because is popular but does not a have significant impact on employee productivity.