ISSN 0798 1015

Vol. 40 (Number 34) Year 2019. Page 8

Staff satisfaction with the training system at the stage of identity

Satisfacción del personal con un sistema de formación en etapa de identidad

VINICHENKO M.V. 1; LI N.P. 2; MELNICHUK A.V. 3; СHULANOVA O.L. 4 & BORISENKO, N.S. 5

Received: 25/03/2019 • Approved: 30/09/2019 • Published 07/10/2019

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Methods

3. Results

4. Discussion

5. Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

1. Introduction

In the current context, there is a search for the most rational ways to improve the competitiveness of companies in the goods and services markets, and consequently, in the labor market. One promising area is well-organized training in the framework of staff development (R. Medina and A. Medina, 2014; Problems and Solutions, 2013). The organizations are actively searching for talented employees and try to retain them (Key trends, 2018; Effron and Orth, 2014; Batteris and Reuter, 2005), sometimes turning this process into a battle for talents (Michaels et al., 2006; Robertson and Abbey, 2003). There are technologies that are united by a common concept, namely, forming, developing, and using the talent pool (Bednova, 2014; Kirillov, et. al., 2017; Chulanova and Mokryanskaya, 2017). A number of scientists are studying the effectiveness of investment in development and receiving dividends (Belousova et. al., 2016; Veretekhina, Karyagina et al., 2018).

Skillfully organized branding allows corporate management, as well as HR services, to attract the most qualified specialists to key positions (Vinichenko, Kirillov, Frolova et al., 2018). At this stage, it is important to assess whether the candidate meets the corporate values of the company, and whether his full identity with the organization is possible (Riketia, 2005; Krylov, 2011). In this concept, the identity stage begins when a person considers the opportunity to work in a particular company and realizes how much he can share its values and belong spiritually and socially to the corporate team for a long time.

At the same time, the involvement of professionals is just the beginning of the skillful use of their creative and labor potential to the benefit of the company's development. This requires creating an enabling environment for successful adaptation, and retaining new talented employees in the organization (Сhulanova et al., 2018; Ouardighi et al., 2013), conscientious performance of their job functions (Prichina et al., 2017; Rogach et.al., 2016), as well as generating innovative ideas, and learning (MacLeod & Clarke, 2010; Sonnenfeld et al., 1992). A special place is given to the employee motivation and incentive system (Karácsony et al., 2018, Belle and Cantarelli, 2015; Avanesova et al., 2016; Liu & Perry, 2016).

The problem of attracting highly qualified teaching staff, who are familiar with modern best practices, is not fully resolved (Ilina, et al., 2018; Savelsbergh et al., 2016).

The most trained teaching staff and business coaches skillfully and successfully apply advanced technologies in the course of training, rationally using online training, combining it with offline training. At the same time, gamification of educational and production processes is used widely, especially at the stage of the identity of the employees of the  organization. A number of researchers consider the nature of gamification of business processes (Wittenbaum et. al., 2004; Vinichenko et. al., 2016; Alvarez et. al., 2017), study issues related to age and gender features of gamification (Marti-Parreno et. al., 2016), security and privacy practices (Baxter et. al., 2016), and staff training (Miguel et. al., 2017; Kirillov, et. al., 2016), including cognitive aspects (Lumsden et. al., 2016).

However, not all companies create their own training systems or are engaged in the management of staff identity. Staff development and training are often fragmented. This happens for various reasons, such as a special attitude of corporate management, insufficient material resources, poorly developed staff management service, etc. All this has adverse impact on staff development, and their satisfaction with training at the stage of identity and job, and consequently leads to a decrease in the company competitiveness. Despite the availability of a large number of scientific papers in this area, a comprehensive study, revealing the problem of improving the staff training system in the organizations based on the analysis of employee satisfaction with this system at the identity stage, has not been conducted. Therefore, staff satisfaction with the training system in organizations has become the main research subject of this article.

2. Methods

At the beginning of the study, the authors developed their version of the methodology which was used. It was aimed at achieving the goal, whose essence was improving the staff training system in organizations based on the analysis of employee satisfaction with this system at the identity stage.

In order to achieve the goal, the following scientific tasks were defined:

1. identifying the status of the corporate training system;
2. determining the employees' satisfaction with training system quality at the stage of identity;
3. determining the main improvement areas of the training system.

The research methodology included an online survey, overt observation, expert evaluation, focus group, content analysis, mathematical statistics methods, etc.

Study was conducted consisting of two phases: the first phase was carried out from January 27 to February 8, 2017, and the second phase. Content analysis and sociological survey using e-services were chosen as the main research methods in the first phase. The second phase involved expert assessments and a focus group.

At the first phase, the main work consisted in the preparation of the scientific and methodological basis to reveal the condition of scientific knowledge system with respect to improving the staff training system in the organizations based on the analysis of employees’ satisfaction with this system at the stage of their identity. In addition, a sociological survey was organized and conducted in cooperation with HeadHunter company.

The study was conducted in the Russian Federation entities during the period from January 27 to February 8, 2017. The sample size was 5,991 people. The online survey method using Google Forms was used. The maximum error for this sample does not exceed 4.5% with a 95% confidence figure.

The survey was attended by representatives of small, medium-sized, and large businesses. In order to obtain reliable data at the stage of the sociological survey preparation, special instructions were given to the respondents. The results obtained were processed.

At the second phase, the focus group, consisting of 12 experts from among domestic and foreign scientists, academic teaching staff, and representatives of business structures, analyzed the results of the study. During the discussion, the focus group identified the main ways to improve the staff training system of organizations based on the analysis of employee satisfaction with this system at the identity stage. The focus group had the opportunity to obtain data from the Internet and conduct a discussion with colleagues from remote points of communication.

3. Results

3.1. The first phase

The vast majority of respondents believe that the availability of staff training system in the organization is very important (Fig. 1).

Figure 1
Employees' assessment of the importance
of having a training system

Analysis of the results suggests that employees of the organization are satisfied with the availability of a training system, which they consider to be one of the main conditions for their development, for receiving positive emotions and decent wages. At the same time, a third of respondents see their future in a good system of education. Thus, the results of the study coincide with the general trend of continuous development of staff and organizations in the context of growing competition. Among the areas that do not fully fall under this trend were transport, logistics and security.

The effectiveness of training, in the opinion of respondents, is most often observed when taking advanced training courses (Figure 2).

Figure 2
The most demanded
forms of staff training

This is due to the established traditions of a more systematic approach to training on the part of the employer, companies and institutions providing personnel training, and a more appropriate form of communicating information for in-depth learning of the training material by employees. Internships in companies are also among the priority forms of education due to the more reliable acquisition of the necessary skills: professional and communication. Distance learning is deservedly the third place among the used forms of training, as it should serve as an addition to the main ones, ensuring a reduction in the financial burden on the employer related to the development of personnel. MBA / mini MBA programs are preferred by Top Management, Human Resource Management.

A comparative analysis of online training and offline training allowed us to establish that online training is more accessible in an environment where you need to increase the theoretical knowledge of staff, often without interrupting production and with minimal time and financial losses for the company (Figure 3).

Figure 3
Staff attitudes to online
and offline training

At the same time, as the survey showed, the main supporters of distance learning / online learning, compared with other specialties, were representatives of information technology, the Internet, telecom. This is logical, since it is possible to solve all the problematic issues in these areas remotely, using the possibilities of online learning. However, in many areas of activity, for example, in medicine, education, manufacturing, energy, and others, it is necessary to obtain practical professional skills, without which it is impossible to properly perform their functional duties.

Identification of priorities for satisfaction with the quality of education between online training and refresher courses allowed us to establish that there are no significant gaps between them (Figure 4).

Figure 4
Employee satisfaction with
the training form and quality

Almost all respondents expressed satisfaction with the quality of these forms of education. However, only distance learning / online learning was negatively evaluated by a small part of the respondents. This suggests that distance learning / online learning is not sufficiently good in a number of companies, sometimes a formal approach to this form of education. Nevertheless, both forms of education are in demand on the Russian labor market, although they have passed a different adaptation period.

The second phase. Focus group has studied and analyzed the generalization results of research outcomes, content analysis, and sociological survey with respect to the nature of staff satisfaction with the training system at the identity stage. The experts discussed the results of the survey on the most popular forms of staff training and the attitude of staff to online and offline training. One conclusion drawn by the focus group was that a combined form of training, including both practical and theoretical elements, as well as based on modern high technologies, was the most promising training form. It is also important to ensure continuous training of the staff throughout their employment relationships with the organization.

4. Discussion

The availability of a training system in the company is relevant for almost all employees of the organization. The largest number of employees, who did not want to improve themselves, turned out to be among the transport, logistics, and security specialists. This is due to the fact that in a number of business areas, job activities are highly regulated, rarely change in content, and do not require continuous development of staff. Although it should be noted that logistics and security require creative thinking for the qualitative performance of functional duties.

The high demand for refresher courses at the identity stage seems logical given that they have recently acquired an increasingly sophisticated structure and include innovative training methods. In favor of refresher courses indicates the fact that teachers spend a lot of time offline that is more familiar to the audience in terms of perception of material and getting comprehensive feedback. This increases the efficiency of perception of new material. This approach satisfies the company’s staff and increases their loyalty (Vinichenko et. al., 2017).

The internship is also referred to as the most appropriate method of obtaining practical skills in innovative work and gaining new competencies through the implementation of advanced technologies (Landers and Armstrong, 2017). Indeed, during the internships, employees master advanced technologies, develop their labor and creative potential (The DPSA, 2015), contributing to their socialization and successful identity.

In the course of study, it has been revealed that online learning is an innovative and popular form of learning, which caused the greatest interest in specialists working in the field of information technologies, the Internet, and telecommunications. Specialists involved in this field are constantly engaged with similar technologies and are more prepared for online learning using modern digital-related technologies, the implementation of innovative technologies, and informatization of education (Digital-literature in HR: trends 2016; (Moore and Pearson, 2017; Veretekhina and Korotin, 2018). In general, it is demanded by specialists working in all economic sectors, because it is more affordable in terms of cost and geographical location. Despite the fact that respondents are generally satisfied with the quality of online learning, however, it is inferior to offline learning because of its imperfection, not full readiness of the audience to work in such a system of obtaining competencies, as well as lack of a material and technical base of educational process participants. Practice shows that online learning will not be able to replace offline learning due to the impossibility of obtaining certain knowledge, skills, and competencies without real live communication with the teacher in the classroom.

During the discussion, the focus group confirmed the importance of having a training system for the organizations’ staff. The increased competition requires the employer to make every effort in order to constantly train staff at the stage of identity to new technologies. An additional argument consisted in the fact that respondents highly appreciated the practical form of training, namely, the internship in other corporate branches/offices, where practical skills could be attained, and online training was used. The integrated form of training, which includes both practical and theoretical approaches based on modern high technologies, is considered to be the most promising training form.

The importance of gamification in learning has not been disputed. This is correlated with recent research dealt with the use of gaming technology (Miguel et. al., 2017; Landers and Armstrong, 2017). It is also concluded that in the foreseeable future, online learning will not be able to completely replace other forms of education.

As a matter of course of the focus group, the main areas of improving the training system have been formulated:

- the training system should be aimed at solving urgent problems, including the identity phase, as well as meeting the needs of the company in business development;

- it is necessary to use an integrated approach when forming and developing the training system;

- the company's training system should be based on the most popular and effective forms of training, especially high-tech and promising ones;

- well-balanced and flexible application of online and offline learning should be practiced;

- it is important to organize continuous training of staff throughout the time of its employment relationship with the organization.

5. Conclusion

An essential condition for any company’s confidence in the future is its continuous development, which is ensured by the simultaneous development of staff. The system element of the latter is staff training. The training systems being developed are effective if the staff is satisfied with the created system.

In the course of the study, it has been revealed that the availability of a training system in the company is relevant for almost all employees of the organization. A special place in the training system is occupied by refresher courses and online training. Their quality satisfies both employees and corporate management that leads to the desired result. Additional support in improving the professional skills of employees is a practical form of training such as an internship, which enables trainees acquiring the necessary competencies.

The team of the authors have proposed a comprehensive form of training, as the most appropriate, which includes both practical and theoretical elements based on modern high technologies. At that, it is noted that online learning will not be able to completely replace other forms of training in the near future.

The key measures to improve the training system can be formulated as follows:

- the training system should be aimed at solving urgent problems, including the identity phase, as well as meeting the needs of the company in business development;

- it is necessary to use an integrated approach when forming and developing the training system;

- the company's training system should be based on the most popular and effective forms of training, especially high-tech and promising ones;

- well-balanced and flexible application of online and offline learning should be practiced;

- it is important to organize continuous training of staff throughout the time of its employment relationship with the organization.

Thus, the training system must be constantly improved to increase staff satisfaction, enable the development of their professional skills in order to improve corporate competitiveness.

Acknowledgments

The article was prepared with the financial support of the RFBR, project No. 17-03-00059-ОГН.

References

Alvarez, S., Nikendei, C., and Schultz, J.-H. (2017). Development of a didactical training concept for peer tutors in gross anatomy. Anatomical Sciences Education, 10(5), 495-502.

Avanesova, A.E., Bugaev, O.N., Kontsevich, G.E., and Sarkisyan, N.A. (2016). Politika stimulirovaniya raboty personala: teoreticheskij aspekt [The policy of stimulating the work of personnel: the theoretical aspect]. Social Policy and Sociology, 15(3), (116), 8-15. DOI: 10.17922 / 2071-3665-2016-15-3-8-15.

Batteris, M., and Reuter B. (2005). Corporate diamonds: How to retain talented employees in the company. Moscow: Gross Media, 256.

Baxter, R.J., Holderness, D.K., and Wood, D.A. (2016). Applying basic gamification techniques to its compliance training: Evidence from the lab and field. Journal of Information Systems, 30(3), 119-133. DOI: 10.2308/isys-51341

Bednova, N.A.(2014). Innovacionnye tekhnologii v upravlenii personalom pri formirovanii kadrovogo rezerva [Innovative technologies in personnel management in the formation of the personnel reserve]. Technology "talent management" or "talent management". Young people in science: New arguments. Proceedings of the 1st International Competition. Lipetsk, 35-38.

Belle, N., and Cantarelli, P. (2015). Monetary incentives, motivation, and job effort in the public sector: An experimental study with Italian government executives. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 35(2), 99-123. DOI:10.1177/0734371X13520460

Belousova, A.A., Gurianov, P.A., Melnichuk, A.V., Vinichenko, M.V., and Duplij, E. (2016). Dividend payments and cross-country differences in the choice of the dividend. International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, 6 (S1), 46-51.

Chulanova, O.L., Mokryanskaya, N.A. (2017). Methodical aspects of improving the development of the personnel reserve with the use of talent management technology. Internet Journal of Science. 9(2), 55.

Chulanova, O.L., Vinichenko, M.V., Borisenko, N.S., Kaurova, O.V., Ryngach, O.L. Lobacheva, A.S., and Demchenko, M.V. (2018). Sovershenstvovanie ocenki personala v processe otbora s cel'yu povysheniya loyal'nosti novyh sotrudnikov v organizaciyah neftegazovogo kompleksa i himicheskoj promyshlennosti Hanty-Mansijskogo avtonomnogo okruga-YUgry [The perfection of personnel estimation in the course of selection to improve the loyalty of new employees in the organizations of the oil and gas complex and the chemical industry of the Khanty Mansiysk Autonomous District-Ugra]. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Methods, 8(10), 519-530.

Digital-literacy in HR: trends 2016. Retrieved from https://hhcdn.ru/file/16397049.pdf

Effron, М., and Orth, М. (2014). Sovremennye vzglyady na gejmifikaciyu biznesa [Talent management: A short course]. Moscow: Azbuka Biznes, 224.

Ilina, I.Y., Oseev, A.A., Vinichenko, M.V., Kirillov, A.V., Kaurova, O.V., and Nakhratova, E.E. (2018). Transformation of the social status of teachers of Russian universities. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Methods, 8(3), 381-392.

Karácsony, P., Vinichenko, M.V., and Aliyev, T. (2018). Improvement of motivation in Hungarian organization. Transylvanian International Conference in Public Administration, 266-279.

Key trends in the personnel assessment market (2018). Retrieved from https://hhcdn.ru/file/16584472.pdf

Kirillov, A.V., Ushakov, D.S., Vinichenko, M.V., Makuchkin, S.A., and Melnichuk, A.V. (2017). Career opportunities for the management’s personnel reserve. Eurasian Journal of Analytical Chemistry, 12(5b), 723-733. DOI 10.12973/ejac.2017.00205a

Kirillov, A.V., Vinichenko, M.V., Melnichuk, A.V., Melnichuk, Y.A., and Vinogradova, M.V. (2016). Uluchshenie uslovij obucheniya cherez gejmifikaciyu obrazovatel'nogo processa [Improvement in the learning environment through gamification of the educational process]. IEJME – Mathematics Education, 11(7), 2071-2085.

Krylov, A.N. (2011). Sootnoshenie ponyatij social'noj i individual'noj identichnosti v russkoj i zapadnoevropejskoj nauke [The ratio of the concepts of social and individual identity in the Russian and Western European science]. Bulletin of the Academy of Law and Management, 24, 210-215.

Landers, R.N., and Armstrong, M.B. (2017). Enhancing instructional outcomes with gamification: An empirical test of the technology-enhanced training effectiveness model. Computers in Human Behavior, 71, 499-507. DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2015.07.031

Liu B., and Perry, J.L. (2016). The psychological mechanisms of public service motivation: A two-wave examination. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 36(1), 4-30.

Lumsden, J., Edwards, E.A., Lawrence, N.S., Coyle, D., and Munafo, M.R. (2016). Gamification of cognitive assessment and cognitive training: A systematic review of applications and efficacy. JMIR Serious Games, 4(2), e11. DOI:10.2196/games.5888

MacLeod, D., and Clarke, N. (2010). Engaging for success: Enhancing performance through employee engagement. A report to Government. Retrieved from http://es.slideshare.net/PingElizabeth/engaging-for-success-government

Marti-Parreno, J., Segui-Mas, D., and Segui-Mas, E. (2016). Teachers` attitude towards the actual use of gamification. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Higher Education Advance. HEAd`16, Valencia, Spain, Social and Behavioral Science, 228, 682-688.

Medina, R., and Medina, A. (2014). The project manager and the organization's long-term competence goal. International Journal of Project Management, 32(8), 1459-1470.

Melnichuk Yu.A. (2017). Molodye prepodavateli vuzov kak osobaya social'naya gruppa (na primere moskovskih vuzov) [Young teachers of universities as a special social group (on the example of Moscow universities)]. Social Policy and Sociology, 6(125), pp.62-73. DOI: 10.17922 / 2071-3665-2017-16-6-62-73

Michaels, E., Handfield-Jones, E., and Ekselrod, E. (2006). War for talents (2nd ed). Moscow: Mann, Ivanov, and Ferber.

Miguel, S.E., Sorolla, G.R., Gato, M.E.P., and Guillem, J.M.A. (2017). Gamification in business training. Direction and Organization, 62, 35-40.

Moore, K.A., and Pearson, B.J. (2017). Soft skills in an online class. Horttechnology, 27(5), 583-585.

Ouardighi, F., Kogan, K., and Vranceanu, R. (2013). Publish or teach? Analysis of the professor's optimal career path. Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, 10(37), 1995-2009.

Prichina, O.S., Orekhov, V.D., and Esipova, E.Yu. (2017). Zakonomernosti trudovoj deyatel'nosti kollektivov v sfere NIOKR: faktory i rezervy povysheniya proizvoditel'nosti truda [Regularities of labor activity of collectives in the field of R&D: Factors and reserves of increase in labor productivity]. Social Policy and Sociology. 6(125), 25-35. DOI: 10.17922 / 2071-3665-2017-16-6-25-35

Problems and Solutions of staff training and development in business organizations: A case study of Niger Breweries Plc, Enugu (2013). Retrieved from http://www.doublegist.com/problems-solutions-staff-training-development-business-organizations/

Riketia, M. (2005). Organizational identification: A meta-analysis. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 66(2), 8-12.

Robertson, A., and Abbey, G. (2003). Managing Talented People: Getting on with - and getting the best from - your high performers. Momentum.

Rogach, O.V., Frolova, E.V., Kirillov, A.V., Bondaletov, V.V., and Vinichenko, M.V. (2016). Razvitie blagopriyatnoj sredy obucheniya i ohrany truda v kontekste garmonizacii social'nogo vzaimodejstviya ob"ektov obrazovatel'noj sistemy [Development of favorable learnıng envıronment and labor protectıon ın the context of harmonızatıon of socıal interactıon of educatıonal system objects]. IEJME, Mathematics Education, 11(7), 2547-2558.

Savelsbergh, C.M.J.H., Havermans, L.A., and Storm, P. (2016). Development paths of project managers: What and how do project managers learn from their experiences? International Journal of Project Management, 3, 559-569.

Sonnenfeld, J.A., Peiperl, M., and Kotter, J.P. (1992). Strategic determinants of managerial labor markets: A career systems view, in human resource strategies. Ed. G. Salaman, Sage, London.

The DPSA (2015). Human resource development for the public service review. Report HRD Resource Pack: Part 2. South Africa, 162 p.

Veretekhina, S.V., and Korotin, I.S. (2018). Fragmentary state strategy of Russian spin-off ships on the interference of valuable knowledge between high schools and companies of average technological business. Contemporary Problems of Social Work, 4(1), (13), 46-53.

Veretekhina, S.V., Karyagina, T.V., Potekhina, E.V., Nakhratova, E.E., Pronkina T.V., and Makushkin, S.A. (2018). Mathematical methods of estimation of economic efficiency of investments and the sequence of execution of stages of investment on the example of the national technology initiative of the Russian Federation. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Methods. 8(6), 99-117.

Vinichenko, M.V., Kirillov, A.V., Frolova, E.V., Pochinok, N.B., and Kaurova, O.V. (2018). The formation of training and occupational safety conditions as a factor in the creation of a favorable image of an educational organization. EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 14(4), 1229-1237. DOI: 10.29333/ejmste/82520

Vinichenko, M.V., Makushkin, S.A., Melnichuk, A.V., Demchenko, T.S., and Afanasyeva, E.A. (2017). Increase loyalty of the staff of public organizations. Man In India, 97(3), 263-274.

Vinichenko, M.V., Melnichuk, A.V., Kirillov, A.V., Makushkin, S.A., and Melnichuk, Y.A. (2016). Sovremennye vzglyady na gejmifikaciyu biznesa [Modern views on the gamification of business]. Journal of Internet Banking and Commerce, 21(S3). Retrieved from http://www.icommercecentral.com/open-access/modern-views-on-the-gamification-of-business.php?aid=71902.

Wittenbaum, G.M., Hollingshead, A.B., Paulus, P.B., Hirokawa, R.Y., Ancona, D.G., Peterson, R.S., Jehn, K.A., and Yoon, K. (2004). The functional perspective as a lens for understanding groups. Small Group Research, 35(1), 17-43.

1. Department of Personnel Management and Personnel, Policy, Russian State Social University, Moscow. E -mail: m.v.vinichenko@mail.ru

2. Department of Personnel Management and Personnel Policy, Russian State Social University, Moscow, Russia

3. Department of Personnel Management and Personnel Policy, Russian State Social University, Moscow

4. Department of State and Municipal Management, Surgut State University, Surgut, Russia

5. Leading specialist in personnel, Limited Liabiliti Company "Gazprom pererabotka", Saint Petersburg, Russia