The influence of training and development on employees’ performance at Mudete tea factory

Abstract

Influence of training and development on employee performance at Mudete Tea Factory is topical area of research in this study. Human resource management concerns itself with recruitment, selection, placement, training, compensation, and industrial relations among others. In this study training has been isolated and it has been explored in terms of its effects on employee performance and satisfaction. Training has been defined as learning activity directed towards the acquisition of specific knowledge and skills for the purpose of an occupation or task. On the other hand organizational performance is a collection of work activities, efficiency, effectiveness and tardiness at work; their measurement and subsequent outcome of the work activities; while job satisfaction is defined as employee’s affective reactions to a job, based on comparing desired outcomes with actual outcomes The objective of the study is to establish the extent to which training and development influences employee performance and commitment at Mudete Tea Factory. This was a descriptive survey. The samples of 210 respondents were selected using stratified random sampling technique. The study used primary and secondary data. The collection instrument was a questionnaire which was both structured and unstructured. The data collected was both quantitative and qualitative in nature. The data was analyzed using basic descriptive statistics. This involved coding the information about specific characteristics or attributes and using descriptive statistics like frequency distributions, measures of central tendency, mean, median, and mode. Inferential statics such as regression analysis was used to help predict variable from other variables. The employees felt that the formal programme of employee training should not target mostly new employees and those in the administration department but the majority. A majority of the employees indicated that they had interest in further training specifically in Information Technology. This could be attributed to the fact that technology changes faster and production techniques need to be continually up dated to keep pace with other producers and processors of tea. The employees felt that training programme has not been quantified and the monetary value not established; the focus of training is on- job specifically the need to have efficiency and safety in the orientation and operations of machinery and equipment and effective sales. The respondents however felt the need to streamline the training and development to cover all employees and functional departments of the factory. There is a weak link between employee training and satisfaction. This could be due to diversified nature of the concept of employees’ satisfaction that includes aspects like remuneration and work conditions. The research reveals that there is need for the organization to formalize its training programmes and make it all round; because an organization’s decision whether or not to train its workers affects the overall economy, even if the firm does not factor the economy into its decision. Hence, training workers is a type of a public good, a practice that encompasses abroad range of social dilemmas. It is difficult for organizations to measure employee contribution without the quantitative aspect of finance or better still without the use of scorecard.