Human resources development practices and their association with employee attitudes: between traditional and new careers

Citation

Zaleska, K.J. (2008), "Human resources development practices and their association with employee attitudes: between traditional and new careers", Development and Learning in Organizations, Vol. 22 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/dlo.2008.08122aad.008

Human resources development practices and their association with employee attitudes: between traditional and new careers

Human resources development practices and their association with employee attitudes: between traditional and new careers

Zaleska K.J., de Menezes L.M. Human Relations, July 2007 Vol 60 No 7, Start page: 987, No of pages: 30

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to examine how changes in career structures have affected the relationship between human resource development practices and employee commitment. Design/methodology/approach – The paper describes the major theoretical assumptions underlying the new and traditional career theory, discussing the human resource practices associated with the traditional and new career paths open to employees. Sets out a series of hypotheses concerning the training methods that will be used by organizations, employees’ perceptions of these and the impact on commitment. Tests these out by analysing two sets of data, one drawn from a survey carried out in 1997 and another carried out in 2000 that involved employees from six UK organizations (a high-tech electronic firm, a pharmaceuticals company, a food company, two large banks and a hospital). Findings – Notes that the six firms still offered employment security rather than employability and that employees could build their careers within their employing organization. However reports that the methods used to develop employees had changed over the period – employees reporting that their most significant development derived from day-to-day work activities and from this coaching relationship with their immediate supervisor. Finds that employee development activities had a significant effect on organizational commitment but only if these activities were perceived as improving their performance. Research limitations/implications – The paper describes the research methods and their limitations. Practical implications – The paper discusses the implications for training evaluation and the design of human resource development interventions. Originality/value – The paper studies how the relationships between training and development, careers and organizational commitment are evolving.ISSN: 0018-7267Reference: 36AY743DOI: 10.1177/0018726707081155

Keywords: Career development, Employee attitudes, Human resource development, Job security, Training, The United Kingdom