SECTION 1
Introduction: Ledcor Company
Human resources managers have the very important role of ensuring that their organizations get the most suitable talent for different roles. In the current competitive business world, training and development of employees is becoming an indispensible role that deserves prominence. The advancement in technology, a more conscious client, and alternative providers of the same goods and services are making it harder to retain an incompetent employee. Training aims to fill knowledge gaps and bring to speed the skills of employees’ to meet demands of the current business reality. The human resources department assesses employees’ skills gap through work appraisals, questionnaire, oral interviews, and observation.
The company specializes in providing project management services to clients among other services. The number of employees directly engaging in project management function is a hundred and twenty. This number comprises of project management trainees, middle level managers, and executive project managers. The organization aspires to obtain a competitive advantage in engineering project management in the Canada with future prospect of expanding to Europe. Dating back to 2011, the company has grown exponentially by setting up offices in five states. Its strength lies in superior client service, accomplishing the objectives of our clients and use of innovative technology in project management.
The organization can harness its resources to improve the skills levels of employees in order to remain on top of the competition and penetrate new markets. New employees find this organization suitable for them as it provides an opportunity to launch careers in project management. Its ability to attract top talent is one of our biggest strength. It provides structured career progression paths and by the age of thirty, most of its employees are usually in middle level management. Young employees are usually technology-savvy and this provides the benefit of innovative technologies. The company’s weakness lies in poaching of our employees by bigger multinationals. It plans to expand its financial base and retain its best talents by attractive packages. The biggest threat is competition especially with the entrance of new competitors.
This paper will detail a report of a survey on the competency levels of project managers in the organization. The survey was conducted among employees by emailing them questionnaire about their competency levels and the skills they feel will be most important in the 21st century. The results show that most project managers rate the ability to communicate, achieve the goals set by clients, and proficiency in applying modern technology highly. Most of the employees, while rating the three aspects highly, admitted to their shortage of skills in those areas. This paper will therefore detail a training program suitable to improve two set of skills.
The first part of the paper is a thorough job analysis of project managers. This part will combine literature review with research from our project managers on the type of skills that they think are most desirable. The second part will detail a training program for the project managers to improve their skills.
SECTION 2: Job analysis
Project Managers in Ledcor Company
Project management is one of the careers that have change constantly especially because of the advancement in technology. The traditional cycles in which project managers divided a project into manageable portions and followed a pre-determined pattern of execution are long gone. Price (2011) argues that project management has evolved especially because technology helps to “maintain control over projects through online project management applications centralize communication, milestones and task allocation” (54). While technology is very important in the current business environment, project managers in Ledcor Company rank communication and achieving clients’ objectives as the most important above the use of technology. Analysis shows that older employees are less concerned about communication and achieving customers’ objectives- probably because they have experience in that-and more concerned about adoption of technology. Conversely, younger employees feel that communication and clients’ objectives are the most pressing issues- pointing to inexperience in the same- and technology the least important. This part of the paper will detail specific results from the questionnaire we issued to project managers and an analysis of the same.
Survey of Areas of Improvement
A questionnaire was used to assess project managers’ skills levels. The questionnaire had three parts, each requesting for different information. The first part requested for personal details, excluding names, but encompassing the duration that the respondent has worked within the organization and his or her educational qualifications. On the second part of the questionnaire, we generated twenty skills and asked the respondents to rate how vital those skills are for a project manager. We also asked the respondent to rate, on a scale of 1 to 5, his or her proficiency against the twenty set of skills. The third and last part of the questionnaire sought to know from respondents the type of skills they deem most important going into the future.
Results of the Survey
Out of a hundred employees, eighty-nine filled and emailed back the questionnaire to the consultant who forwarded it to us. Out of the twenty skills that we had generated, nineteen have a weighted average score of more that four. Ninety percent of the respondents below 35 years rated communication as the most vital with a score of 4.9. This correlates with findings from Price (2011) who also established that communication skills rate highly among project managers. Respondents below 35 years rated project objectives as the second highest with a weighted average score of 4.7. To the same category, use of computer software in project management ranked least at 3.0. Conversely, older project managers give computer applications a high rank of 4.3.
The survey shows that respondents are comfortable with their levels in the twenty skills provided in the questionnaire. The high number of older respondents who recorded low weighted average score in computer applications and a similar number of younger project managers in communication skills necessitate the training program that this report will propose. The ability to meet clients’ objectives at the set cost and time, while rating high for respondents across different age, does not provide premise to develop a training program because many project managers rated their skills in the area highly.
Job Analysis and Discussion
The results show that Ledcor Company needs to conduct more training on communication skills of project managers. A big percent of the respondents in the survey indicated that they thought communication skills are the most important skills for project managers. In the self-assessment section, respondents rated their current levels of competence in communication as low. This reveals that developing a training program in communication for project managers is critical not just to the growth of our organization but its quintessential survival. The training in computer applications stems from realization that technology will drive our company in the future. It would therefore be foolhardy to assume that young employees are technology-savvy yet most cannot relate their grasp of technology to project management issues (Price, 2011).
The questionnaires requested respondents to fill in their academic background. From the analysis, we established that employees from the engineering background recorded among the least proficiency in communication. Those from other academic backgrounds such as business administration had more faith in their communication abilities. They were however short on use of computer applications and other aspects of project management skills. The training program therefore aims to bring the gap and create synergy between our employees from different professional backgrounds so that they can spur growth. It is however instructive to note that this research study is specific to our organization and may not apply to other organizations. It came about out of the need to harness the best out of our employees and achieve our organization’s objectives.
In use of computer applications, Ledcor employees have different proficiency in use of applications and software. Project management trainees’ program will be slightly different from that of senior project managers but will run concurrently. The focus will be on computer applications that are most relevant to project management. These applications aid in designing and monitoring projects. The training will be on-job and will take place over a span of time and in different venues. The paper will give the rationale for training methods that the report will suggest. The paper will also outline expected constrains.
Training in communication will also be on-job. As mentioned earlier, project managers from engineering background are the most lacking in communication skills. The program will cater for these individual differences by making some sessions more intense than others are. The training will be very interactive and will take place over a prolonged duration for purposes of evaluation. At the end of the training on communication and use of computer applications for project management, there will be an appraisal to determine the usefulness of the program. We will make participants aware of the evaluation and its impact in career appraisal.
SECTION 3
Training Program 1
The business environment is changing rapidly and those organizations that do not evolve risks being obsolete. Advancement in technology is the major drive in most of these changes. It is out of this realization that has compelled us to train our project managers in use of computer applications and software. The training program aims to empower our project managers to design, monitor, and communicate effectively with clients. For senior project managers, the training will equip them with the necessary skills to monitor projects without necessary travelling to the site. This program details instructional methods and strategies that we will employ to acquaint our program managers on Project and Portfolio Management Software.
Training Objectives
This program aims to equip program managers across all levels within our organization with IT skills vital in project management. We intend to gear our instructional strategies to the specific demands of our project managers. We appreciate that while some are novices, there are those who have interacted with computer application relevant to PM longer. We will put novices in their own categories so that learning is systematic and more helpful. Those familiar with software relevant to PM will receive a different form of training. We appreciate time and resources constrain but we are committed to working within our means to provide the best to the participants in the program. To circumvent these constrains, we have prepared the training to happen in a lab, seminar, through vendors, and online.
Training Content
- Methods of managing a project using IT- This stage is an introduction to the different software in project management. It will introduce participants to basic IT in project management and act as a refresher to those who have used it in the past. We plan to deliver this session in an open seminar as we allow participants to interact with different software and acquaint with each other. This session will take two hours so that we strike a good rapport with participants. The session is for beginners but we also expect portfolio project managers to take advantage of it to refresh their knowledge on the subject.
- Project Program Management for Project Managers- The session will give a description of software that project managers can use. This session is specifically suited for project managers. We anticipate that the session will unfold better in a laboratory so that users have the opportunity to try it. The crux of the training, we expect it to last for three years.
- PPM for senior managers- This session will focus on use of software in project management. It will be specific to those in senior project management position. The session will be online.
- PMM for other workers whose duty is not core to project management- This session will be for workers in various departments within the organization that are not project managers. It will be an overview of the software with details on common features and application. It will also be online.
- Clients’ training on PPM- We desire to move together with customers and hence their inclusion. The session emphasizes on how to access documents and request a project. The session will be online and will last for 15 minutes.
- Project approval- Session focuses on how managers can approve projects, monitor and evaluate through computer applications. The session will be online and continuous.
Training Program in Communication
The job analysis in the earlier part of this paper reveals that project managers view communication skills as among the most important skills in their work. Excellent communication skills facilitate interaction with clients, team members and other shareholders. This training program therefore aims to improve communication skills for employees in our organization so that their interactions with customers are of optimal benefits to all stakeholders. It aims to equip project managers with skills to communicate verbally, write good reports, and communicate well with colleagues especially during conflict resolution.
Training Objectives
The training program intends to equip project managers with the right skills for basic oral and written communication. It aims to pass across to participants a project communication model that is useful in facilitating interactions and conflict resolutions in project management office. It also intends to entrench an infrastructure for proper and effective communication. The training will be on-job and it is our intention to make it as interactive as possible so that we are able to evaluate participants on their situational communication skills.
Training Content
- Foundation of communication- This session will teach the definition of communication and the challenges in common communication. We will deliver this session in a seminar involving all the participants. Since it is an introductory session, it will be highly interactive as we assess participants’ communication abilities. The session will last four hours and will be open to all participants.
- Basic communication skills- This session will overview basic communication skills. These involve informal conversations between teammates, both orally and in written form. The session will also focus on basic writing skills such as reports to clients. This session will also unfold in a seminar where all be participants will be involved. The aim is to familiarize participants with nuances of communication that they overlook in every day conversations. It will take four hours and will be an open one.
- Interpersonal communication skills- This session will focus on interpersonal aspects of communication. It will delve into non-verbal cues and how proper communication can build trust. The session will unfold in an open ground where participants interact, share ideas, and try to look for non-verbal clues from their communication partners. The session will last for four hours.
- Team communication-The session will focus on how interpersonal communication impacts team communication. It will delve on how to conduct meetings in a manner that inspires trust. The session will explore team communication through modern technology. The session will unfold in a lab so that it is easy to evaluate participants’ team communication skills within a team that is culturally diverse. It will also make it possible to note the nuances within horizontal and vertical communication. It will be four hours long.
- Building effective communication infrastructure- The session will focus on how to come up with an effective communication infrastructure for the organization. It will also analyze how to manage project management documents, communicate with different stakeholders through virtual channels. The session will happen in a seminar and a lab for the purposes of diagnosing participants’ progress.
- Situational communication- This session shall overview how to conduct communication in hypothetical communication. Participants will be required to come up with communication templates that they can use in different situations. Like all the other communication session, it will last for four hours and will be open to all.
Learning Principles and Feedback
Repetition is a very important learning principle. The program discussed above is continuous and participants will have the benefits of acquainting participants with the knowledge. Is has been prepared in such as way as to encourage interaction. Training programs aim to fill knowledge gaps in employees’ performances. The two programs that we have proposed above will go a long way to equipping employees in our organization with skills for the 21st century. Computer application skills will give the organization an edge in a competitive business environment. Communication skills will ensure that we win more customers and serve those in our fold with more effectiveness.
For the first training on use of computer applications in project management, we plan to appraise participants by using assessment tests. The assessment will be both theoretical and practical. We will prepare tests to evaluate participants’ grasp of issues. Practical tests will be done in the lab under supervision so that it is possible to tell whether participants are relaxed while using the applications. We will request clients to make proposals in order to test whether the program has been useful or not. We will use peer assessment so that those who are more conversant assist the ones that are struggling. This way, every one will learn something even when they cannot answer the test questions.
For the second training program, we will conduct appraisals through observation. We plan to put participants in practical situations and observe how they communicate. We will ask for peer assessment so that participants can learn from their peers what their strengths and weaknesses in communication are. We will also ask participants to come up with communication templates to use in different situations.
Rationale for Training
Training project managers in computer applications and communication skills portends several benefits to Ledcor Company. To start with, it will cure the problem of employee turnover. Over years, the company has lost many employees to multinationals in Canada and USA. Training will improve employees’ confidence levels and reduce anxiety. The training program will be beneficial to project management trainees who are just beginning their career. It will offer an opportunity for senior managers to mentor beginners and hence the use of seminars for most part of the training. The company plans to develop a rotation program for employees so that they get a holistic understanding of the company. This training will go a long way into ensuring that employees can work comfortably in different departments.
Reference
Price, A. (2011). Human resource management. Andover: Cengage Learning EMEA.
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