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1 – 10 of over 3000In contemporary forensic mental health and learning disability services effective care and risk management, which is safe for individuals and the public, can only be delivered by…
Abstract
In contemporary forensic mental health and learning disability services effective care and risk management, which is safe for individuals and the public, can only be delivered by drawing upon differing perspectives and interventions. In practice uni‐disciplinary training abounds, but the authors found a lack of formal training inherently constructed to be multidisciplinary. Therefore, a course was developed, in conjunction with a university partner, to meet this need. This modular course is flexible in nature, but is normally delivered over one semester leading to certification. In addition, there is the option of either essay or portfolio submission providing access to credits toward other academic awards. This programme of study, ‘Professional Practice in Secure Environments’ was recently cited as an example of good practice in From Values to Action, the CNO review of mental health nursing (NIMHE, 2006). Modules begin from a foundation of theory and relate it intimately to practice; students develop an understanding of multidisciplinary working by both training together and training in each others' conceptual frameworks. Participants to date include those from health, criminal justice, and social care arenas, and those with no previous higher study have submitted essays. Evaluations are positive and are used to refine delivery and content. The authors conclude that the course demystifies practice and academia, and provides access to both. This is an integral part of the training strategy, which is directed to meeting current and future service needs.Current and future developments and expansion of forensic mental health provision into new types of service will be less effective without a move away from traditional educational approaches. Services to meet the specific needs of groups such as secure long‐stay and personality disorders cannot be sustained effectively without a parallel development of new types of training.The strategic thinking behind this course, practical obstacles encountered, and solutions developed are described in this paper.
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Conrad Lashley and Warwick Best
The process whereby new recruits are brought into the firm is an important element of human resource management practice. If done well, it can help to retain the new employee and…
Abstract
The process whereby new recruits are brought into the firm is an important element of human resource management practice. If done well, it can help to retain the new employee and reduce staff turnover. Shows that a cross‐section of firms in the sector now have some form of staff induction programme in place. In most cases, the induction programme is short‐lived and focused on job role and administrative procedures. The survey of these firms suggests that there is a need to embrace best practice from other sectors of the retailing industry, in particular, the recognition that well‐planned and structured induction can play an important role in bringing down staff turnover. However, induction is best seen as a process that commences before the employee starts work and extends through the first two or three months of employment. In the very best instances the new recruit is deliberately eased into the new job. Unit managers play a vital role in delivering the immediate induction programme and management programmes need to ensure that unit managers are themselves trained to train and their performance is monitored.
Deborah E.M. Mulders, Peter A.J. Berends and A. Georges L. Romme
The dynamic capability view serves to explain how particular practices ensure the firm's performance and competitiveness within a continuously changing environment. In this paper…
Abstract
Purpose
The dynamic capability view serves to explain how particular practices ensure the firm's performance and competitiveness within a continuously changing environment. In this paper, the staff induction processes of two small firms in The Netherlands (management consultancy and biotech (BT) start‐up) are examined from a practice‐based view. The authors explore whether the staff induction processes of these firms can be regarded as practices, and if so, whether and how these firms have developed a dynamic capability in staff induction.
Design/methodology/approach
Case studies are conducted in the management consultancy and biotechnology sectors to explore the practising of dynamic capability.
Findings
The findings suggest small firms can effectively develop and master their staff induction processes (as practices), but do this on the basis of ad hoc problem solving rather than a dynamic capability. If small firms develop any dynamic capability at all, they apparently do so towards specialized resources and processes that are perceived as most critical to the firm's continuity and performance (e.g. product development in the case of the BT firm). As such, this study confirms Winter's hypothesis about the fundamentally different cost structures of dynamic capabilities and ad hoc problem solving, which explains why dynamic capabilities tend to be rare and ad hoc problem solving prevails in many small organizations.
Originality/value
The paper examines the interaction between staff induction practices, dynamic capabilities, learning strategies, and ad hoc problem solving in two small firms. Implications for practitioners are that consciously engaging in learning strategies helps to adapt practices and build a dynamic capability in staff induction.
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Thomas N. Garavan, John P. Wilson, Christine Cross, Ronan Carbery, Inga Sieben, Andries de Grip, Christer Strandberg, Claire Gubbins, Valerie Shanahan, Carole Hogan, Martin McCracken and Norma Heaton
Utilising data from 18 in‐depth case studies, this study seeks to explore training, development and human resource development (HRD) practices in European call centres. It aims to…
Abstract
Purpose
Utilising data from 18 in‐depth case studies, this study seeks to explore training, development and human resource development (HRD) practices in European call centres. It aims to argue that the complexity and diversity of training, development and HRD practices is best understood by studying the multilayered contexts within which call centres operate. Call centres operate as open systems and training, development and HRD practices are influenced by environmental, strategic, organisational and temporal conditions.
Design/methodology/approach
The study utilised a range of research methods, including in‐depth interviews with multiple stakeholders, documentary analysis and observation. The study was conducted over a two‐year period.
Findings
The results indicate that normative models of HRD are not particularly valuable and that training, development and HRD in call centres is emergent and highly complex.
Originality/value
This study represents one of the first studies to investigate training and development and HRD practices and systems in European call centres.
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This paper aims to describe a new induction process at the Co‐operative Group which is enthusing recruits, increasing their engagement with the organization and its values and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to describe a new induction process at the Co‐operative Group which is enthusing recruits, increasing their engagement with the organization and its values and reducing employee turnover.
Design/methodology/approach
It explains the reasons for the program, the form it takes and the results it is achieving.
Findings
The paper reveals that employee engagement at the group's head office has risen from 78 percent to 85 percent. Head‐office staff turnover has fallen to 4.5 percent. New employees are enthusiastic about the induction process and the Co‐operative as an employer. Positive feedback on the process has risen by 50 percent. At £250 a head, the induction process is proving to be great value for money.
Practical implications
This paper explains that there is a good balance between health and safety requirements, business continuity, data protection and welcoming new people to a diverse organization. Managers are more aware of their responsibilities and carry them out in a diligent way to ensure that the Co‐op keeps a safe working environment for its entire head‐office staff.
Social implications
It reveals that feedback from HR, training and membership colleagues from across the group, and in other co‐operatives, indicates that the tools developed will be of value to the wider co‐operative movement – saving time and development costs and bringing some consistency, where appropriate.
Originality/value
The paper provides the inside story of an award‐winning induction process at the Co‐operative Group.
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In this time of financial cutbacks, when the need to reduce costs of all kinds has become an obsession, it is extraordinary that many companies are still wasting vast amounts of…
Abstract
In this time of financial cutbacks, when the need to reduce costs of all kinds has become an obsession, it is extraordinary that many companies are still wasting vast amounts of money in staging ineffectual management seminars for their executives or sending them on long and expensive external courses. Is it not the perfect opportunity to look at one way in which, with the minimum of effort, time and cost, companies could begin to operate more efficiently, and managers could have more time to manage, to do the jobs for which they were appointed? I'm talking about the effective use of office staff and the need to reduce admin costs while at the same time getting the maximum return on investment in people and keeping them motivated and learning.
In the last ten years the UK labour market has undergone a series of significant changes which have important implications for those involved in training. This monograph explains…
Abstract
In the last ten years the UK labour market has undergone a series of significant changes which have important implications for those involved in training. This monograph explains the implications of the growth of part‐time employment before presenting the results from a survey of employers and institutions, such as the MSC, regarding the provision of training for part‐time workers, and makes some comparisons with the situation in other countries. Certain issues are raised which may provide a basis for different policies in the future. The question of whether or not technological change is likely to lead to greater part‐time employment, and in particular more part‐time work by males, is also discussed.
Describes a new induction program at a Scottish and Southern Energy contact centre, which has slashed staff attrition and helped to double customer‐satisfaction ratings.
Abstract
Purpose
Describes a new induction program at a Scottish and Southern Energy contact centre, which has slashed staff attrition and helped to double customer‐satisfaction ratings.
Design/methodology/approach
Contrasts the old, 12‐week induction program, which was heavily geared towards imparting knowledge, with the new five‐week program, which is more concerned with developing skills. Presents the views of the managing director of the training company responsible for reforming the induction program, and comments from Scottish and Southern Energy executives.
Findings
Reveals that recruitment costs have fallen by £60,000 a month, customer‐satisfaction ratings for calls handled by new starters have risen from around 40 percent to around 80 percent, and new employees take less sickness absence.
Practical implications
Provides plenty to interest call‐centre managers struggling to reduce high levels of employee turnover.
Originality/value
Describes how the new induction program is helping to change the organizational culture among established call‐centre employees.
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Elena P. Antonacopoulou and Wolfgang H. Güttel
Socialization is one of the fundamental processes that define how collectivities emerge. Socialization underpins the social structures that shape not only how social actors…
Abstract
Purpose
Socialization is one of the fundamental processes that define how collectivities emerge. Socialization underpins the social structures that shape not only how social actors interact in community but also the boundaries of action and the rules of engagement. In the context of organizations, socialization is a process that significantly shapes organization in the way core practices shape how things are done and why they are done in particular ways. This emphasis on consistency within and between practices is seen to be greatly facilitated by specific practices like staff induction. The purpose of this paper is to review the current conceptual and empirical research on staff induction as a process of organizational socialization and outlines some of the areas for future research particularly if a social practice perspective is adopted.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents a systematic review of the relevant literature on organizational socialization and staff induction and outlines themes to which the debate can usefully be extended.
Findings
This paper focuses on how staff induction practices provide valuable insights about how social agents (especially newcomers) get socialized in organizations.
Research limitations/implications
This paper provides a foundation for the various staff induction practices that other papers in this issue will be presenting. By outlining the current debate and insights from previous empirical research on staff induction, the objective is to extend the debate by outlining some new avenues for research that papers in the special issue both respond to and further explicate.
Originality/value
This paper explores staff induction and organizational socialization as a practice that can provide new insights into the dynamics of social interaction within organizations.
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– Explains the advantages brought by e-learning to Bluebird Care, a provider of care in the home.
Abstract
Purpose
Explains the advantages brought by e-learning to Bluebird Care, a provider of care in the home.
Design/methodology/approach
Explores the reasons for the adoption of e-learning and describes the way in which it has been implemented.
Findings
Reveals that e-learning courses were implemented for new recruits as part of the induction process, to ensure key skills are gained before staff go into the home. The solution was rolled out to all care workers as an integral part of ongoing career development.
Practical implications
Charts improvements in the recruitment process and staff retention to maintain high levels of customer care. Time from interview to induction training fell from over one month to one and a half weeks, following the introduction of e-learning courses for new starters. Overall training costs have fallen and staff retention has increased through improved access to information and a clear career-development program.
Originality/value
Gives the inside story of the introduction of e-learning at a major provider of care in the home.
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