Learning
and Development has a significant impact on the organization in numerous
aspects. The most important being the influence it has on the bottom line (Armstrong and Taylor 2014). This highlights the
reason why organizations invest on Learning and development with the aim of
increasing performance level of employees. According to Rodriguez and Walters (2017) the direct expenditure per employee on
Learning and development has increased immensely within the recent years.
As delivered by Armstrong and Taylor (2014) attract and
retain employees by enabling them to obtain high job satisfaction and progress
within the organization, provide managers with skills to lead, manage and
develop their employees, provide positive culture in the organization, provide
higher level and quality service to the customer and perceive innovative ways
of solving problems and decision making are some of the aims in facilitating
Learning and development in the modern organization.
Aviation industry remains as one of the most dynamic
industries in the world. The industry’s interconnection with global trade and
tourism is quite a strong one. Commercial aircraft design,
operation and manufacturing has seen significant developments over the previous
decades. Hence, the commercial
aviation industry can be identified as extremely competitive, safe sensitive
and a high technology service industry(Appelbaum and Fewster, 2004).
Numerous
authors for many years have emphasized the importance of Learning and
Development to an organization. Although, the practical implications of L&D
is very less visible (Harrison, 2012). Pourdehnad and Smith (2012) states that
there is much that could be learned from Aviation industry about organizational
learning that could be applied by organizations to meet the demands of bottom
line sustainability. Therefore, it is evident that, commercial aviation
industry nurtures a learning culture and that Learning and Development is
promoted to gain employee commitment in order to foster excellence in safety
customer service. A recent study by Yoke Soo (2018)
revealed that considerations should be made in
relation to manual flying skills and instruction of aircraft automated systems
and it showed that pilot social skills need
further development/instruction.
Another recent study by Gibbs, Slevitch and Washburn (2017) shows that, with passengers mostly rating airlines based on the in- flight service and flight attendants associating longest period of time with the customer, factors that affect passenger satisfaction can be controlled and improved by training. Therefore, it claims, whether it be pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers, flight attendants or cargo personnel there is always scope for Learning and development and continual growth.
Safety
and airworthiness concerned as top priority, aviation maintenance industry
considers learning and development crucial when it comes to managing effective
maintenance and continuing airworthiness. As stated by Clair and Kourousis
(2021) the ability to learn from previous events (errors, accidents etc.) with
the objective of preventing similar events in future is of high value with
having a mechanism for reporting incidents and developing of learning material
in the aviation maintenance industry.
The
organization that I am employed at is a leading airline and I work for the Maintenance
Department, the aircraft maintenance arm of the organization as a Licensed
Aircraft Engineer. The department has been able to contribute immensely in
generating revenue and reducing costs for the organization despite the
challenging times (Annual Reports| Airline Industry| SriLankan Airlines,
2019/2020). This was achieved through continuous
Learning and development activities involved and training provided to enhance
skills knowledge and competency as well as improve the management and
leadership role.
The
airline is capable of conducting heavy maintenance checks on Airbus A320/A321
family, Airbus 330-200 & A330- 300 and Airbus A320/A321 Neo aircrafts as
well as CFM 56 – 5B, V2500, CFM LEAP 1A engine and Trent 700 engines. This was
possible with the required continuous training provided on competency, skill
and knowledge to the base maintenance staff. Adding further to this, if the
said MROs (Maintenance Repair and Operations) were to be outsourced it would
incur high costs. Thus, the profits would decrease immensely. With the
appropriate training on skills and knowledge given to its employees have
reduced costs and generated revenue (Author’s, work 2021).
With the required training on procedure given to its employees the airline has been able to carry out 3rd party aircraft maintenance for customer airlines from the region such as Air Blue, Air Seychelles and Maldivian Air. This has generated a significant revenue for the organization in the years 2019/2020 (Annual Reports| Airline Industry| SriLankan Airlines, 2019/2020).
Given the required training, engineering division was successfully able to expand its workshop approvals in 2019/2020, enabling the in-house performance of a number of previously outsourced maintenance tasks such as aircraft component maintenance and structural maintenance tasks (Annual Reports| Airline Industry| SriLankan Airlines, 2019/2020). This once again was a great achievement of the Engineering in terms of cost and waste reduction and enhancing revenue generation (Author’s, work 2021).
List of References
Annual Reports| Airline Industry| SriLankan Airlines (2020). Available at<https://www.srilankan.com/en_uk/coporate/annual-reports.>. [Accessed on 8th August 2021].
Appelbaum, S. H. and Fewster, B. M. (2004) Safety and
customer service: contemporary practices in diversity, organizational
development and training and development in the global civil aviation industry.
Management Research News, 27(10), pp. 1–26 [Online]. Available at<https://doi.org/10.1108/01409170410784301.>.
[Accessed on 7th August 2021] doi: 10.1108/01409170410784301.
Armstrong,
M. and Taylor, S. (2014) Armstrong
Handbook of Human Resource Practice. 13th ed. New Delhi, Kongan
Page Limited.
Clare, J. and Kourousis, K. I. (2021) Learning from incidents
in aircraft maintenance and continuing airworthiness: regulation, practice and
gaps. Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, 93(2), pp. 338-346 [Online].
Available at <https://doi.org/10.1108/AEAT-06-2020-0114.>. [Accessed on 7th
August 2021].
Gibbs, L., Slevitch, L. and Washburn, I. (2017) Competency-based
training in aviation: the impact on flight attendant performance and passenger satisfaction.
Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education and Research, 26(2), pp.55-80
[Online]. Available at < https://commons.erau.edu.>. [Accessed on 7th
August 2021].
Harrison, R (2009) Learning and Development, 5th
edn, London, CIPD.
Pourdehnad, J. and Smith, P. A. C. (2012) Sustainability,
organizational learning, and lessons learned from aviation. The Learning
Organization, 19(1), pp. 77–86. doi: 10.1108/09696471211190374.
Rodriguez, J. and Walters, K. (2017) The importance of training
and development in employee performance and evaluation. International
Journal Peer Reviewed Journal Refereed Journal Indexed Journal UGC Approved
Journal Impact Factor, 3(10), pp. 206–212 [Online]. Available at < www.researchgate.net.>.
[Accessed on 7th August 2021].
Yoke Soo, K. K. (2018) The learning and development process of pilots during initial airline training. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 72(4), pp. 624–624 [Online]. Available at < https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au.>. [Accessed on 7th August 2021]. doi: 10.1080/13636820.2020.1771106.
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Agree with you Shanil. It is definitely an investment which will be realized in time to come not only in the form of productivity but also commitment, psychological contract and employee retention (Sahinidis and Bouris, 2007).
ReplyDeleteAgreed. In the past, learning focused mainly on improving productivity. The trend has changed as workers are now in charge of their personal and professional growth and development and seek opportunities for learning and development (Brassey,Christensen and Dam 2019). Thus it is evident that L&D aids to attract and retain talent in organizations.
DeleteAgreed. 70% of aviation accidents occurred due to human errors. Learning is an essential factor of aviation. Enhancement of decision-making capabilities of pilots and partners is vital. Accordingly to Falconer (2006, p79) cited by Krause (1998), the DECIDE model stands for Detect, Estimate, Identify, Do, Evaluate. All the evidence similarly prove the argument that you have made.
ReplyDeleteThe ability to learn from previous events in with the objective of preventing future similar events is a valuable feature of aviation safety systems. Through organizational and procedural continuous training programs, many regulatory requirements clearly establish a structure for the use of learning content (Clare, and Kourousi, 2021).
DeleteIt is, without a doubt, an investment that will pay off in the long run, not just in terms of productivity but also in terms of commitment, psychological contract, and staff retention (Sahinidis and Bouris, 2007). According to Beer, Finnstrom, and Schrader (2016), US corporations spent 164.2 billion dollars on training programmes in 2012, which is more than twice the GDP of Sri Lanka in 2018 (CBSL,2019). This shows how much investors value employee training and development, and that organisations prioritise employee training.
ReplyDeleteYes Menupa. In the present day, most of the companies are investing a great deal on the training and development of employees in order to remain competitive and successful. The importance of training for employees is rapidly growing and organizations are using L&D as a strategy to compete with their competitors in the market. Further employees are not seeking only for financial profits from their work but on the underlying benefits of their professions (Jehanzeb & Bashir 2013).
DeleteYes Shanil, Training and development have become very crucial in the airlines sector as the concerns related to safety and comforts of passengers are executed effectively. Training also assists the employees for identifying the field of improvement which assist the staff to gain skills ad attributes for their future growth (Beena & Kumar, 2019).
ReplyDeleteAviation is a field, that requires constant training and it has a major impact on the proper functioning of the entire industry. Most trainings in the airline sector were developed to ensure the highest level of security. The safety of flying operations is ensured by properly and completely trained workers. (Michał, 2014)
DeleteEspecially in the airline sector, well-trained employees can deliver a better service to the customer. Further, one of the objectives of L & D in the airline sector is to confirm the 100% safety of passengers and give maximum comfort (Beena & Kumar, 2019)
ReplyDeleteIn the study conducted by Clare, and Kourousi, (2021) states that in the aviation industry, especially in aviation maintenance staff is required to obtain refresher training at least every two years, according to regulations. Thus, is evident that aviation industry is highly focused on training their workers.
DeleteAccording to Elena (2000) it is an indication of care and desire to grow employees by the organization which motivates the employees to perform more for the organization.
ReplyDeleteEmployee learning and development is a tool that not only improves the competences needed to perform a job, but also helps individuals feel more content with the outcomes of their work (Rodriguez and Walters, 2017) .
DeleteHigh-performing organizations have healthy and engaged employees. Their work environments are designed to enable the development and utilization of the “people capacity” required for success (Lowe 2010).
ReplyDeleteLearning is a responsibility shared by all employees. Supervisors and peers, as well as training professionals, are actively involved in assisting others in gaining new skills and views. This helps to reflect the importance of learning and its value to the company (Noe, 2010).
DeleteYes,Training and development is an important element which is concerned with organizational activity focused at improving the employees’ performance in work place. It is a combined function, called human resources development (HRD) meaning the development of “Human” resources to retain the competitive in the marketplace (Vinesh, 2015).
ReplyDeleteAccording to Noe (2010) when employees are given opportunities to learn and develop it creates a positive work environment, which supports the business strategy. It is achieved by attracting talented employees as well as motivating and retaining current employees.
DeleteAgreed on your view that enabling employees to acquire skills will have a positive impact on the organization. According to Brassey,Christensen and Dam (2019) the most effective method to keep employees engaged is to give them opportunity to learn and develop new skills. When highly engaged employees are challenged and given the skills to grow and develop within their chosen career path, they tend to take up challenges at work and be more energized and content with their organization.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYes. Achieving high-performance outcomes is crucial for organizations, and therefore, creating an enabling environment that promotes strict adherence to a learning culture, team learning and collaborations will play a crucial role in learning organization performance and also in empowering employees toward a collective vision (Watkins and Marsick, 2019)
ReplyDeleteAgreed. Further, studies have proven the positive effects of informal learning on the performance of the organization (Peterson and Millier, 2005). Brown (2006) observed that senior managers in UK have developed a strong preference for various informal development methods such as networking with peer, group problem-solving, presentation / lectures and coaching.
ReplyDeleteTraining and development, on-the-job training, training design, and delivery style all have an impact on organizational performance, and they all have a positive effect(Khan,Khan and Khan, 2011).
DeleteGerevbie (2010) describes, Human factor is the main path to organization's target. Hence it is vital to carry out necessary training to all new and old employees, to help them steer their attitudes towards the organizational goals
ReplyDeleteCommunication, technical skills, customer service, diversity, morality and ethics, good relations with others, quality initiatives, safety and well-being, laws and policies, and job duties are the key areas in which learning and development takes place within organizations, according to Kapur (2020). Employees in organizations are required to upgrade and enhance their skills and talents in various areas over the course of their employment.
DeleteTraining is transferring information to organization’s members to positively improve the effectiveness and productivity of organizations (Leard, 2010). Training enables organizations to act more effectively because of having valued employees. Training is also needed to develop new leaders (Noe, 2002). According to the Aviation Australia(2017) training guidance, basic engineering courses are with more hands-on to make them job ready with practical experience and hand skills.
ReplyDeleteAs per kishor (2011),Learning and development strategy represents an approach an organization adopts to ensure that the activities related to learning and development support the achievement of goals and objectives. In other words, when the individuals will be able to augment their knowledge and skills, they will be able to make use of them in the achievement of desired goals and objectives.
ReplyDelete