An Evaluation of the Impact of Training and Development on Organisational Performance: A Case Study of the Gauteng Provincial Department of Economic Development

Abstract

Orientation: Organisations relies on the expertise, standard, competence and performance of its employees for it to offer effectual service delivery. However, the framework and administration of Training and Development has not advanced in parallel to the new and ever changing business needs. Research purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of Training and Development on organisational performance using a case study, literature review and statistics of the Department of Economic Development in the Gauteng Province. Motivation for the study: The motivation of this study is that the South African government department spends millions of Rand’s on Training and Development of its workforce, however, these departments continue to perform poorly. Research approach/design and method: This study used a descriptive quantitative research design. Data analysis employed descriptive statistics and inferential statistics and the sample included 131 employees. Main findings: The main findings of the study are that Training and Development has a positive impact on the performance of the employees in the department. The department provides Training and Development programmes that are not relevant to the tasks of employees. Training evaluation is the most ignored step in the training process and the department does not have a tool to measure the impact of training and development. Practical/managerial implications: The study proposed that the department should adopt Kirkpatrick’s model for evaluating training programmes and skills and knowledge learned from training should be considered. Contribution/value-add: This study will bring new scientific knowledge of the impact of Training and Development on organisational performance within the Gauteng Provincial Department of Economic Development.