Effective Training: Systems, Strategies and Practices, Second Edition [Paperback]

P. Nick Blanchard (Author), James W Thacker (Author), Nick P Blanchard (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0130327395 | ISBN-13: 978-0130327390 | Publication Date: August 22, 2003 | Edition: 2

For undergraduate and graduate courses in Human Resources Development, Human Resources Management, and Organizational Training. This text, both academic and practical, discusses theory and principles of training as they relate to organizational objectives and strategies. This new edition emphasizes the value of developing training programs, with examples provided for both large and small organizations, relating training to the overall strategy of a firm.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Effective Training, Second Edition, discusses theory and principles of training as they relate to organizational objectives and strategies. This new edition emphasizes the value of developing training programs that relate training to the overall strategy of a firm.

• NEW—New chapter on important types of training programs—This chapter addresses orientation, diversity, sexual harassment, and team-training.
• NEW—Expanded examples of training objectives— Comprehensive comparative tables of poor training objectives examples, show how to take poor training objectives and develop better ones.
• NEW—"How to actually do it" sections—These sections use real training situations, with step-by-step instructions from inception to evaluation.
• Design theory—Effective Training is the only text on the market that provides guidance in training design using this theory.
• A comprehensive model of the training process—By using this model of the training process, students are able to apply what they learned to study the various programs presented.
• Strategic approach—The strategic approach puts training into the larger context of an organization's overall objectives and strategy.

About the Author

Nick Blanchard completed his undergraduate studies in psychology at UCLA and his doctorate in industrial and organizational psychology at Wayne State University. He has served as head of the Management Department, Associate Dean, and is currently interim Dean and Professor of Management at Eastern Michigan University's College of Business. Among his accomplishments is the development, management, and continuous improvement of the on-site MBA program with corporate partner, Masco Corp. Nick's writings appear in both scholarly and applied publications. His earlier training text, Toward a More Organizationally Effective Training Strategy and Practice, was also published by Prentice Hall in 1986. He served as consultant and trainer to many organizations including Bethlehem Steel, Chrysler Corporation, Domtar Gypsum, Ford Motor Company, and various local and state government agencies.

Jim Thacker received an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Winnipeg in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and his doctorate in industrial and organizational psychology from Wayne State University. He is currently a professor at the University of Windsor's Odette School of Business. His research has been published in both academic (Journal of Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, Academy of Management Journal) and practitioner (Journal of Managerial Psychology The Human Resource Consultation: An International Journal) journals. He also coauthored the first Canadian edition of the text Managing Human Resources with Wayne Cascio, published in 1994. He has been a consultant and trainer in the private sector (Michigan Bell, Ford, Hiram Walker's, Navistar, H.J. Heinz) and public sector (Revenue Canada, CanAm Friendship Center). Prior to obtaining his doctorate, Jim worked for a gas utility as a tradesman and served as vice president of his local union (Oil, Chemical, and Atomic Workers) for a number of years. This firsthand experience as a tradesman and union official combined with his consulting and academic credentials provides Jim with a unique combination of perspectives and skills.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 500 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 2 edition (August 22, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0130327395
• ISBN-13: 978-0130327390
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,215,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Just the facts, ma'am..., February 6, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Effective Training: Systems, Strategies and Practices (Hardcover)

I'm currently using this as a college textbook. It's taken me three weeks to work through three chapters. After two weeks, I ended up skimming over the 2nd and 3rd chapters just to make it through without stopping 4 or 5 times wondering what it was I was reading. I can see it's loaded with important information, but it's an effort to stay focused. The headings and subheadings are bland and repetitive. I often feel like I'm rereading a section, but how can I tell when sections I've read aren't memorable? The authors also show a knack for stating the obvious. For instance, "Identifying the required KSAs is not as obvious, but they are still relatively easy to obtain, by examining each task and asking the question, 'What knowledge, skills, and/or attitudes are necessary to perform a particular task?'" (p.143).

I find it ironic that a book that is attempting to teach people how to make training pertinent and interesting to others is itself uninteresting. This is a book for those who just want the facts and don't care if the writing and presentation are lively or engaging.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Clear but..., October 24, 2007

By 

Sanne Peeters (Belgium) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Effective Training: Systems, Strategies and Practices (3rd Edition) (Paperback)

I had to read this book for my studies in Belgium, so for us, the English is sometimes hard. I had to use my dictionnary quite alot while reading the first 2 chapters. But then it got easier: the same words are repeated so I didn't need my dictionnary anymore; at lest not that often.

The book provides lots of examples and those make you think about what you've just read and that's interesting. The authors explain something and then give an example; to make sure you really get it. I thought that was very useful!

The book is clearly divided in sub-categories and that makes it easy to understand and read the book.

Although it's an expensive book (in Belgium is was even 30 dollars more expensive!) I think it's worth the money... You get a good insight in how organisations work and stuff like that.