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Meenakshi: - Evaluating the effectiveness of training programs in commercial banks for the advancement & improvement in present scenario of banking sector

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Volume -1 Issue -4, December 2013. ID: IJIFR/V1/E4/040

101

ISSN (Online):2347-1697 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFORMATIVE AND FUTURISTIC RESEARCH ( IJIFR)

Volume -1 Issue -4, December 2013 Research Area: commerce, Page No.: 101-112

Evaluating the effectiveness of training programs in commercial banks for

the advancement & improvement in present scenario of banking sector

Meenakshi

PhD Research Scholar

Department of Commerce

Shri Venkateshwara University, Gajraula

Abstract

The study of the researcher is about evaluating the effectiveness of training in commercial

banks. It is aimed to bring out those innovative and best human resource practices developed

and found successful that made banks more competitive in the present competitive banking

environment where they want to gain competitive advantage over the rival banks in order to

attract and retain the talents. With the kind of reforms and the resulting changes that are

currently overawing the Indian banks, the urgency to inculcate such competencies among the

workforce is getting intensified in the banking sector. Evaluation of training program would

enable organization find out whether or not the training has achieved its purpose, and

objectives. The study makes an attempt in exploring and analysing different perceptions of

partners of training in the area of Banking. The role of banks is essentially carried out by the

people and therefore it is essential to have a well – trained and motivated staff to manage the

banking operations. All the above-mentioned aspects impressed the researcher to study the

existing Training Methods and their effectiveness in selected public and private sector banks

and come out with recommendations for future.

Key Words: Commercial Banks, Training Programs, Improvement, Effectiveness, Satisfaction, Evaluation, Organization Development, Management Process

1 Introduction

In the present day society, the need for well-developed and qualified human resources is being felt

very profoundly to successfully face cut-throat competition. This is because the modern commercial

and industrial scenario is characterized by mega-sized organizations, global competitions, innovative

and newer wide variety of goods and services and ever changing technology. The quest for knowledge

for enlightenment is universal, so is change fundamental for the progress of a dynamic society. In the

Indian context, to the bankers as partners in the economic development process, every change is a

challenge to be met and knowledge provides the strength to convert these challenges into

opportunities. But to so do, knowledge needs to be transformed into skills and this is a function of

training. Viewed in this context, training becomes an investment in "Knowledge Capital". Evaluation

of training can also be done by measuring the impact of a training program on working of the unit or

department where the trainees come from. The truth is that every training program should have effect

not only on the employees who went for the training but the department or the unit where the trainees

come from. The question of the amount of training needs assessment and the effect of training is

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Volume -1 Issue -4, December 2013 Research Area: Commerce, Page No.: 101-112

answered through evaluation process. The purpose of training need assessment is to add value to an

organization. Hence, evaluation measures the progress in achieving this goal by purposefully

improving training programs and measuring their worth. Finally evaluation of training program can

also be done by looking at the impact of the training program on the entire organization. The

assumption is that the organization pays for employee training program and the organization should

feel the impact or the effect of the training program. Therefore, training program should be evaluated

starting from the effects of the training on the employees who participated in the training program to

the department or unit they work with and the ultimate effect on the organization. In this scenario, the

researcher has become more curious to make a study of the training practices in commercial banks so

as to understand the real state of affairs. The study is conducted mainly to find out the Effectiveness

of Training in selected public and private sector banks in Ambala city, Haryana.

2 Literature Review

Training is one of the most important strategies for organizations to help employees gain proper

knowledge and skills needed to meet the challenges in an organizational environment (Rosow and

Zager, 1988; and Goldstein and Gilliam, 1990). According to Armstrong (1995) there are a wide

variety of training techniques that can be used. These can be divided into: On-the-job techniques,

which are practiced on a day-to-day basis or as part of a specially tailored training program. These

include job rotation, planned experience and mentoring. Off-the-job techniques, which are used in

formal training course away from the place of work. These include lectures, talks, simulation, case

study, role playing, workshops etc. The author emphasized that while evaluating training, instead of

just studying the reactions of the trainees, the study could be carried out in four different levels viz.,

i.e., reaction, learning, behaviour and results. The author’s guidelines and discussions on each level of

evaluation of training are worth mentioning. Fajana (1997) argues that the important thing in choosing

training methods is to recognize the nature of the training that will take place and facilitate it.

According to him, the biggest problem in training methods lies in the failure to realize the distinction

between learning theory and principles, and "how to" in practice.When the people grow to a point

where they are ready for responsibilities beyond their initial assignment, training and development

becomes imperative. Badhu and Saxena (1999) role of Training in Developing Human Resources is

another work of relevance. In this, the authors concluded that an organization should have well-

defined training policy as well as training manual and training should be made an ongoing process.

However, Goldstein (2001) claims that, of all of the best practices, needs assessment is probably the

most important part of the process. Therefore, training needs assessment is the foundation of the entire

instructional design process. Klink and Streumer (2002) examined the effectiveness of on-the-job

training and some potential factors that explain effectiveness of two samples drawn from two Dutch

companies. The first sample consisted of 36 tele-sales staff who were trained to improve the quality of

the telephone sales call, with the underlying objective of increasing sales. Khandelwal (2005) states

that the challenge before the banks is not only to produce employees with multi-skills and

applications, but also to develop these skills on a continuous basis. Ramu (2006) states that designing

and implementing effective training and development systems is a particular challenge because all the

costs are borne in the present, while all the benefits will be accrued in the future.Nagar (2009)

empirically examines training programs in staff training centers of State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur






103



(Udaipur) and The Bank of Rajasthan Ltd. (Jaipur). The author highlights that a systematically

designed training program helps in motivating the trainees towards effective learning. Karthikeyan et

al. (2010) empirically examine the training methods and their effectiveness in selected public and

private sector banks, namely, State Bank of India (SBI), Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Indian Bank,

Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI) Bank, Housing Development Finance

Corporation (HDFC) Bank, and City Union Bank and conclude that the overall effectiveness of

training is quite high and that training contributes to the growth and better performance of the banks.

3 Organization Training and Development Philosophy

Philosophy is the starting point to wisdom. Any organization that does not have a training philosophy

is bound to fail for it invariably means that it does not have a serious approach for training. It may

also mean that the organization pays lip service to training. If an organization does not have a training

philosophy, it means that the organization does not believe in training. If an organization does not

believe in training, it also means that there is no deliberate effort on the part of the organization to

encourage training.

Strategic Focus in Training: Training activities in an organization should be a continuous process

and not a once and for all activity. It is an on-going process for new, old, transferred and promoted

employees. According to Armstrong (1995) training strategy takes a long- term view of what skills,

knowledge and levels of competence employees of the organization need. Training should be an

integral part of the management process which in turn requires managers to review regularly with

their teams and the individuals reporting to them, performance in relation to agreed objectives.

Relevance of Training: Relevance of training is a very important issue that organizations should look

critically at if they really want to improve the effectiveness of their employees. Any training program

that is not relevant should not be undertaken. Training should be designed to solve problems and to

fill gaps in employee performance. Training should make things happen and bring about changes that

would enhance organization’s effectiveness. It is not proper for an organization to embark on any

training program which is not relevant to it and its people.

4 Objectives of the study

The following are the objectives of the study:

To study about the training and development programmes offered for Commercial Bank

employees

To evaluate the effectiveness of the training and development programmes

To ascertain satisfaction levels of employees on improving the present system

To seek the suggestions from by the employees on improving the present system

To analyse the effectiveness of Training in selected banks in Ambala district, Haryana

To find the association between effectiveness of training and growth and result of banks

5 Research Methodology

The study encompassed primary data collection from three categories of respondent’s viz. Trainees,

Trainers (faculty) and Training Administrators. The trainees comprise of officers and Managers at the

branch level. For the present study only officer cadre was selected, who incidentally key decision are






104



making strata at the operational/field level of the banks. The data was collected by the questionnaire

method. A well-structured questionnaire was used to collect the primary data. For designing an

effective questionnaire for the study, it was felt necessary to test the validity of the questionnaire. This

was done by a pilot study consisting of visits to different branches of the selected six banks for this

study developing a draft questionnaire and getting opinion of the bank employees on the draft

questionnaire. The questionnaire also included few questions about the demographic variables such as

age, qualifications and designation These were used as independent variables to assess the impact of

them on the emerged factors of the study. The questionnaire was finalized based on the comments and

suggestions of the bank employees and also the enhanced exposure of the researcher based on the

field visits to various banks. Secondary data for the study were collected from reputed journals,

magazines, websites and bank records. Total sample size for this study is 512 respondents. It consists

of 454 respondents of clerical cadre and 58 respondents of managerial cadre in banks. The study of

the researcher is about evaluating the effectiveness of training in commercial banks. The study makes

an attempt in exploring and analysing different perceptions of partners of training in the area of

Banking. It is a compact, inclusive, deep and intensive study of the commercial banks functioning in

AMBALA city The area and the period covered by the study are extensive The method adopted by the

researcher for this study is "Survey Method". The research design followed is descriptive design

under which survey method has been adopted. The primary and secondary data collected from

different sources have been tabulated and interpreted meaningfully. The information has been

represented using bar charts, pie diagrams, graphical method etc. The researcher has used both

primary and secondary data to achieve the research objectives

Primary data includes data collected through questionnaire filled by the bank employees.

The secondary data are collected from published papers, journals, books. Articles, reports of

the committee on staff training and manpower development in banks to Indian Bank's

Association and RBI Bulletin.

Random sampling of employees from different banks like HDFC, ICICI, Vijaya bank, Bank

of Baroda, Dena Bank.

6 Analyses and Interpretation

A total of 427 respondents participated in the survey. They belong to different banks (from both

public as well as private sector), different age groups, and different levels of seniority and expertise

and from both sexes. A detailed distribution of the respondents on the basis of the demographic

parameters such as age, gender and designation is presented below.\

6.1 Age

The distribution of the respondents on the basis of Age has been analysed. It is found that the

respondents were distributed more or less evenly between the different age groups. However, the bank

wise analysis shows a huge difference in the age category of public as well as private sector banks.

Table1: Distribution of Bank staff on the basis of Age






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Category Public Sector Banks Private Sector Banks Total

No % No % No %

20-30 12 4.12 67 49.26 79 18.5

30-40 71 24.4 17 12.5 88 20.61

40-50 125 42.96 16 11.76 141 33.02

50-60 83 28.52 36 26.47 119 27.87

Total 291 100 136 100 427 100

6.2 Designation The distribution of bank staff on the basis of designation has been analysed. As the

designations in public and private sector banks differ; some grouping has been done to make it

uniform. The designations, Assistant Manager and Deputy Manager, have been grouped under the

head ‘Officer’. Similarly Assistant Vice President has been grouped under the head ‘Assistant General

Manager’.

Table 2: Distribution of Bank staff on the basis of Designation

As given in the table, 16 staff (5.5 percent) in the public sector banks is Clerks. In private sector banks

the corresponding figure is 19 (14 per cent). It needs to be further stated that the New Generation

Private sector banks do not have the designation ‘Clerk’. All the clerks in the private sector bank

category belong to the Old Generation Bank taken for the study. Majority of the staff taken for the

Category

Public Sector Banks Private Sector Banks Total

No % No % No %

Clerk 16 5.5 19 13.97 35 8.2

Officer 164 56.36 62 45.59 226 52.93

Manager 59 20.27 41 30.15 100 23.42

Sr. Manager 34 11.68 5 3.68 39 9.13

Chief Manager 16 5.5 7 5.12 23 5.39

Asst. General

Manager

2 0.69 2 1.47 4 0.94

Total 291 100 136 100 427 100






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studies were from officer grade. 226 out of 427 staff (53 per 120 cent) was officers. The respective

figures in public and private sector banks are 56 per cent and 46 per cent. Other classifications are as

under. 100 staff belongs to the manager level (23 per cent) 39 (9.13 per cent) staff belong to the Sr.

Manager level, 23 staff (5.39 per cent) belongs to Chief Manager Level and four staff (0.94 per cent)

to the Asst. General Manager level.

6.3 Opinion of the Employees and Level of Satisfaction For the purpose of analysis, the collected data has been quantified. The responses of the participants

i.e. strongly Agree, Agree, Moderately Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree has been given the

numerical values 5,4,3,2, and 1 respectively. The data collected from four questionnaires have been

grouped under the various variables. Further the data has been analysed using various statistical tools

like tabulation, simple percentage, mean, rank analysis, student’s t-test and Z test, MS Excel has been

used as the statistical package for data analysis. Training context is defined as those situational factors

which affect the training effectiveness? It includes factors before the starting of the programme

[preparation, learning motivation, expectations], during the programme [areas of satisfaction/

dissatisfaction, training facilities, other facilities] and after the programme [cost, organisational

support, organisational support hindering or facilitating use of training]. This study exhibits the

opinion level of trainees.

Table3: Respondents opinion regarding Satisfaction of Training Context

Factors

Ca

teg

ory

Res

po

nd

en

ts

Public Sector Banks Total Public Sector Banks Total Overall

Total

HS S N DS HDS HS S N DS HDS

Pre

-

Tra

inin

g

Fa

cto

r

Training Policy

Gen

era

l S

taff

11 29 22 10 2 74 13 17 5 1 1 37 111

Tra

iner

s

8 8 0 0 0 16 0 2 0 0 0 2 18






107



Training Need

Analysis

Tra

iner

s

4 5 4 0 16 2 0 0 0 0 2 18

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

9 25 23 16 1 74 11 17 7 2 0 37 111

Staff Participation

in Determining

Their Training

Tra

iner

s

1 5 5 4 1 16 0 2 0 0 0 2 18

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

9 23 23 16 3 74 11 19 6 1 0 37 111

Emphasis devolping

manegerial

competencies

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

15 32 19 8 0 74 9 6 16 12 0 37 111

Emphasis devolping

human relations

competencies

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

16 29 19 10 0 74 11 16 9 1 0 37 111

Briefing and

Debreifing

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

9 33 11 20 1 74 11 10 13 3 0 37 111

Lea

rnin

g

Mo

tiv

ati

on

Enthusiasm to

attend Training

Tra

iner

s

54 50 9 0 0 113 28 17 1 0 0 43 156

Training Need

Analysis

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

10 33 23 8 0 74 9 15 10 3 0 37 111






108



Ex

pec

tati

on

s

Right

understanding ou

the training to be

Tra

iner

s

23 65 19 5 1 113 9 24 7 3 0 43 156

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

10 35 23 6 0 74 10 14 12 1 0 37 111

Tra

inin

g

Ma

na

gem

ent

Training Facilities

Tra

iner

s

47 53 13 0 0 113 22 18 2 1 0 43 156

Tra

iner

s

12 2 2 0 0 16 1 1 0 0 0 2 18

Oth

er

Fa

cili

ties

Supportive

Facilities

Tra

iner

s

26 62 23 2 0 113 11 25 6 1 0 43 156

Tra

iner

s

9 6 1 0 0 16 0 2 0 0 0 2 18

Po

st

Tra

inin

g

Fa

cto

rs






109



Cost-

Benefit/Economic

Viability

Ex

-Tra

iner

s

21 40 9 5 0 75 22 14 4 0 0 40

115

Org

an

iza

t

ion

al

Su

pp

ort

Training Followup

Gen

era

l

Sta

ff

9 28 19 16 2 74 13 9 12 2 1 37 111

Evaluating

Training

Performance

Ex

-

Tra

iner

s

13 29 17 13 3 75 16 15 7 2 0 40 115

Org

an

iza

t

ion

al

Fa

cto

rs

hin

der

ing

of

faci

liti

es

use

of

tra

inin

g

Line manager’s

support in training

utilization

Gen

era

l S

taff

8 22 25 17 2 74 14 8 12 3 0 37 111

Ex

-

Tra

iner

s

8 31 20 14 2 75 13 18 7 2 0 40 115

Provisional of

reflection time in

training utilization

Gen

era

l S

taff

3 16 24 27 4 74 15 11 9 2 0 37 111

Ex

-

Tra

iner

s

8 31 20 14 2 75 13 18 7 2 0 40 115






110



Table shows that opinion of the employee’s category in their satisfaction of the training contest

analysed. Analysis of the data revealed that private sector bank staffs are more satisfied than public

sector bank staff. Age wise analysis revealed that among public sector banks, 30 - 40 age groups

has the highest level of satisfaction. The lowest satisfaction is among the 20 -30 age group. Among

the private sector banks too the highest satisfaction is among the 30 - 40 age groups. However, here

the lowest satisfaction is among the 40 -50 age group. In the gender wise analysis it was found that in

public sector banks, male staff has more satisfaction than female. Among the private sector banks,

both male and female staff has the same level of satisfaction. Among the various designations of the

staff Officers have the highest satisfaction among the public sector banks. The lowest satisfaction has

been found among the Assistant General Managers. However, among the private sector banks, it is

the Managers who showed the highest satisfaction and the lowest satisfaction is among the Sr.

Managers.

6.4 Rank Analysis of Variables in Training Context

All the variables in Training Context has been consolidated and analysed on the basis of their rank

and mean score. From Table 4, it was found that among the public sector banks, Training Facilities

received the highest rank with a mean score of 4.34. It has to be kept in mind in this regard that; in

general, public sector banks have invested heavily on infrastructure. And that the staff is highly

satisfied with the facilities provided.

Table 4: Rank Analysis of Training Context Variables

Variables Public Sector Banks

Private Sector

Banks

Mean Rank Mean Rank

Preparation 3.5 6 3.99 6

Learning Motivation 4.07 2 4.21 3

Expectations 3.81 5 3.90 8

Training Facilities 4.34 1 4.42 2

Other Facilities 4.05 3 4.07 4

Cost 4.03 4 4.46 1

Organizational Support 3.4 7 3.99 6

Organizational Factors hindering or

facilitating use of Training

3.28 8 4.03 5






111



It was found that among the public sector banks, Training Facilities received the highest rank with a

mean score of 4.34. It has to be kept in mind in this regard that; in general, public sector banks have

invested heavily on infrastructure. And that the staff is highly satisfied with the facilities provided.

The second rank is for Learning Motivation (mean score 4.07) and the third Other Facilities (4.05).

The lowest rank is for the Organisational factors hindering or facilitating use of training having a

mean score of 3.28, followed by Organisational Support (3.4). It clearly indicates that the structural

barriers in the public sector banks are adversely affecting the training effectiveness. Among the

private sector banks the variable, Cost has got the first rank with a mean score of 4.46 indicating that

the cost benefit ratio is very good in their training programmes. This is closely followed by Training

Facilities (mean score 4.42). Z Test Analysis: Z Test analysis was undertaken to assess whether there

is significant difference regarding the reactions of the bank staff to the training context as measured

by their average score on the evaluation form with the seventy five percent marks, at five per cent

level of significance with a table value of 1.96. The calculated Z value is 1.14 which is less than the

table value and thus it is concluded that there is no significant difference.

7 Recommendations

After employees have been selected for various positions in an organizations training them for the

specific tasks in which they have been assigned assumes great importance. It is true in many

organizations that before an employee is fitted into a harmonious working relationship with other

employees, he is given adequate training. Training is the act of increasing the knowledge and skills of

an employee for performing a particular job. The major outcome of training is learning. A trainee

learns new habits, refined skills and useful knowledge during the training that helps him improve

performance. Training enables an employee to do his present job more efficiently and prepare himself

for a higher level job. Training for employees helps them:

To get an insight of the job by the new employees and also to understand work culture

followed in the organization;

To acquire knowledge in order to adopt any change in technology or any change affecting the

working of organization;

To get promotion as again change in nature of the work but increase in payment will increase

responsibility and challenges involved;

To deal with the expansion and diversification where companies initiates other areas of

business to gain their greater understanding;

To update employee’s knowledge and skill suitable training must be provided at regular

intervals i.e. In a year or as per the requirement to keep the employees updated;

All the banks whether private or public should share their training and learning techniques as

a separate body it should provide standardized and uniform training so that young people will

not get tangled up in ``different bank different training’’ strategy;

To acquire specific knowledge, skills and attitudes useful for performance and personality

growth;

To achieve better results, gain improved job satisfaction, prestige and recognition.






112



8 Conclusion

In order to satisfy consumers from all walks of life banks need to have efficient manpower which can

be possible by offering them quality training , training programme should keep pace with changing

times it must be unconventional. Training changes mental and social outlook of employees.

Customers and their needs can be identified and they are satisfied accordingly. A training programme

is an effort by the employer to provide opportunities for the employees to acquire job related skills,

attitudes and knowledge. In order to meet the ever-growing needs of business and household banking

has to become dynamic and updated in modern scenario and also to take up this industry to the

heights of international excellence require best combination of new technology and skilful and

talented manpower. Therefore most of the commercial banks either private or public adopt training

and development programmes at the time of induction, promotion and other situation.

9 References

[1] BHATNAGAR 0 P Evaluation Methodoloqv for Training Theory and Practice New Delhi.

Oxford ft IRH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd , 1987

[2] BRINKERHOFF, ROBERTO Achieving results from training how to evaluate human resource

development to strengthen programmes and increase impact San Francisco Jossey-Bass, 1987

[3] DVORIN, ROBERT S Evaluation of training: In Handbook human resources administration by

Joseph J Famularo New York McGraw-Hill, 1986, p 26 1-267

[4] KAPPOR & SANCHETI Statistics S C Chand and Sons, New Delhi, 1982

[5] AI-Lamki & Salma Mohammed. (2000). Omanization: A Three Tier strategy Framework for

Human resource management and Training in the sultanate of Oman.Journal of Comparative

International Management, Vol.7 No5, pp. 112-116

[6] Riyaz Rainaye. (2004). Training Effectiveness in Public Sector and Private Sector Commercial

Banks A Micro- Level Comparative Study. Management & Change, Vol 8, No 1 & 2, pp. 49-67

[7] Shishupal Singh Badhu and Karunesh Saxena. (1999). Role of Training in Developing Human

Resources: Study of Selected Industrial Organizations of Rajasthan. The Indian Journal of

Commerce, Vol.52 No.1, January –March 1999, pp.57-56.

[8] Clement, RW. of Aranda, E.K. (1982). Evaluating Management Training: A Contingency

Approach.

[9] Training and Development Journal, Vol. 36 No. 8, pp.39-43.

[10] Jane Richards. (1997). Management Training-the Real Objectives. Training Officer, September

1997 Vol .33, No.7, pp. 216 – 217.

[11] Nakkiran S. and Karthikeyan M.(2007) Training techniques for management development, Deep

and deep publications pvt ltd, New Delhi.

[12] Anthony Landale (2004) Training and Development A complete handbook, Gower publishing ltd,

U.K

[13] Klink et. al., Effectiveness of on the Job Training,Journal of European Industrial Training, 2002,

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Evaluating the effectiveness of training programs in ... of... · researcher has become more curious to make a study of the training practices in commercial banks so ... (Udaipur)