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difficult to implement the training and development system in an organization and it may not

have been as successful in an organization.

There were many positive outcomes of training and development. Effective

Implementation was limited, as the training and development were not integrated within the

culture and process of the organization. Staffs generally rate such training as a high priority

(Raynes and Sampson, 1987; Sturmey, 1992). The main purpose is to increase the understanding

regarding organization's performance in relation to training and development. The other factors

are remuneration and elements such as participation, feedback, fairness, responsibility, the

theoretical framework includes training and development, financial as well as non-financial

remuneration and research done in later years regarding participation, feedback, fairness,

responsibility, development and Work-atmosphere connected to organization's performance..

Companies today are forced to function in a world full of change and complexity,

and it is more important than ever to have the right employees in order to survive the

surrounding competition. New companies and business are blossoming, new technologies

are constantly developed and the knowledge and perception of how much your employees

actually mean to your organization is greater for every day. Most companies are looking for the

right expertise in different areas, and human resources are therefore an important competitive

factor that needs to be taken into consideration while managing business (Ljungberg & Larsson,

2005).For this most of the companies arrange training and developments for their employees.

Organizations’ have to balance both production effectiveness as well as efficient workforce to be

successful. Even though a company has managed to find the right employees, this is not enough.

A crucial factor is to make employees best and reduce the turnover rate.

Talented employees can be a source of advantage for an organization (Siegler (1999),

but how to achieve this may be a major challenge. What do employees want from their

organization in order to feel committed? The answer is they need security of their future that is

only with the training and development. The primary reason for working is to obtain money

(Jackson and Carter, 2007), but could employers do more in order to retain their employees? Or

even more important, what do employees want from their employer in order to feel committed

willing to stay? Since there may be a difference between how employers try to give employees

regarding to how employees actually would prefer to be stay their and satisfy with the job.

Throughout research we find indications that training and development is a major

element for firm, performance. Job satisfaction is affected by the worker and the work itself

(Chen, 2008). In older literature the focus has been on the relationship between training and

development and job satisfaction as well as remuneration. In the 1940’s, 1950’s and 1960’s

several studies were made (Ohio, Michigan and the Hi-Hi leader).Employee’s satisfaction builds

on elements such as a higher participation, feedback, fairness, responsibility, development and

work-atmosphere (Hytter, 2007). It is important that employers give access to relevant

development. The personal need is less important in this case and rewards is not that necessary,

which is quite the contrary to what Shields (2007) and Hansson (2002) describes. They say that

reward is necessary to make development function. Could it be that way that employee thinks

that development is a kind of reward itself that Shields (2007) describes as extrinsic reward.

They think that training and development is better for job satisfaction. It is obvious that

satisfaction with possible future career development and satisfaction in current career

development are of importance for employee. The result in relation to previous research adverts

at the importance in giving employees possibility to develop (Tobia, 1999). We could see that if

an employee felt satisfaction with his or hers work, he or she was taking training and

development from the company. Mitchell etal (2001) describes the importance of satisfaction in

relation to training and development. They discovered a connection between satisfaction and

training and development; According to us companies have to improve their training and

development level through making employees feel job satisfaction. This issue must be one of

their main objectives because it increases the possibility to handle competition in the market. By

having competent employees companies may save a lot of money which also is important

throughout business administration.

2.2 THEORITICAL DEBATE

According to the survey there is a correlation between job satisfaction and training and

development. If the employee feels appreciation because he thought that company give training

and development for the betterment of his career he will satisfy from the job. Employee

development and training are two important elements especially if combined with performance-

related job satisfaction to create a good work group there has to be a good working environment

This arises when group members feel trust and confidence and as a result they treat each other

with respect and this may only because of training and development.

The training and development applications should be useful to industrial personnel in preparing

them for delivering improved performance on the job. The applications will help them

understand the options and the impact of decisions . These applications have the potential to

improve industry performance by reducing the learning curves of the workforce. Staffs of the

Training and Development Unit are available to assist managers or individual staff to identify

training needs and can advises on appropriate ways to meet identified needs. These include

mentoring, coaching, attendance at an internal or external course, or completion of a

qualification. Any staff member may contact TND staff directly for confidential advice, and

assistance can be provided on a one-to-one basis.

All training must be related to the mission and performance goals. The selection of

employees for training is made without regard to political preference, race, color, religion,

national origin, gender, marital status, age, disability, and with proper regard for their privacy

and constitutional rights as provided by merit system principles set forth in 5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(2)

(1996).A full range of options may be used to meet mission-related organizational and employee

development needs, such as classroom training, on-the-job training, technology-based training,

distance learning, self-development activities, coaching, mentoring, career development

counseling, details, rotational assignments, cross training, and developmental activities at retreats

and conferences. Government and non-government training facilities may be used. (Prior

regulatory constraints regarding use of non government training facilities and time restrictions

such as 1 year in 10 have been eliminated. 5 U.S.C. 4107(a) (1996) prohibits training to obtain

an academic degree in order to qualify for appointment to a particular position or for the sole

purpose of providing an opportunity to an employee to obtain one or more academic degrees.

Training for employees who report to them. Training involving the acceptance of a

contribution, award, or payment (in cash or in kind) of travel, subsistence, and other expenses.

Academic degree training to relieve recruitment and retention problems in occupations in which

the agency has or anticipates a shortage of qualified personnel. An Individual Development Plan

(IDP) is a written plan used to systematically identify and record appropriate training and

development activities that enhance an employee’s performance in a current or projected future

assignment. All employees and supervisors must complete or update an IDP each year within 30

days of the annual performance appraisal. The IDP should include input from both the employee

and supervisor. Using the IDP form designated by their agency, REE employees and supervisors

should record the following: identified developmental needs, activities proposed to meet the

needs, dates of the activities, and any direct costs required to meet the needs (tuition, travel,

materials, etc.).

Other research demonstrates the impact of training on outcomes other than job performance

or on variables that serve as antecedents to job performance This study related organizations’

training policies (e.g., functions assumed by the of training, and how training is valuated) with

four types of organizational-level benefits: employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction,

owner/shareholder satisfaction, Benefits of training have been documented for variables other

than organizational performance training methods. Several studies in each of these two domains

provide information on Research on training design and delivery can be categorized into two

general themes: research on new approaches to engage learners in meaningful learning

processes and research on specific how to maximize the benefits of training. Researchers

are also exploring the impact of novel training technologies on outcomes other than learning.

Research on moderators of the training transfer relationship has focused primarily on workgroup

factors. The organizations that are able to realize the benefits of training that are documented in

this review are able to move away from viewing the training function as an operational function

or cost center to one that is value driven We take the point of view that training leads to

important benefits for individuals and teams, organizations, and society

Managers and other decision makers in these organizations prefer information and data

on business-related results to make decisions about how to allocate resources, including

resources for training activities (Mattson 2005). Training for the sake of training, an approach

that focuses on developmental ideals and supportive organizational environments, is not aligned

with today’s business realities, including compressed career progression pathways, budgetary

cuts and constraints, highly competitive environments, and market-driven economic

philosophies(McGuire et al. 2005). Designing, delivering, evaluating, and clearly documenting

the benefits of training using the information included in this review will allow the human

resource management function to be a strategic, organizational player and to move away from

the negative connotations (e.g., “welfare secretaries”) associated with this function in the

twentieth century (Hammonds 2005, Jacoby 2004, Kraiger et al. 2004.

A company's budget dictates the kinds of training that may be considered. Unfortunately,

the training budget is most often cut off first whenever the budget becomes tight. Training

methods vary in cost. Usually methods that require human relations are more expensive than

those that don't.

There are two general kinds of training methods described in this paper. First is the word of

mouth (WOM) training which teaches through direct human interaction (Galletta et. al., 1995)

and the second is Technology aided training which is self-learning aided with training tools.

Kinds of Training

1.WOM (Word of mouth ) This is presently the most common method of training. This is the

kind of training where speech and human interaction is key. Whether the instructor is an

outside contractor, inside IT professional, or a trained peer co-worker, what distinguishes this

from computer based training is human interaction and feedback.. The kinds of WOM training

i. Person-to-Person This training involves an individual trainee paired with an individual

instructor. The trainee's attention and concentration is mostly guaranteed to be in the task and

in the training. The trainer can give personal attention to the trainee as well. This method can

be expensive because of the individuality of it.

ii. Group/Classroom

This type of training is cost-efficient since it takes advantage of one trainer for multiple

trainees. The benefit of structured learning is another positive aspect of this method. A

consequence of this method is that since everyone is different, some trainees may get lost in

the process and pacing is different.

b. Technology Aided Training

This kind of training is cost efficient. This method usually involves self-training, self-

study, and self-guidance. Examples of this method are the tutorials, manuals, web tutorials,

video tapes, and computer based training (CBT). CBT is growing rapidly in use because of its

flexibility of integrating text, graphics, sound, animation and video (Scott & Violette, 1996).

The cost of technology aided training can range anywhere from $600 to $1000, but can be

used repeatedly by numerous employees. Most of the time, trainees can pace themselves

according to their capabilities using these methods, but there is a lack of feedback and

guidance. Trainees, if not knowledgeable and if lacking the proper educational background,

may confuse themselves even more.

2. Instructors

The kinds of instructors are also considered in the budget. There are contracted outside

instructors that companies may hire. The advantage to this is that they are focused on training as

their task, have experience in training , and therefore can be considered experts. They may be

expensive and there may be a chance that they do not know the company culture. They may not

accurately customize their training to the needs of the company.

The IT division of a company may be trainers as well. This is a more cost-efficient

way, and they may know the company culture. There are times when IT specialists do not want

to be bothered by training duties because they'd rather be doing technical duties, or they may not

be familiar with the training needs of the trainees.

Certain chosen employees can serve as instructors. A study by Fitzgerald and Cater-

Steel (1995) considers these trainers. Having these kind of instructors present lower costs, easier

adaptation to the demands of the workplace, and rapport with the trainees. Since they are "one of

them", trainees do not feel as intimidated. These trainers gain more responsibilities added to

their present workload. Training others may be burdensome and may take them away from their

initial duties.

Three groups of theories, which mention the role of training in companies can be identified (Smith

and Hayton, 1999):

- Human capital theories – Economists traditionally look to the construct training in terms of

investment. Human Capital Theory has established training in terms of increased productivity

(Becker, 1964; Mincer, 1974; Strober, 1990). The Human Capital theory developed the terms

general and specific training. In the mid-1980s the neo-human capital approach states that

companies train their employees in order to improve the adaptibility and flexibility of the

workforces and their responsiviness to innovation (Bartel and LichtenBerg, 1987)

- Human resource management theory has viewed training and employee development as a

means of engaging the commitment of employees to the enterprise (Rainbird, 1994; Heyes

and Stuart, 1996). The initial formulation of a theoretical framework for Human Resource

Management came from the Harvard Business School in the early 1980’s (Beer et al., 1984).

Training appears as one of a number of strategies for managing the human resource flow of

an enterprise which, together with other Human Resource policies, produce the ‘four C’s’ of

Human Resource outcomes; commitment, competence, congruence and cost-effectiviness.

- Training and high performance organization - studies of skills trajectories in Britain and the

USA have suggested that a process of polarization is at work, with some occupations

becoming more skilled and others less skilled over time (Gallie and White, 1993; Cappelli,

1993). Studies of high-performance work practices and strategic HRM have been brought

together in the concept of human resources ‘bundles’ (MacDuffie, 1995; Dyer and Reeves,

1995) which emphasize the importance of implementing a number of HRM practices together

in ‘bundles’ in order to achieve a performance improvement for the enterprise. Training is

always cited as a critical measure within the bundle.

2.3 EMPIRICAL DEBATE

The most used definition of training in relation with organizational commitment is ‘a

management practice that can be controlled or managed to elicit a desired set of unwritten, reciprocal

attitudes and behaviours, including job involvement, motivation and organizational commitment’

from Sparrow (1998) and Bartlett (2001). Bases on this common use, this definition will be applied

in this thesis as well.The adoption of quality management practices has long been associated

with an increase in the provision of employee training. The founders of quality practice in

manufacturing emphasised the importance of employee development, education and training

for the improvement of quality performance and firms seeking to implement quality

management have consistently found it necessary to improve their training effort (Deming

1982, Ishikawa 1984). Firms pursuing a quality strategy have found it necessary to invest in

'human-capital-enhancing' activities such as training, in order to enhance performance

improvements in productivity and customer satisfaction (Youndt, Snell, Dean and Lepak

when it develops firm specific skills and so supports the operation of the particular business

process systems within the firm. Training, when used to support quality management

practices, should contribute to the effectiveness of the quality management system . Training

should enhance the integrity of these systems, rather than merely raise the general level of

employee skills (Gee and Nystrom 1999, Jayaram, Droge and Vickery 1999).

This study seeks to unpack some of the relationships between quality practice,

employee training and firm performance by examining the direct and the mediated effects of

quality practice and training practice. The study seeks to determine whether the provision of

employee training alone directly affects performance or whether training is more effective

when mediated by the quality management system. In order to address these questions, data

from the Australian Manufacturing Council (AMC 1994) survey of Australian manufacturing

firms is examined and the impact of training and quality practice on key performance

outcomes such as productivity, customer satisfaction and employee morale is analysed.

There are well established links between the provision of employee training and use of

quality management practices but there is some debate about the extent to which the two

practices may work together to enhance

performance outcomes. Several empirical studies of enterprise training and performance have

found no necessary link between employee training and the use of other management

practices (d'Arcimoles 1997, Bartel 1994, Holzer, Block, Cheatham and Knott 1993). These

studies suggest that training, in and of itself, can enhance the performance outcomes of firms.

Snell and Dean (1992) found that the use of advanced manufacturing technology (AMT) and

the use of quality practices were both associated with the 'comprehensiveness' of employee

training but they found no interaction effects from the use of these practices in combination.

Bartel (1994) examined job redesign, performance appraisal and employee involvement,

finding that training was 'unaffected' by the implementation of these practices, in its

performance enhancing effects. Bartel used a value-added measure of productivity based upon

net sales per employee and found that the introduction of new training programs led to a

productivity gain of 18.86% over three years. Significantly, this gain applied across the board

to low performing and high performing companies, leading Bartel (1994:422) to observe

that: "the implementation of formal employee training programs can enable businesses that

are operating at below-expected levels of labor productivity to eliminate this gap."

Holzer, Block, Cheatham and Knott (1993) studied the effect of training grants on firms

training effort and found that the one off training grants led to a doubling or tripling of the

training effort during the period of the grant. This increased training effort was associated

with a 0.5 to 0.7 percentage points decline in the scrap rate, a gain which persisted after a

decline in the training effort. It was the extent of the training effort that seemed to influence

improvements in quality outcomes rather than any necessary use of quality

practices. d'Arcimoles (1997) examined the effects of employee training upon the financial

performance of 61 French firms and found that there were significant immediate and lagged

effects. Expenditure on training by firms was associated with 'immediate and permanent'

improvements in productivity and profitability, leading d'Arcimoles (1997:865) to find that:

"substantial training expenses seem to be a good sign of future

economic performance."

Training, some would suggest, has a direct effect on productivity, internal quality and

financial outcomes for firms, by raising the general level of skills and enhancing the human

capital of the firm. This effect is seemingly independent of the application of quality

management and other management practices. Employee training, in this view, is a stand

alone practice that leads to effective task performance on the part of employees and this is

reflected in enhanced firm performance. The implication to be drawn from treating employee

training as a stand alone practice is that the effect of

training upon performance is discrete and not necessarily the product of the interaction of a

comprehensive training and development system with a quality management system. The

direct effectivness view does not position any systemic benefits arising from the strategic

alignment of quality practices and training practices, but rather seeks to identify stand alone

benefits that are derived from the training effort itself.

One of the difficulties with this position, however, is that it does not seek to distinguish

between firm investments in different types of human capital through the provision of

different types of training program. There is no distinction made between investments by the

firm in general or firm specific skills (Becker 1997). Any effort to augment the human capital

of the firm by the provision of employee training is seen to be effective, whether that consists

of investments in general, transferable vocational skills or firm specific

skills that complement the technical and human requirements of the individual firms quality

system. The proposition that general skill development, achieved via stand alone training

programs has a direct, positive effect upon firm performance, is one that we seek to exaime

Employee training has frequently accompanied the introduction of Total Quality

Management programs. A survey of Fortune 1000 companies in 1993 (Lawler, Mohrman and

Ledford 1995:16) found that 72% of US firms had provided some training in problem solving

skills and 63% had provided some training in the use of quality tools, when introducing

quality management practices. Australian firms, likewise, have implemented employee

training programs in order to support the introduction of quality management practices. A

recent survey of Australian manufacturers (Allen Consulting Group 1999:vi) found that

improvements in quality (93%) and competitiveness (88%) were the most common objectives

of firms implementing training, whilst Smith and Hayton (1999:264) in their survey

of Australian firms, found that an emphasis upon quality improvement was "a consistently

significant driver of enterprise training."

The emphasis placed upon training by Australian firms to achieve quality objectives is

supported by the available case study evidence (Rimmer, Macneil, Chenhall, Langfield-Smith

and Watts 1997, Dawson 1994, Dawson and Palmer 1995) and survey evidence (Park, Erwin

and Knapp 1997, Smith and Hayton 1999). Park, Erwin and Knapp (1997:789), for example,

surveyed 47 of the largest firms in the Australian telecommunication industry and found that

89% provided training in problem solving skills and 81% provided training in the use of

quality tools.

The implementation of quality management programs has been an important driver of

the training effort of manufacturers but whether and how quality management programs and

employee training programs jointly act to lift performance remains unclear. Does training

have a discrete effect upon performance or do training and quality practices reinforce each

other to jointly lift performance? Some scholars hold that human resource management

practices and production practices do reinforce each other and that the provision of training is

not as important as the strategic targeting of that training to the achievement of business

objectives (Pfeffer 1998). In the case of training, the type, amount and level of employee

training, it is argued, should be closely aligned to the objectives of the training and these

objectives should be consistent with overall business strategies (Arthur 1994, Becker and

Gerhart 1996, Lado and Wilson 1994). Training should only be undertaken where it is

strategically important to do so and where the training effort can have maximum effect.

Training delivers greater benefits, some scholars argue, if management focuses upon

the strategic effectiveness of that training rather than simply upon its ability to enhance

employee task effectiveness. Employee training is of greater value to the firm in developing

human capital if its affect is mediated by the quality management system. If firm specific

skills are developed that not only improve the skills of individual employees but also enhance

the effectivness of the quality management system... skills should .This line of argument

posits a mediated effect as an explanation for the effect of training upon performance,

as a counterpoint to the direct effect examined above. The strategic effectiveness thesis holds

that there are benefits to be derived from employee training, if that training is part of a

consistent set of human resource management practices (Brown, Reich and Stern 1993) and

that set of human resource management practices

is aligned to production practices for the achievement of strategic business objectives. If there

is internal consistency in the work and production systems of the enterprise, then this

generates a systemic benefit that is reflected in higher performance (MacDuffie 1995). In the

case of quality, the strategic effectiveness thesis holds that the training effort should be

targeted to the type of quality management program being implemented and that the training

should be supported by mutually reinforcing human resource management

initiatives, such as employee involvement in problem solving.

There is some evidence that manufacturers implementing quality management

programs do strategically target their training effort (Monks, Buckley and Sinnott 1998).

Many manufacturers, it seems, do provide training that is tailored to the type of quality

management program that is introduced. The more extensive the quality management

program, the more comprehensive is the training. Skills are developed that underpin the

integrity of the quality management system Gee and Nystrom (1999:20) studied the levels of

skill training in 342 US manufacturing plants and found that "different levels of skills training

are strategically related to different levels of quality management practices." Limited and one-

off training programs were associated with quality by inspection whilst comprehensive

employee training was associated with the adoption of full Total Quality Management

(TQM) programs.

2.4 THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK

Jayaram, Dorge and Vickery (1999) in their study of 57 first-tier component suppliers

in the US automotive industry likewise found that the training effort of these manufacturers

was strategically targeted to achievement of operational priorities. Employee training was

targeted to the achievement of priorities such as cost, quality, flexibility and timeliness and

was also associated with performance improvements in these areas.

There is thus some support for the strategic effectiveness thesis. Manufacturers do

seem to strategically target their training efforts. They focus their training and development

programs upon areas of strategic priority and reap benefits from this in the form of

performance improvements. In order to further research the strategic effectiveness thesis, in

order to determine whether the implementation of comprehensive training and development

practice has effects upon performance outcomes for the firm when used in conjunction with

comprehensive quality practices.

The final facet of knowledge and skill development climates examined

in our modeling is the emphasis placed by management on performance

feedback. The extensive literature on task performance feedback is wrought

with persistent and unresolved questions about the complex nature and

conditions under which feedback to employees influences their behavior and

performance (see Kluger & DeNisi, 1996 f or a thorough review and

assessment of this literature) . A basic thesis of the literature, nonetheless, is

that behavior is goal directed and that employees need task performance

feedback so that they can evaluate and adjust their performance in light of

performance goals or standards articulated by management. It follows that

climates within which employees receive more regular and meaningful

feedback from their supervisors about how well they are doing in light of

what super visors are seeking to achieve in their respective work areas, the

better able ar e employees to evaluate their competencies and the importance

of doing their jobs well on the success of their work areas. The greater the

effort management is seen making to provide meaningful feedback,

moreover, the stronger is the sense employees will have that management is

committed both to achieving continuous improvements in performance and to

having employees fully participate in achieving their work area’s performance

goals.

Further more, employee perceptions about performance feedback

influence and are influenced by other facets of knowledge and skill

development climates. On the one hand, the more or less employees perceive

they get meaningful performance feedback, the more or less they will

(1) Perceive they are secure

(2) Perceive they have good opportunities to improve their skills

(3) Be receptive to new technologies

(4) Perceive a need to continually learn new skills

(5) value learning new skills.

On the other hand, the more or less favorably employees perceive each of

the above facets to be, the more or less they will perceive they get meaningful

performance feedback. In addition to creating a climate of knowledge and skill

development as part of its KB workplace strategy, a firm must also decide

how best to create broader workplace conditions that serve as foundation

factors supporting and reinforcing its efforts to optimize the performance

capacities of its employees. Pertinent to such foundation factors are

experientially-based perceptions or beliefs employees have about the work

they perform and the condition s under which they perform their jobs. As

discussed earlier, we found no distinguishing differences in staffing, selection,

due process, and pay incentive practices across our sample of eight firms.

Thus we do not include foundation factors that depict these practices as they

are essentially controlled for by our sampling. Instead, in our

conceptualization of Workplace Foundation Factors we include employee

perceptions about meaningfulness of work, self-determination, working

conditions, and intensity of work effort.

The more or less positive the perceptions or beliefs employees have about

these factor , the more or less positively they With respect to meaningfulness and

self-determination, the psychological empowerment literature holds that

employees who find greater meaning, intrinsic reward, and importance in the

work they do (meaningfulness) and who enjoy greater control in how they

perform their assigned tasks and routines ( self-determination) will be more

satisfied with the work they do and more motivated to perform their jobs well

(Spreitzer et al ., 1997).

It follows that jobs and routines yielding greater meaningfulness and

self-determination will over time induce employees to improve their

competencies and attach greater importance to having a positive impact on their

work area’s performance Drawing on the high-involvement, high-commitment

HRM strategy and implicit contract literatures, a third factor that can be

expected to influence employees’ performance capacities are working

conditions. Employees’ commitment to organizational goals, that is, is conditioned

by employee perceptions about management’s concern for employee well-being,

which in part is manifested in working conditions. For instance, working

conditions under which employees are treated more or less fairly by

supervision and in which health, safety, and the like are given more or less

priority concern by management, are likely to be viewed more or less

favorably by employees. The more or less favorable these working conditions are

perceived to be, the more or less employees will be motivated to continually

improve their competencies and be inclined

Another foundation factor and one conceptually similar to ‘working

conditions’ is the intensity of work per formed. On the one hand, greater

intensification of work can be expected to directly lead to greater labor productivity

as a result of greater effort made by employees. Thus, employees will perceive

that they are both more competent and have a greater impact on the

performance of their work areas. On the other hand, higher levels of exhaustion,

physical pain, and tension are likely to diminish both an employee’s

satisfaction with work and motivation to continuously improve performance.

As a consequence, greater work intensity will diminish employees’

psychological states of competence and impact. Whether greater intensity has

more of a positive or negative effect on employees’ performance capacities,

therefore, requires an empirical answer. Workplace foundation factors are all

expected to have reciprocal relationships among themselves, as well as with

each of the facets underlying knowledge and skill development climates.

Because our primary focus in on identifying and understanding the complexity

of various facets of knowledge and skill development climates and for the sake of

brevity, we do not elaborate on these expected reciprocal relationships. In

estimating our model, nonetheless, we specify reciprocal cause-effect

relationships among all workplace foundation factors and between these and

the various facets underlying knowledge and skill development climates.

Performance Capacities. Adopting standard items from Sprietzer (1995),

‘Competence’ was based on questions such as “I am capable of performing

all of my various job tasks.” However, we included one negatively stated

question in this construct, “I have not mastered the skills necessary for my

job.” ‘Impact’ was based questions such as “I t is important to the success of my

work area that I do my job well.”

Knowledge and Skill Development Climates. This composite construct had

six interrelated sub-constructs. The latent variable ‘Value Learning New

Skills’ is intended to capture the degree to which employees placed

importance on learning new skills; for example, asking “Learning new job

skills is important to me.” ‘Need to Learn New Skills’ was based on several

questions about one’s perceived need for additional skill development,

including one item that was negatively stated, “I have more skills than I

need to perform my current job well.” ‘Receptivity to New Technologies’ was

based on questions about the perceived effects newer technologies had had on

working conditions, learning new skills, and promotions to higher level,

higher paying jobs. Our ‘Opportunities to Improve Skills’ construct was

designed to measure employee perceptions about a firm’s human capital

investment commitment based on how good employees’ opportunities were to

receive training and improve skills (e.g., “I have good opportunities to

improve my skills here.”) . The ‘Employment Security’ construct was based

on question s asked about one’ s expectation of long term employment and a

company’s efforts at keeping employees working full time. Lastly, our

‘Performance Feedback’ construct was based on questions about the degree to

which employees received meaningful feedback and knew how well they were per

forming regardless of the formality of any such feedback.

Workplace Foundation Factors . Under this composite construct ar e four

sub-constructs.Adopting standard items f rom Spreitzer (1995), ‘Meaningfulness’

was based on questions such as “The work I do is important to me.” and

‘Self-Determination’ was based on questions such as “I get to decide how

best to do my job.” Our ‘Working Conditions’ construct is intended to capture

respondents’ fairly general perceptions about having been treated fairly (e.g., “I

am treated fairly.”), and satisfaction with working Looking at the right hand

side of our model, the endogenous variables employed were taken directly from

Spreitzer’s (1995) construct of psychological empowerment.

That construct has been found to be highly reliable and validated as

an antecedent to measurable performance outcomes. As such it is reasonable

to conclude that had we been able to estimate the effects of employees’

psychological states of competency and impact against actual performance

measures, we would have found the expected linkage between employees’

cognitions and their work area performance. Such a conclusion is further

bolstered by Collins and Smith’s ( 2006) finding that performance was

strongly related to their inter mediate outcomes construct “knowledge exchange

and combination”, a construct much like our intermediate outcome construct

“performance capacities”.

Given that only Collins and Smith (2006) and we in the present

analysis have attempted to articulate and test the associations between these

intermediate outcomes and workplace climates, much remains to be done

theoretically and empirically towards developing these intermediate outcome

constructs that link climates to performance. From a strategic HRM

perspective, the contribution of employees to performance over time is a

product of their competencies and their motivation to optimize both their

competencies and the opportunities available to utilize those competencies. It

is this set of intermediate psychological states that lead to actual performance

outcomes. The literature would benefit, therefore, by further inquiries ref ining

the bases of these intermediate psychological states. Here we recommend

that future research develop the bases of these intermediate psychological

states of performance by combining the elements of both Spreitzer’s and

Collins and Smith’s constructs. Although both capture well employee

motivation and perceived effectiveness, Spreitzer’s construct captures best the

psychological state of competence, whereas Collins and Smith’s construct

captures best the opportunities that can be exploited by employees to have an

impact on performance. Upon looking at the left hand side of our model,

more questions are raised than answered. Because there is very little variation

in observable HRM practices across and

We find that the effective performance of channel functions by a distributor can

significantly enhance customer perceptions of relationship quality. Compared to the often-

investigated construct of interdependence structure, the impact of marketing channel function

performance in explaining variations in relationship quality is significant and substantial. Indeed,

we find it to be one of the primary drivers of relationship quality. In addition, we find that the

impact of channel function performance on relationship quality is moderated by the

interdependence structure of the distributor-customer dyad.

Marketing channel functions and services are managerially actionable variables that are

central to channel structure and coordination decisions. Our results show that distributors can

improve their relationships with organizational customers by performing their channel

functions effectively. A clear managerial implication of our study is that distributors should

focus on effectively performing channel functions, as a means of salvaging and strengthening

relationships with their customers. These efforts should be concentrated on customer

relationships where superior channel function performance has the greatest impact on

relationship quality. Based on our results, a distributor can get the greatest “bang for its

buck” by focusing on customer relationships characterized by relatively higher levels of

interdependence as well as those in which the customer is relatively dependent on the distributor

but the degree of relative dependence is low.

2.4 Conceptual framework

The framework explains the individual effects of training on performance of distributors

in the telecommunication section these is effected by a number of dependent/independent

variables as shown on the figure 1.0 below.

Figure 1.0

Financial and price setting

policies

Promotional information

Personnel

Customer satisfaction

Customer trust

Customer satisfaction

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