This paper describes a series of four models around which plans can be developed to determine human development needs. It presents needs assessment models describing the process and participant interaction by which information is gathered to be used in education, training, funding, and/or other human resource development interventions to increase…

The realities of the changing economy include social as well as political polarization of socio-economically diverse groups. The roles and issues of disadvantaged persons in the work place and in national economic schemes are the subject of growing interest among economic planners, politicians, educators, and human resource development…

Graduate students who are human resource development practitioners (n=48) rated their organizations in terms of training/education, reward/recognition, vision/strategy, information flow, and individual/team development. Those who felt their organizations rewarded risk, recognized their work, and supported and encouraged training were more likely…

This paper reports an assessment of the education and training program needs stimulated by investment in cogeneration technology in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. (Cogeneration technology would convert raw culm, a byproduct of anthracite coal mining, into a fuel source for steam power generation.) After plant tours and interviews with plant…

Analysis of the economics of training has become one of the most important issues of the decade for business and industry. Unfortunately, managers typically digress to a simple cost analysis and ignore the realities of cost-benefit analysis and the potential of large financial benefits to the organization. A proposed model to forecast training…

The purpose of skills-training needs-assessment is to identify what type of skills and knowledge are needed to support economic strategies and, as a result, improve organizational decisionmaking related to training investments and general work force development. This paper presents findings of 11 skills-retraining, needs-assessment,…

The validity of the University of Minnesota Skills Training Cost-Benefit Forecasting Model (STCBFM) in a corporate setting was studied. Research and related literature suggested that a model for forecasting the economic benefits of training should include facility to identify and summarize costs and provide an assessment of the value of the…

The validity of the Training Benefit Forecasting Method (TBFM) in a recreational vehicle service training setting was studied. Cost-benefit issues were associated with the Onan Service School change from a field-based Recreational Vehicle Generator Set training program to a customer-delivered self-instructional training program. Actual costs and…

Professional organizations in the world of work view counselors as human resource development professionals with historic and defined roles. The issue of new and emerging roles for counselors is the result of the need for a shift from counseling only for vocational placement to a concern for the intangibles resulting from the interaction between…

Presents a theoretical discussion of evaluation research and the need for gathering data to support the decision-making process concerned with training program performance. Guidelines for conducting evaluation research are discussed, the participants involved with successful implementation are described, and data gathering methods are explained.…

This paper identifies federal social policy concerning tax credits as it applies to work force training--its history, participants, implications, and impact. The paper outlines five programs--the Targeted Jobs Tax Credit (TJTC) program of 1978, the National Individual Training Account Act of 1984, the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) of 1983,…

Exploring existing methodologies to determine whether they can be adapted or adopted to support strategic goal setting, this paper focuses on information gathering techniques as they relate to the human resource development professional's input into strategic planning processes. The information gathering techniques are all qualitative methods and…

This paper presents and discusses a theoretical model that broadens the context for human resource development (HRD) social mandates and provides a process model grounded in self-actualization awareness and thinking that facilitates the individual to go beyond the constraints of potential (as defined by the individual's environment). The model is…