Employee engagement research is typified by the relabeling and reinvention of classic job attitude concepts. In this article, the authors comment on the development of the Work Cognition Inventory (WCI), an instrument designed to assess eight major antecedents of employee engagement/work passion. The antecedents measured by the WCI include job…

The article addresses teacher retention challenges employers are experiencing in the quest to effectively meet standard human resource management practices. The quality of the employer-employee relationship forms the foundation upon which effective management practices thrive. Teachers who remain in education value students and their personal…

The transition to management is one of the most difficult challenges first-time managers face--almost half fail. First-time managers may experience disorienting dilemmas that trigger transformative learning. HRD (human resource development) practitioners can assist in reducing the failure rate of first-time managers when they better understand the…

The balance of power in the United States has begun to shift from youth to older age and will not soon return to a more familiar proportion. Human resource development professionals need to help their companies respond to the needs of older workers and older customers. (JOW)

Suggests that total factory integration through computer networks, even when technically feasible, might be unwieldy, inefficient, and uneconomical because the human factor and accumulated know-how of the work force tend to be overlooked. (Author/JOW)

There is conflicting empirical evidence regarding the learning potential of the workplace. Some studies conclude that workplaces should be seen as strong learning environments, whereas others show evidence of the ineffectiveness of the workplace as a learning environment. In this article, we argue that this disagreement might be caused by…

Contrasts definitions of workplace learning and human resource development and addresses emerging issues that affect the field: professionalization, increased litigation, diffusion, technology, globalization, and reengineering. (SK)

Addresses the limited connection between education and human resource development (HRD). Suggests that preventive approaches to HRD can lead to better relationships between education and the private sector and can improve the preparation of students for the workplace of tomorrow. (JOW)

Looks at the growth of knowledge and its impact on people and organizations, theoretical models for human resource development, trends in the work force and the workplace, and the implications of the first three for industrial education. (SK)

Discusses the role of human resource development professionals in managing learning resources. The author examines learning resources that exist in a corporation, resources that optimize human growth and development within the system (such as line supervisors, printed materials, work groups), and the use of learning contracts to make learning…

Traces the expansion of human resource development (HRD) into spirituality. Identifies associated problems: contradiction between the purposes of spirituality and HRD, religious fundamentalism, invasion of privacy, potential for manipulation, coercion into the global economy, and simplistic and naive treatment of spiritual community. (SK)

In reference to Peter Kuchinke's manuscript, the author points out that current MBA programs suffer from a myriad of ills that are somehow detrimental to organizations and that there is a similar problem with human resource development (HRD) programs (hence the reference in the title to "birds of a feather"). In this article, he shares his…

Peter Kuchinke has written a powerful and relevant article that should generate much discussion in the human resource development (HRD) community. The focus of Kuchinke's paper is the question of whether HRD academic programs should emulate the value preference of business schools or march to a different drum. In this response, the author argues…

Economic factors, administrative changes, and productivity concerns require that higher education focus more clearly on a variety of issues in four areas of human resource management: (1) the need for leadership in the new, more diverse workforce; (2) work issues (quality of life, alternative scheduling, performance evaluation, training); (3)…

Looks at work systems that draw on quality engineering and management concepts and use incentives. Discusses how some U.S. companies improve performance and maintain high quality. Suggests that the federal government strategy should include measures to support change in production processes and promote efficient factors of production. (JOW)