Replying to LO24787 --
On June 6, Claire Hilscher wrote
>The job descriptions will be the first "human resource" documents to ever
>exist at this company. ... what would you sages out there recommend as
>the best approach to this job description project (so as to include LO
>values and approaches)?
Claire, a fascinating question, and one to which I'll look forward to
other answers. As a practitioner in this area for some years, my first
thought is this: make certain that each position description contains
within it the clear expectation that learning and professional development
is a recognized and supported (by the company) part of the job.
Then, combine this with HR policies and practices that emphasize
collaboration between employee and supervisor in regularly identifying the
connection among (a) the employee's interest in further developing
knowledge, skills and abilities s/he already uses well (in addition to the
traditional "deficit areas"); (b) the supervisor's assessment of the needs
of the business with regard to this particular position; and (c) the
company's broader strategic goals.
This is, I guess, a round-about way of suggesting that job descriptions
alone won't sufficiently inculcate LO approaches: there needs to be an
explicit commitment by the firm to support employee learning as part of
the business plan.
What do others think?
Malcolm Burson
Professional and Organizational Development
Maine Department of Environmental Protection
--Malcolm Burson mburson@mint.net
"I never saw an instance of one or two disputants convincing the other by argument." --- Th. Jefferson
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