Amitabh Sharma, Features Coordinator

Any amount of knowledge is a drop in the ocean, it is said; constantly updating skill sets and educating professionals in an organisation is an even more challenging task. This is where the training officer comes in.

The primary role of a training officer, as the name suggests, is to constantly develop programmes and modules to train the manpower in the company, assess and accordingly orient employees.

"Training is part of HR," says Dahlia Fuller-Philips, training officer, Jamaica National Building Society. "Over the years, the word trainer has been replaced by learning, this is what it entails."

PREREQUISITES

As a prerequisite it is an advantage to have a human resource (HR) background, if not a degree in HR, then at least some sort of formal training in this sphere, which should be first degree.

"A background in a service industry and exposure to training and exposure to management training are desirable," says Philips.

TRAITS

An incumbent should be well versed in presentation skills, should have good communication and inter personal relation skills, "If you are unpleasant, your colleagues will develop a dislike towards you," says Philips.

One should be a team player and have the ability to deal with people of diverse backgrounds and personalities, ready to impart knowledge and believe in the development of the people.

JOB PROFILE

"The job profile entails developing specific programmes for the Internet, classrooms, and upgrade existing training material and has product knowledge," explains Philips.

The work also involves carrying of audits, assessing the key competencies of the employees; the trainer is also responsible for mapping an them to the development of the company.

Training and the orientation help the employees to understand the business, the values and the goals of the organisation and how they can contribute optimally to achieve those objectives.

ATTRIBUTES

"It is also a relationship building exercise," says Philips, "One would need to train individual and groups."

It is the responsibility of the trainer to get employees to understand what the organisation is all about, its mission, vision and goals.

To be a trainer, an individual has to be one step ahead, which is a challenging task. "One has to read a lot, keep abreast of what is happening in the industry, read trade publications, papers," she notes.

"In addition, one has to keep up to date with technology, which is playing a key role in transforming this domain," she adds.

This is a volatile field, knowledge changes rapidly, if you are not updated you will become extinct in two years.

DRIVERS AND GROWTH PROSPECTS

The demand for trainers is growing as the companies realise that learning is an essential tool for getting the energies of their employees focused and work optimally to achieve their desired goals.

A fresher can join an organisation as an assistant manager, the starting salary is usually around J$1.4 to J$1.9 million per annum. The prospects are plenty; if one is consistent and ready to innovate, one can become an executive.

The key drivers for the companies to employ more training personnel is motivated by increased competition, globalisation and the awareness about knowledge management as a part of the driving the growth.

amitabh.sharma@gleanerjm.com

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