Etisalat Group

Overview

Etisalat Group is one of the largest multinational firms in the emerging telecommunications market across the United Arab Emirates and in the world (Etisalat, 2017a). Etisalat was founded in 1976 and has been operating in the mobile services industry with an excellent reputation since then. According to Katsioloudes & Hadjidakis (2007), it is ranked among top 500 Corporations worldwide by The Financial Times in regards to market capitalization. Etisalat engages in different social responsibility schemes that specify the company’s commitment to enacting the best innovative developments in the UAE. It empowers the youth to participate in innovative programs, which in due course enhances its dedication to ensuring affluent events within its functioning environments in the ever-changing telecommunication industry.

The diversity of the company’s operations tends to make the Etisalat’s Human Resource Development quiet complex. While Etisalat holds distinctive roles within the telecommunications industry, its operational models encounter significant challenges, considering that the institution is committed to facilitating effectiveness of its functional outlets worldwide. The company, thus, engages in strategic training and Human Resource Development Model to promote the achievement of its objective to reach notable developments.

Training and HRD model

The development of Etisalat’s training and HRD model is dependent on different considerations (Werner & DeSimone, 2011), which relates to responsibilities of strategic planning in order to enhance growth through creativity. Designing of its training and HRD model is based on learning objectives, learning styles, content development, delivery mode, delivery style timelines, and measurement of effectiveness. Prior to conducting trainings, it is necessary to assess needs of all stakeholders and the company, as well as conducting other assessments.

Needs Assessment

Hence, needs assessment relates to learning objectives and is an essential factor in the development of possible training and HRD model in any organization. The evaluation promotes choice of the training model that an organization requires to facilitate goal achievement (Werner & DeSimone, 2011). In this respect, the Abu Dhabi-based telecom firm leads by implementing a model that reflects its founding goals. The primary objectives of its business operations revolve around its need to provide the best inventive solutions and services to a variety of subscribers not only in the Middle East, but also in Asian and African regions. For that reason, the firm emphasizes the importance of using a needs assessment model that encompasses a diversity of aspirations, including organizational, task, and individual evaluations based on its functioning goals for creating a modern environment.

Organizational Assessment

According to Rajagopal (2015), corporate assessment denotes primary aspects, including expertise, aptitudes, and information that a business entity needs to accomplish its objectives. It focuses on identifying different market issues like technological trends and demographic changes. The assessment allows the organization to recognize strategic ways of maximizing strengths utilization, while offsetting weaknesses to promote functioning efficacy. Nevertheless, the evaluation has the responsibility of defining delicate issues that might negatively impact employees’ performance with a view to enhancing organizational performance, including relations among employees (Rajagopal, 2015). Therefore, Etisalat uses this assessment to identify key factors that may facilitate internal conflicts owing to defiant behaviors among employees. It is also applied to highlight effectiveness of disciplinary methods as a response to rebellious acts in order to ensure conformity in operations.

Occupational Assessment

Durai (2010) affirms that task assessment enables a company to explicitly focus on giving clarifications of specific obligations relating to a task in respect to the magnitude of knowledge, skills, and capabilities that an employee should possess to fit within operations of an occupation. The assessment is also meant to ensure that employees have tools they need to efficiently execute their duties, while guaranteeing that each employee follows organizational goals with a view to promoting creativity and improve performance in the telecommunications industry.

Individual Assessment

Individual assessments are aimed at determining the type of training that should be used by an employee to enhance his or her performance depending on the nature of the specific occupation (Durai, 2010). Etisalat conducts individual assessment among both employees and the managerial staff, including operational managers and supervisors. Employees’ relation within Etisalat is also considered as a fundamental component of personal evaluations. It elaborates primary responsibilities of the human resource development to ensure employees’ retention by satisfying workers’ needs and problems as a motivation mechanism promoting innovative development.

Training and HRD Model Design

Learning Objectives

Employees at different operational levels will be introduced to the company's goal thanks to its training model that emphasizes the importance of creativity in the contemporary telecommunications industry that encompasses significant technological changes. The training notes that employees are required to explain the company's policy on technical changes, while ensuring customer satisfaction by means of innovation and quality service delivery. Besides, the company highlights that all employees should have adequate information on safety measures in the process of functioning.

Learning Styles

Wong (2015) identifies three types of learning styles in a training program: “visual, auditory, and kinesthetic” learning. The training model under consideration uses visual and kinesthetic learning styles to deliver theoretical and practical experience accordingly.

Lesson Development

Content development is a vital component in validating effectiveness of training and HRD model. It involves selection of trainers and development of learning objectives that employees should be able to use in their occupation after the training (Werner & DeSimone, 2011). Besides, it involves the selection of delivery methods and the timeline of the practice.

Trainers

The training will involve trainers of diverse orientations, including developmental mentors to motivate learners to ensure occupational consistency on aspects such as employees’ development and occupational safety (Ragins & Kram, 2007). It will also involve professional experts from the telecommunication industry to highlight the importance of innovation in influencing commendable developments.

Delivery Mode

Visual learning is a significant delivery method that introduces learners to the theoretical focus of creative development. Subsequently, practical education or kinesthetic knowledge is used to demonstrate real-life directions of improved performance by means of using new and innovative schemes. Visual learning involves a variety of delivery methods, but this model will specifically employ the ‘on-the-job coaching’ and web-based learning channels to deliver soft skills, clarifications on quality standards, customer satisfaction, and managerial skills (Kolachi & Akan, 2014). In turn, Fling (2009) stipulates that physical learning should involve mentorship programs, on-the-job coaching, and web-based programs to deliver professional, technical, and safety-oriented skills

To create a stable training base for current and new learners (employees), the model avails an online learning base. Limited learning costs are commonly associated with the web-based program. It is also an effective learning mode for familiarizing employees with emerging systems or procedures that might affect organizational performance. Innovation camps are useful in delivering the practicality of original performance among learners. It comprises a variety of trainers, including telecommunication experts, in order to promote development of areas such as app development, coding, and software development. The camp facilitates ‘on-the-job coaching’ and learning through mentorship owing to the interactive environment created for learners and technical professionals. Nevertheless, flexibility of the model enables establishment of a training program for improvement of managerial skills. For instance, according to the corporate annual report of Etisalat (2017b), its executives, including managers and supervisors, are enrolled in a training program on improvement of managerial skills through leadership tours. The tours offer executives chances for interacting with other leaders from different organizations across the world, while exchanging relevant administrative skills and styles.

Timelines

The training model is scheduled in line with the learning objectives. Therefore, employee orientation to the company’s policy will concern such issues as individual performance, safety measures, and quality standards and it will be done on the first Tuesday of every month, whereas entrance exercise about communication and managerial skills will be taking place on the third and fourth Tuesdays of every month. Practical training on safety and quality standards will be conducted twice a year in April and September.

Implementation

The implementation process of the model defines the firm’s accountability to create an environment that offers employees chances for innovative interactions. Besides, it emphasizes a working environment that provides employees with easy and equal opportunities for the pursuit of organizational support through supervisors and managers. The model has a purpose of inaugurating employee support and motivating employees, while helping the organization to achieve its goals through innovative performance. The creative strategy has a dominant motto that tends to stipulate the importance of learning and engaging, while developing an innovative base to archive improved performance. Importantly, the model underlines a set of strategic processes with the potential to ensure enhanced and continuous employee performance within its subsidiaries and outlets in different target markets. For instance, in market locations with unstable environments due to social, political, cultural, or political uneasiness employees are entitled to private security support from the company. Hence, employees feel protected and secure to continue executing their tasks even during unstable times.

Besides, the model suggests establishment of an open environment in which employees feel encouraged to enhance their creativity, while executing their duties. The innovative strategy also demands an open floor plan to improve teamwork through employee interaction, hence facilitating creative performance and service delivery.

Measuring Effectiveness

Kirkpatrick’s Evaluation Model

According to Werner and DeSimone (2011), the Kirkpatrick’s Model involves four distinct levels: “the reaction, Learning, Behaviour, and Results”. The reaction level defines identification of a participant’s attitude toward the training program, whereas the learning level identifies the extent to which the training has improved knowledge and skills among participants. Behavior describes the influence of the program on participants' response, while the results level tends to value the training program by focusing on substantial benefits it gains an organization.

Evaluation

Evaluation of the training model highlights the use of a definite system to analyze effectiveness of the training program at various functioning levels.  Therefore, participants will be given a questionnaire with different questions for both employees and managers. Employees will be tasked to provide their views concerning the influence of the training on improved performance at various occupational levels. In turn, managers will be offered questionnaires with specific questions concerning the levels of original performance among employees and participatory behavior for enhancing organizational performance. Subsequently, surveys will be used to validate benefits (results) of the training program for the improvement of innovation aspirations by means of improving corporate performance. The first evaluation is done at the end of each month and is conducted by a manager or supervisor in specific operational departments, which mainly focuses on employee performance.

Interpretation

The innovation-based model determines the company’s performance in the changeable industry due to technological advancement. The telecommunication landscape necessitates significant levels of flexibility in operations because it encounters strong technical changes that entail high impacts on service delivery and organizational performance. However, there is a variety of recommendations that can be applied to this model. Firstly, the organization would need a modified and responsive job analysis model for determining appropriate occupational qualifications to cope with technological advancements. This should be done by providing proper job descriptions to attract right employees. Secondly, the model should incorporate an active communication channel for delivering the organization's goals, rules, and regulations, while maintaining continuous training programs to keep on updating employees on emerging technologies. Nevertheless, its HRD should focus on preserving employee relations by enacting reliable systems on issues such as retirement funds and insurance policies in order to ensure employee retention and improved performance.

Conclusion

Over the years, Etisalat has been able to maintain its competitive advantage in the ever-changing telecommunications industry thanks to using training and HRD model that advocates for inventive transformation. The model plays an extremely significant role in ensuring performance adequacy not only currently, but also in the future since innovation is the basis of continuous performance. It is, therefore, logical to state that the model will enable the group to penetrate different emerging markets within the telecommunication industry efficiently.