Methodological Basis Development For Training Provider Choice: Experience Of Russian Practice

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the problem of choosing a training provider in the educational services market. This problem is relevant today in the framework of the formation of conceptual approaches to the development and implementation of human resources development strategies in the context of the digital economy. The number of training companies and trainers is growing every year, which complicates the choice of the most worthy ones that meet customer requirements. The number of domestic training companies offering western teaching methods and technologies for solving business problems is increasing, which does not correspond to Russian realities. In this regard, the goal of our study was to develop methodological foundations for the selection of an educational services provider, to which we include educational companies and independent trainers. The results of the study were based on the study of domestic and foreign scientific literature on the planning and organization of corporate training as a system, analysis of best practices for developing staff development strategies. The study used methods of quantitative, qualitative and logical analysis. Monitoring the Russian training and consulting market, studying the experience of domestic companies' practices in the selection and conclusion of business cooperation agreements with educational institutions and business trainers allowed the authors to obtain reliable research results and formulate reasonable conclusions.

Keywords: Universal competencies (soft skills)educational services providertrainercompulsory and developing trainingprofessional development of staff

Introduction

The rapid development of digitalization and the introduction of information technology significantly accelerated the process of updating information and knowledge. Today, knowledge is updated in industries such as economics and management, engineering and information technology, in less than three years. In the labor market, universal employees with developed soft skills are becoming more and more popular (Simonova, Ilyukhina, Romantsev, Khamatnurov, & Zeer, 2016). In this regard, the modern generation of leaders of the «Digital Economy» program has been tasked with ensuring the process of continuous development of its personnel through training, advanced training, professional training and retraining (Mekhdiev, 2018; Makhmudova, Ilyukhina, & Bogatyreva, 2019).

As part of the formation of conceptual approaches to the development and implementation of human resource development strategies, one of the urgent is the problem of choosing a training provider. This issue is especially acute today, in the context of the development of digital technologies, when the importance of developing training aimed at the formation of supra-professional competencies: communication and management skills is growing. In these conditions, the number of training companies and freelance trainers offering their services, but sometimes with a negative reputation, whose activities do not meet the quality requirements, is increasing in the educational services market. Therefore, the development of a methodology for choosing an educational services provider is, in our opinion, necessary, both in terms of its regulation and control, and in order to ensure the quality of developmental events.

Problem Statement

The analysis of domestic and foreign scientific research, articles and monographs on the topic of professional development speaks of a substantive study of both theoretical and practical issues of planning and organizing staff training. The issues of the development of corporate training systems have been studied quite deeply (Ilyukhina, Bogatyreva, Makhmudova, & Ermakova, 2019); identified the problems of personnel training in the context of digitalization (Mekhdiev, 2018); the advantages of innovative teaching methods are analyzed (Ignatieva, 2018); the practical experience of companies in organizing employee training is widely covered (Vorotyntseva & Nedelin, 2008; Chulanova & Timchenko, 2016; Soloviev, 2018). Foreign scientists have deeply studied the issues of androgogy, as an independent science of adult education; determined the conditions for the practical implementation of successful adult education (Knowles, 1988); methods have been developed to evaluate the effectiveness of employee training (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2007). However, in our opinion, in domestic practice, as part of the development of personnel development strategies, the weak link is the question of choosing a training provider. The lack of a unified methodology for choosing a provider of educational services increases the time of its search and selection, reduces the quality of the selection process, which sometimes leads to poor learning outcomes.

Research Questions

In the context of the development of the digital economy, due to the correct integration of technological solutions into the life of employees, constant and high-quality training becomes a reality. Primitive and typical work is outsourced, and company employees are required new skills to solve non-trivial tasks – emotional intelligence, flexibility, synthetic thinking, strong-willed and intellectual competencies, developed digital literacy. Teachers of corporate training centers, as a rule, cannot ensure the development of relevant competencies, so the issue of finding and attracting external training providers is an acute issue.

In this regard, the subject of our study is issues related to the development of methodological approaches for choosing a provider of educational services, to which we include training companies and independent trainers. Despite the fact that attention is paid to this issue in the literature, there is no consensus among practical scientists. Therefore, for us, of particular interest are questions of the formation of a universal algorithm for selecting a supplier, as well as the development of a methodology for choosing an independent coach based on an assessment of his personal qualities and professional competencies.

In the course of the study, the authors of the article solved the following tasks: an algorithm for the procedure for selecting an educational services provider based on the requirements of the international standard ISO 9000-2000 «Quality Management Systems. Requirements» (GOST R ISO 9001, 2008); a descriptive model of provider selection criteria was developed, as well as a trainer's specification; based on the study of the best practices, a profile of a modern trainer is formed; tools for assessing his personal qualities and professional competencies are proposed.

Purpose of the Study

Today in Russia the number of training companies and independent trainers is increasing every year, which complicates the choice of the most worthy ones that meet customer requirements. The number of training companies offering western teaching methods and technologies for solving business problems is growing, which does not correspond to Russian realities and the conditions of modern business processes; does not contribute to the solution of real practical problems of personnel development. There is also a huge differentiation of trainers in terms of professionalism; There is a lack of universal specialists (expert trainers, trainer-consultants), capable of performing not only training, but also expert and analytical work. In this regard, the urgent issue of developing a methodological framework for choosing a training provider.

To achieve this goal, the following tasks were solved in the course of the study: an algorithm is presented for the selection of an educational services provider based on the requirements of the international standard ISO 9000-2000 «Quality management systems. Requirements» (GOST R ISO 9001-2008, 2009); a descriptive model of provider selection criteria was developed, as well as a trainer's specification; based on the study of the best practices, a profile of a modern trainer is formed; tools for assessing his personal and professional qualities are proposed.

Research Methods

Scientific works, the results of domestic and foreign scientists on the topic of research, the study of domestic practice of designing corporate personnel training systems and organizing the choice of educational service providers served as the basis for the analysis of information and the development of methodological recommendations presented in this article. The study is based on the application of methods of quantitative, qualitative and logical analysis. Monitoring the Russian training and consulting market, studying the experience of domestic companies' practices in the selection and conclusion of business cooperation agreements with educational institutions and business trainers allowed the authors to obtain reliable research results and formulate reasonable conclusions.

Findings

Methodological basis for choosing a training provider

Today, there are no problems with the choice of an organization that provides compulsory training for employers: it is conducted by certified training centers. As for other educational organizations, the selection of the most suitable of them should be carried out according to strict regulations.

The development of a methodology for the selection of educational service providers began with the publication of the international standard ISO 9000-2000 «Quality Management Systems. Requirements» (GOST R ISO 9001-2008, 2009). In this standard, the requirements for the procurement process are formulated in general terms: (A) the organization must evaluate and select suppliers based on their ability to supply products in accordance with the requirements of the organization; (B) criteria should be established for the selection, evaluation and revaluation of suppliers; (C) it is necessary to keep records of the results of such an assessment and subsequent actions.

A study of the practice of Russian companies to regulate the procedure for choosing a training provider based on the requirements of ISO quality standards allowed the authors of the study to develop a detailed algorithm for selecting educational service providers (see Fig. 01 ).

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The most difficult step in choosing a training provider from the above algorithm is to develop and approve the criteria for choosing a provider. As part of our research and with the aim of regulating the process of choosing a provider, we developed a descriptive model of the criteria for choosing a provider (Table 01 ).

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So, the development of a step-by-step algorithm for selecting a training provider and the regulation of selection criteria are necessary conditions for substantiating business cooperation with specific providers and the basis for the quality of developing corporate events.

Conclusion

Thus, the study of the experience of Russian companies in organizing interaction with educational service providers allowed us to develop a methodological framework for choosing a training provider. The use of the developed methodological tools in practice will be the basis for regulating the process of selecting a provider, and, consequently, will increase the efficiency of planning and organizing training events. The quality of a trainer's choice is the basis of effective staff training. Conducting an interview on the basis of a questionnaire will allow a relevant assessment of the real skills, achievements and practical experience of a potential trainer, to understand what personal, professional qualities he has and whether he meets the requirements of the «ideal trainer profile».

References

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