Antecedents of training transfer of management training in the public sector in the Eastern and Southern African Region - A Longitudinal Survey

Abstract

Many organizations world over continue to make huge investments in their human capital through training and development. These efforts would only be worthwhile if such training is transferred into the workplaces and translated into various performance outcomes. The concept of transfer of training has gained a lot of interest among researchers and human resource practitioner alike. However, a consensus has not been reached on the antecedents of training transfer and especially from a developing economy context. The purpose of this study was to establish the factors influencing training transfer of various management training programmes carried out in the public sector organizations in the Eastern and Southern African region. A descriptive research design was employed. A survey of 169 respondents was carried out using a questionnaire. The results indicate that the 16-components of LTSI model were all not confirmed as the findings produced 14 components. The 14 components produced 4 factors influencing intention to transfer: learner readiness’, motivation to transfer, work environment and individual abilities. There is need to undertake further studies in order to establish reasons for inconsistency in the application of the 16-components in this study. Since the study has concentrated on the context of public service, there is also need to undertake similar or comparative studies with employees for private organizations where the work environment seems to be better that in the government.