Training Employees to Be a Source of Sustained Competitive Advantage

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that there is an important role for learning and development professionals in helping the firm achieve Sustained Competitive Advantage (SCA) and, furthermore, to explain how this can be achieved. This hypothesis is developed through an extensive review of the scholarly literature and leads to the formulation of a practitioner's guide for learning and development professionals. The study finds that employees can be a direct source of SCA for their firm by applying Resource-based Theory (RBT) through employee training and development initiatives and programs. The research findings are limited in that the paper is conceptual and while a great deal of evidence exists to support its central premise, the hypothesis is yet to be tested through empirical research. There are important practical implications of the study for learning and development specialists and consultants, for employees, human resource professionals, organizational strategic planners and organizations at large. Specifically, the paper points toward new directions for learning strategy. This paper has originality in that it appears to be the first to explicitly link the practical application of RBT with employee training and development initiatives and to provide examples of how this can be achieved.