Enhance Workplace Learning Research Articles

Employee cohesion and its influence on workplace learning: The lived experiences of public university lecturers in Ethiopia

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate the driving factors for staff cohesiveness in the workplace and how they are related to workplace learning and development opportunities. Two research questions guided the inquiry: (1) What are the driving factors for staff cohesiveness in the workplace? and (2) How does staff cohesiveness influence workplace learning?Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on a phenomenological research design. The data collection involved interviews and focus group discussions with 22 lecturers in two public universities. Thematic analysis was followed to analyse and interpret data.FindingsThe findings of this study indicate that staff cohesiveness is greatly influenced by several factors. Firstly, the presence of shared visions and goals plays a significant role in fostering staff cohesion. In addition, the similarity of age and gender among employees, as well as the presence of mutual support and a sense of belongingness, trust and solidarity, managerial support and the nature of the job that requires collective action, all contribute to staff cohesiveness. It is worth noting that previous studies have not reported the influence of age, gender and job characteristics as factors influencing staff cohesiveness.Practical implicationsEmployers should not only focus on the knowledge and hard skills of applicants but also on the soft skills which support teamwork and cohesion in the workplace. Managers who want to enhance workplace learning should create opportunities for social gatherings and informal contacts in the workplace to facilitate informal learning in the workplace. Researchers focusing on workplace learning should include tacit learning practices that occur in the workplace as a result of the closeness between teammates.Originality/valueThis manuscript, which the authors hereby present, is the result of own original work. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the authors wish to emphasise that it has not been submitted for publication in any other journals.

How to establish workplace learning in long-term care: results from a World Café dialogue

BackgroundAs long-term care continues to change, the traditional way of learning for work purposes is no longer sufficient. Long-term care organisations need to become ‘learning organisations’ and facilitate workplace learning for nursing staff teams. Therefore, insight is needed into what conditions are important for establishing workplace learning. The aim and objective of this article is to gain insight into necessary individual, team and organisational conditions for nursing staff to enhance workplace learning in long-term care settings.MethodsThis study is a qualitative explorative study. A World Café method was used to host group dialogues in which participants (n = 42) discussed certain questions. Group dialogues were held for the nursing home and community care setting separately due to organisational differences. Nursing staff, experts in workplace learning, educational staff, client representatives and experts in the field of work and organisation in healthcare organisations were invited to a Dutch long-term care organisation to discuss questions of interest. Data were analysed using theme-based content analysis.ResultsOverall themes concerning individual, team and organisational conditions for workplace learning included: facilitating characteristics (e.g. to be given time and room for [team] development); behavioural characteristics (e.g. an open attitude); context and culture (e.g. feeling safe); cooperation and communication (e.g. giving/receiving feedback); and knowledge and skills (e.g. acquiring knowledge from each other). No major differences were found between settings.ConclusionsBy assessing the themes at the individual, team and organisational level regarding nursing staff, the current workplace learning situation, and its possible improvements, can be detected.

Using quality improvement tools to enhance workplace learning in an anaesthesia unit

Background In healthcare, quality improvement (QI) tools are predominantly used to address human, system and process factors to improve clinical care. We believe that QI tools can also be used to address similar factors in medical education, to facilitate improvement in learning outcomes and competencies for new junior doctors in a postgraduate medical education program in our anaesthesia and critical care unit. Methods A stepwise competency checklist was devised to guide the learning and monitor the percentage who had completed the required learning activities and tests at the end of each month. This was tabulated as monthly competency scores, and served as a measure of effectiveness of the education program. QI tools, namely the Fishbone diagram and Pareto chart, were used to identify modifiable root causes and prioritise interventions. Results Monthly competency scores ranged 30–50% at baseline, and improved to 60–75% after 6 months, with the implementation of a series of QI interventions. Conclusion QI tools were utilised to guide education interventions, with consequent improvement in the monthly competency scores of our junior doctors. Focused improvement cycles that are aligned to learning outcomes are key to the success of using QI tools in medical education.

Enhancing workplace learning at the transition into practice: Lessons from a pandemic.

Taking responsibility for prescribing is one of newly qualified doctors' greatest stressors.1 Despite being a routine task, prescribing insulin is particularly stress-inducing. The global pandemic has made it more important to minimise transitioning students' stress; yet there are fewer clinicians to support their accelerated transitions. We had planned an intervention during 9-week 'Clinical Assistantships' immediately before qualifying. Students would write insulin 'pre-prescriptions', which supervisors would endorse as prescriptions that were appropriate to dispense. A trained healthcare professional or person with diabetes ('debriefer') would conduct one-to-one Case Based discussions (CBDs) to help students learn reflectively from experience.

Firm size and workplace learning processes: a study of the restaurant sector

PurposeThe purpose of this paper asks how workplace learning environments change as firm size increases, and how employees respond to this. In doing so, it looks beyond an exclusive focus on formal training and incorporates more informal, work-based learning processes.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a comparative, qualitative research design, using semi-structured interviews with an under-researched group of workers – waiting for staff in restaurants. The data were collected from six restaurants of different sizes.FindingsAs formally instituted human resource development (HRD) structures expand as firm size increases are more extensive in larger firms, this leaves less room for individual choice and agency in shaping the learning process. This does not inevitably constrain or enhance workplace learning, and can be experienced either negatively or positively by employees, depending on their previous working and learning experiences.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research on HRD and workplace learning should acknowledge both formal and informal learning processes and the interaction between them – particularly in small and growing firms. Insights are drawn from the sociomaterial perspective help the authors to conceptualise this formality and informality. Research is needed in a wider range of sectors.Practical implicationsThere are implications for managers in small, growing firms, in terms of how they maintain space for informal learning as formal HRD structures expand, and how they support learners who may struggle in less structured learning environments.Originality/valueThe paper extends current understanding of how the workplace learning environment – beyond a narrow focus on “training” – changes as firm size increases.

Learning experiences in mono-and intercultural workplace interactions – the job-demands-resources approach

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the differences in learning experiences in mono- and intercultural workplace interactions and to address the research question of how employees experience learning in mono- and intercultural interactions.Design/methodology/approachThe author reports and compares the main findings from two samples and 63 in-depth interviews with employees involved either in monocultural interactions or intercultural interactions, namely, 25 and 38 subjects, respectively. The abductive approach was used to analyze the data in interplay between empirical findings and theoretical lens of the job demands-resources (JD-R) model.FindingsLearning was more often emphasized in intercultural interactions than monocultural interactions, which can be associated with the constellation of specific job demands and job resources in mono- and multicultural workplaces. The subjects involved in mono- and intercultural interactions portrayed learning, using slightly different vocabulary.Research limitations/implicationsThe research gives some insights about workplace learning experiences and illuminates learning in social interactions and the JD-R model. In particular, it emphasizes the role of work design in promoting learning and identifies, using the JD-R model, job demands and job resources that can relate to learning in mono- and intercultural interactions. The results may contribute to the literature on workplace learning in culturally homogenous or heterogeneous social interactions. Moreover, they shed some new light on organizational learning via mono- and intercultural contact at work. Finally, they draw attention to the potential embedded in intercultural interactions and multicultural workplaces. Yet, the explorative character of the research does not allow for a broader results’ generalization.Practical implicationsThe results suggest that job design may be of vital importance in stimulating learning at work. Thus, organizations should enable social interactions of their employees, especially intercultural ones, which are likely associated with more learning. Furthermore, to enhance workplace learning, they need to provide more organizational resources and support via HR interventions the development of personal resources of their staff to help individuals to deal with job demands and reduce strain, which impedes employee learning.Originality/valueBy applying the theoretical lens of the JD-R model to the analysis, the author exposes differences in learning experiences in mono- and intercultural interactions. The specific job demands (cultural differences and adaptation, the necessity to speak a foreign language) and resources (learning opportunities) inherent in multicultural workplaces can be perceived as a trigger of workplace learning.

Effects of nurses' personality traits and their environmental characteristics on their workplace learning and nursing competence.

A good fit between an individual's personality traits and job characteristics motivates employees, and thus enhances their work behavior. However, how nurses' personality traits and their environmental characteristics relate to nurses' engagement in workplace learning, which improves their competence, has not been investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate how nurses' personality traits, environmental characteristics, and workplace learning were related to nursing competence. A cross-sectional survey design was used. Questionnaires were distributed to 1167 Japanese registered nurses. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the relationships between nurses' personality traits, the environmental characteristics, the nurses' engagement in workplace learning, and their competence. A total of 315 nurses returned questionnaires (i.e., a return rate of 27.0%). The results showed that both the personality traits (extraversion, conscientiousness, openness to experience) and environmental characteristics (autonomy at work and feedback given) were related to workplace learning and self-rated nursing competence. The results also showed that the relationship between extraversion (active, adventurous and ambitious dispositions of an individual) and self-rated nursing competence was moderated by environmental characteristics, and partially mediated by workplace learning. Positive personality traits, such as extraversion, conscientiousness, and openness to experience could enhance workplace learning and nursing competence. Moreover, environmental characteristics that allow nurses to express their personality traits have the potential to improve their learning and competence further.

Dealing with the tension: how residents seek autonomy and participation in the workplace.

The workplace can be a strenuous setting for residents: although it offers a wealth of learning opportunities, residents find themselves juggling their responsibilities. Even though supervisors regulate what is afforded to residents, the former find it difficult to strike the proper balance between residents' independence and support, which could create tensions. But what tensions do residents experience during clinical supervision and how do they cope with them to maximise their learning opportunities? Understanding how residents act on different affordances in the workplace is of paramount importance, as it influences their learning. Residents from different levels of training and disciplines participated in three focus groups (n=19) and 10 semi-structured interviews (n=10). The authors recruited these trainees using purposive and convenience sampling. Audio-recordings were transcribed verbatim and the ensuing scripts were analysed using a constructivist grounded theory methodology. Residents reported that the autonomy and practice opportunities given by their supervisors were either excessive or too limited, and both were perceived as tensions. When in excess, trainees enlisted the help of their supervisor or peers, depending on how safe they recognised the learning environment to be. When practice opportunities were curtailed, trainees tried to negotiate more if they felt the learning environment was safe. When they did not, trainees became passive observers. Learning from each engagement was subject to the extent of intersubjectivity achieved between the actors involved. Tensions arose when supervisors did not give trainees the desired degree of autonomy and opportunities to participate. Trainees responded in various ways to maximise their learning opportunities. For these different engagement-related responses to enhance workplace learning in specialty training, achieving intersubjectivity between trainee and supervisor seems foundational.

The relationship between learning conditions in the workplace and informal learning outcomes: a study among police inspectors

Informal workplace learning has become a prominent reality in the knowledge society of today. For this reason, developing appropriate learning conditions in order to enhance workplace learning is dominating organizational agendas. However, research that investigates the relationship between important learning conditions and learning outcomes resulting from informal learning is scarce. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to explore how learning conditions in the workplace are related to these informal learning outcomes of police inspectors in particular. A mixed method study, including a survey among 390 police inspectors and interviews with nine police inspectors, was set up to explore this relation. Overall, the results of the survey study suggest that the learning conditions ‘information’, ‘feedback’, ‘reflection’ and ‘coaching’ are good predictors for the acquisition of ‘generic learning outcomes’ and ‘organizational level learning outcomes’. The learning condition ‘coaching’ is also strongly associated with ‘job‐specific learning outcomes’. These results are in accordance with the perception of the interviewed police inspectors.

Integrating research, clinical care, and education in academic health science centers.

Purpose One of the major issues faced by academic health science centers (AHSCs) is the need for mechanisms to foster the integration of research, clinical, and educational activities to achieve the vision of evidence-informed decision making (EIDM) and optimal client care. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach This paper synthesizes literature on organizational learning and collaboration, evidence-informed organizational decision making, and learning-based organizations to derive insights concerning the nature of effective workplace learning in AHSCs. Findings An evidence-informed model of collaborative workplace learning is proposed to aid the alignment of research, clinical, and educational functions in AHSCs. The model articulates relationships among AHSC academic functions and sub-functions, cross-functional activities, and collaborative learning processes, emphasizing the importance of cross-functional activities in enhancing collaborative learning processes and optimizing EIDM and client care. Cross-functional activities involving clinicians, researchers, and educators are hypothesized to be a primary vehicle for integration, supported by a learning-oriented workplace culture. These activities are distinct from interprofessional teams, which are clinical in nature. Four collaborative learning processes are specified that are enhanced in cross-functional activities or teamwork: co-constructing meaning, co-learning, co-producing knowledge, and co-using knowledge. Practical implications The model provides an aspirational vision and insight into the importance of cross-functional activities in enhancing workplace learning. The paper discusses the conceptual and empirical basis to the model, its contributions and limitations, and implications for AHSCs. Originality/value The model's potential utility for health care is discussed, with implications for organizational culture and the promotion of cross-functional activities.

“Let's Talk About It”: Translating Lessons From Health Care Simulation to Clinical Event Debriefings and Coaching Conversations

Despite proven benefits for team and individual performance, a number of perceived barriers limit clinical post–event debriefings, which impacts health care team functioning and patient care. An overemphasis on debriefing after rare events such as cardiac arrest and major trauma resuscitations necessarily means that debriefings will also occur infrequently as well. Similarly, individual coaching conversations that would help promote trainee skill acquisition are lacking. This situation stands in stark contrast to other experiential learning domains such as health care simulation, which view structured feedback, coaching, and debriefing as integral to its educational practices. Better translation of relevant lessons from health care simulation to clinical settings could enhance workplace learning and drive continuous performance improvements, benefitting both clinicians and patients. This article aims to: (a) broaden the scope of “debriefing” in clinical settings; (b) translate valuable principles and strategies from health care simulation, clinical education, and psychology literatures to clinical post–event debriefings and coaching conversations in pediatric emergency departments; and (c) offer guidance and practical strategies to help busy clinicians implement both clinical event debriefings and coaching conversations in pediatric emergency departments.

Enhancing Workplace Learning through Mobile Technology

Technology-mediated learning (TML) and workplace learning (WPL) are major priorities for universities. TML is core to the dynamic growth and modernization of university education, and WPL is an essential strategy used by universities to prepare students for future work. In Australia, both are rapidly changing practices, providing new possibilities and challenges. Though these two areas have largely remained separate in educational literature and practice, the integration of TML and WPL can provide important opportunities to bridge university and the workplace as well as build students' digital capacities and online professional identities. This poster presents a mobile resource for named the "GPS for WPL", aimed at helping students, academics and workplace educators to improve professional learning experiences by making better use of mobile technology. This resource was designed as part of a project funded by the Office for Learning and Teaching, entitled "Enhancing Workplace Learning through Mobile Technology"

Learning in the workplace: the role of Nurse Managers.

Objective This research explores Nurse Managers' (NMs') influence on workplace learning. The facilitation of staff learning has implications for the role of NMs, who are responsible for the quality and safety of patient care. However, this aspect of their work is implicit and there is limited research in the area. Methods This paper discusses the findings from one hospital as part of a broader philosophical hermeneutic study conducted in two public hospitals over a 20-month timeframe. NMs participated in interviews, a period of observation, follow-up interviews and a focus group. Transcribed data was thematically analysed. Eraut's 'Two triangle theory of workplace learning' was used to interpret participants' accounts of how they facilitated workplace learning. Findings The analysis found that NMs worked to positively influence staff performance through learning in three domains: orientating new staff, assessing staff performance and managing underperformance. Conclusions This study purports that NMs influence workplace learning in ways that are seldom recognised. A more conscious understanding of the impact of their role can enable NMs to more purposefully influence workplace learning. Such understanding also has implications for the professional preparation of NMs for their role in the context of workplace learning, facilitating learning for change and enabling the advancement of quality and safety in healthcare. What is known about the topic? Studies exploring the influence of Nurse Managers in workplace learning have been limited to their role in the facilitation of formal learning. There is a paucity of research that examines their role in influencing informal learning. What does this paper add? The findings of this study draw on Eraut's 'Two triangle theory of workplace learning' to further define the interdependent relationship between management and educational practices. What are the implications for practitioners? NMs' awareness and deliberate use of their management role to enhance workplace learning will not only strengthen their role, but will also foster good learning environments and quality nursing services.

Vocational students’ perspective on organizational factors enhancing workplace learning

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to identify organizational factors that enhance the vocational students’ development of professional skills during workplace learning and, furthermore, to examine the effects of the factors identified on the development.Design/methodology/approach– The results were based on 285 Finnish graduating vocational students’ responses. The confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations were conducted by using Lisrel.Findings– The students’ development of professional skills was enhanced by three organizational factors: an innovative climate, guidance, and interactions with seniors. Furthermore, the results emphasized that other employees have a central role in enhancing the students’ professional skills development.Research limitations/implications– The study used the students’ self-appraisal of the examined factors because it seems to be a common approach. However, future research should consider managers’ and seniors’ viewpoints.Practical implications– Managers should map present and future skills requirements set by the organization and create a detailed plan for the students’ workplace learning. A practical tool to engage and support employees to enhance the students’ professional skills is to make a process with explicit descriptions of each organizational factor and the actors’ responsibilities.Originality/value– The study provides empirical evidence supporting the substantial influence of organizations on the students’ development of professional skills.

Leadership of learning and reflective practice: An exploratory study of nursing managers

Although the role of leadership has been emphasized in facilitating learning in the workplace, there is limited systematic research directly linked to leadership and learning. This study investigated the characteristics of leadership behaviors that facilitate workplace learning, using data from a survey of 228 nursing managers in 22 hospitals. Results of structural equation modeling indicate that encouraging reflective practice plays a central role in enhancing workplace learning, and reflective practice was facilitated by clarifying the mission of the unit and promoting role modeling. The findings suggest that reflective practice combined with goal setting and social learning promotes workplace learning. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

Online Intervision to Enhance Workplace Learning for Student Teachers: Online Professional Development of Student Teachers in an International Context

Online Intervision to Enhance Workplace Learning for Student Teachers: Online Professional Development of Student Teachers in an International Context

Enhancing workplace learning for adolescents: the use of metacognitive instruction

PurposeThis paper aims to describe an instructional study of three cases of work‐based education students (in co‐operative education in Canada), described by their teachers as ranging from high achieving to low achieving.Design/methodology/approachThe three students are given metacognitive instruction to enhance their workplace learning. The instruction is based on findings from a population of recent case studies of learning in the workplace and is shared with the students, with their teachers, and with their workplace supervisors. Interviews and observations are used to describe the variable success of metacognitive instruction in the three workplace settings.FindingsThe paper finds that, while the teachers do not implement the materials fully, both the employers and the students find the metacognitive questions that make up the instructional materials to be useful and have suggestions for how the instructional materials should be used in workplaces. The instructional materials are appended.Originality/valueThe paper provides useful information on enhancing their workplace learning among work‐based education students.

Applying the learning organisation concept in a resource squeezed service organisation

This paper explores the results of applying a diagnostic questionnaire for measuring the dimensions of a learning organisation in a resource squeezed service organisation. The questionnaire was conducted as the first stage of an ethnographic study of workplace learning in an aged care organization. It was distributed to the 600 employees in nine facilities to provide baseline information to be complemented by qualitative data collected in the second stage. Strengths in the dimensions of leadership and systemic connection and weaknesses in the areas of dialogue and inquiry, team learning and empowering people were revealed. Preliminary qualitative data support the findings and add to the meaning of the questionnaire results. Subsequent discussions with the organisation about the questionnaire suggest that it was a useful tool to enhance workplace learning.