The United Kingdom lacks a framework of nationally recognized professional qualifications for outdoor trainers and facilitators. Various definitions of competence are examined, and suggestions are offered for improving approaches to establishing staff competence. Includes a model of personal development dimensions, and compares U.K. and U.S.…

In mentoring, individual, group, or organizational issues may arise, and mentors must discern the difference in order to tailor interventions accordingly. An important dynamic is the unconscious: what individuals or organizations are unaware that they are communicating. (SK)

Responding members of the Florida Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (196 of 600) were 93% white; they served a wide variety of cultural groups. Primary sources of support for working with diverse populations were colleagues, friends, and personal background. Members rarely received financial support for diversity training, which they…

A Finnish nursing home's team development process included brainstorming on the characteristics of good teams, profiling of team members' nursing skills, analysis of tasks, and identification of ways to improve work quality and information flow to residents. Team building required clarification of work structures, determination of the…

An Irish bank's program for entry-level college-educated workers involved short-term training and long-term development activities, structured on-the-job training, personal development planning, peer learning groups, and learning logs. Retention increased 12%; 24% of these workers were promoted to management. The program was highly cost effective.…

Surveys of 38 managers identified critical components in their effectiveness in performing a teaching role with subordinates: acceptance of the manager/teacher role, effective teaching methods, and the acceptance of the teaching by learners. Influences on the role were perceived performance pressures and rewards, ability to simplify complexity,…

Focus group interviews with 49 hourly employees explored job satisfaction and the role of career development activities. Satisfied workers were either not interested in advancement or felt they had advancement opportunities. Dissatisfied workers perceived inadequate rewards and lack of opportunities. Results suggested that fairness issues may…

Human resource functions have "devolved" to line managers, raising issues related to supervisors' ability and willingness to develop employees and the benefits and costs to the organization. Devolution of this work also has implications for the career development of human resource managers and line managers themselves. (Contains 39 references.)…

An ideal world-class corporate university would integrate four elements: knowledge systems, networks and partnerships, learning processes, and people processes. Case studies of two British corporate universities illustrate how they use current technology, develop networks with learning providers, and share information about learning resources,…

Training for small businesses requires an entrepreneurial rather than a conventional approach. Critical trainer competencies include profiling the business, segmenting the market, understanding the business development process, introducing the relevant environment, delivering enterprise skills training, and teaching across the board. (SK)

Describes problems facing personnel preparation in community-based vocational and residential services for adults with developmental disabilities. Recommends plans of action to allay these problems: (1) direction and coordination of adult services; (2) assessment of providers' personnel training needs; and (3) evaluation and strengthening of…

Describes a Sonoma County (California) school district's peer coaching program designed to meet the needs of new, probationary, and experienced teachers. The program succeeded because participation was voluntary, the training empowered teachers and improved their coaching skills, and teachers continued to meet as a group and learn from each other.…

Advocating development for all continuing education staff, the author asserts that staff who understand adult education theory, the goals and visions of the organization, the environmental context of continuing education, and the roles of other staff members will be more effective. Also essential are support mechanisms that facilitate change. (SK)

Discusses four decision-making models and applies them to the evaluation of staff development programs. (SR)

This annotated bibliography recommends 58 readings in 9 categories from the training literature for reference librarians: (1) overviews; (2) establishing an atmosphere to facilitate learning; (3) assessing needs; (4) defining competent performance; (5) writing training objectives; (6) selecting training methodologies; (7) maintaining skill levels;…