Policies for Managing the Training and Development Function: Lessons from the Federal Government

Abstract

The administration of employee training resources is guided, in part, by laws and regulations. This is exemplified in the case studied here of federal employee training. After reviewing the literature on the use of human resources development (HRD) policies, the policy framework that guides the administration and delivery of training to the federal workforce is described in terms of role requirements for various members of the HRD federal workforce, as well as in terms of specific policies across a variety of HRD practice areas. The practical effects and implications of using policy for HRD practice are considered. A generic list of HRD policies applicable to any employment setting, derived from the federal examples, is provided. Future research directions are identified.