Critical issues impacting on skills development in the Department of Public Service and Administration: trends and options

Abstract

This study is an in-depth overview of the critical issues impacting on skills development in the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA). The South African Public Service consists of individuals with their own potential and career paths. The thesis has convincingly argued that managers in the Public Service need to align the potential of their employees with organisational strategies and policies. The study has shown that the training of employees becomes a necessity when departments want to keep track and meet the expectations of their internal and external environments. The thesis proposes and has proven that an integrated approach to human resource development through the process of performance management is a vital requirement, which is critical for skills acquisition. The study, further, notes that if performance management is implemented appropriately, a viable learning organisation could be created. Linking the system of performance management with the learning organisation offers a unique perspective on integrated human resource management, and thus, an important contribution is made to understanding the theory of Public Administration as it applies to skills development. This thesis propounds the notion that evaluation seems to be the missing link in training and development of human resources in the DPSA. Research clearly indicates that the only way to ensure that training priorities are met is to make training evaluation part of the design of a training course. The model proposed in this thesis, for the evaluation of training, entails adding value to both individual and departmental performance. Detail reviews from this thesis, which are supported by both quantitative and qualitative imperatives, suggest that it now becomes essential that senior management initiates a process where individual positions, their importance and contributions, are aligned with the effective and efficient realisation of departmental strategies. The cumulative effect of this thesis resonates on an analysis of both theory and practice regarding the creation and implementation of a learning organisation, which is a landmark for international best practices in the study of public human resource development and training in South Africa.