Training and development in the Northern Ireland
clothing industry
Keywords
Human resource management,
Training, Development,
Clothing industry, Northern Ireland
Abstract
With the emergence of human
resource management models and
literature came a realisation that
in many cases personnel
specialists were faced with many
new opportunities and challenges.
There was a perception that a
number of the key functions of the
specialism had been
underdeveloped or even ignored.
This article presents a
quantitative analysis of human
resource management practices
in the Northern Ireland clothing
industry. The findings are derived
from a survey sample of 90
organisations and the data
analysed is based on the 69
company responses representing
a 76 per cent response rate. The
article focuses on one area of the
personnel function, which it was
considered would be dramatically
changed by the implementation of
a new approach to managing
people; namely, training and
development. The article presents
a positive view of human resource
interventions in the surveyed
industry and of the progress
specialists within the industry
have made.
Journal of European Industrial
Training
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89
# MCB University Press
[ISSN 0309-0590]
[ 80 ]
Trevor Morrow
Magee College, University of Ulster, Londonderry, Northern Ireland
Introduction
Assessing the development of the
personnel/human resource function
The aim of this paper is to explore training
and development in particular in the
contemporary personnel/human resource
function in the Northern Ireland clothing
industry. The nature of the research means
that all observations, analysis and
conclusions are restricted to the industry
from which the survey sample was drawn.
Throughout the last 15 years considerable
emphasis has been placed on the changes
that personnel management has gone
through. Traditionally the primary role of
the personnel function and of personnel
specialists was a concern for industrial
relations, practitioners often described their
job as that of a fire-fighter, trying to defuse
conflicts between adversarial managements
and trade unions. With the human resource
management models more emphasis was
placed on the other elements of the personnel
function such as training and development.
Personnel/human resource (P/HR)
function in the Northern Ireland clothing
industry
Gunnigle et al. (1997) identify a number of
issues which are essential in presenting a
profile of the P/HR function, such as the
actual presence of the function within
organisations, the size of the function, the
activities engaged in and the level at which
the P/HR function operates. They also utilise
factors such as organisational size and
country of ownership in order to assess the
effect, if any, they have on the profile of the
P/HR function.
The existence of a specialist P/HR function
is seen as an important indicator of the
nature and role of HRM within organisation,
but as Gunnigle et al. (1997) suggest it is
important that to note that this factor is
merely an indicator of the HRM role, and
conclusions should only be drawn in light of
other factors. In certain organisational
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settings size may be a major consideration;
the common perception is that small
organisations have difficulty in justifying the
cost of operating a specialist function. This
again brings up the contentious issue that the
function has difficulty in presenting bottom
line benefits, something more easily
established in regard to other functions such
as marketing and accountancy/finance.
Another consideration may be that the
organisation views the management of
human resources as being of the utmost
importance, the underlying philosophy being
that people are the organisation's most
important asset. In many cases the chief
executive or managing director may have
responsibility for human resource issues and
is often supported by fellow directors,
departmental heads and line managers. In
considering the survey findings, a number of
points should be highlighted before formal
presentation of the results. The first issue is
that the clothing industry has historically
been extremely labour intensive, and
although advances in technology have had
the effect of reducing dependence on labour,
mass production techniques still require
relatively large labour forces. This is evident
in the analysis of the number of people
employed in each organisation (see Figure 1
and Table I), with the arithmetic mean size
for the 69 organisations surveyed being 287
people, and 62 per cent of the sample being
represented by companies employing over
100 people.
This reflects a significant industry
characteristic, where break-even on
production costs requires high production.
The demographics of the industry highlight
this point: April 1999 figures show that there
are 302 companies employing less than 50
people in the industry (source: Local
Enterprise Development Unit), and 88
companies employing over 50 people (source:
Northern Ireland Textile Association). In the
1-50 company category, 65 per cent are
represented in the 1-10 employee category,
and are highly unlikely to have a defined
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Trevor Morrow
Training and development in
the Northern Ireland clothing
industry
Journal of European Industrial
Training
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89
P/HR function; in many cases the owner/
manager having direct responsibility for all
P/HR issues.
The existence of a specialist P/HR function
is obviously extremely important to the
clothing industry, with 88 per cent of
respondent companies reporting the
presence of a formal P/HR function.
Considering the characteristics of the survey
respondents detailed above this figure is to
be expected, especially in light of the
accepted orthodoxy of organisational size
having a positive correlation with the
existence of the P/HR function at company
level. This is reinforced when we consider
that of the eight respondents who reported an
absence of a P/HR function, only one
company employed over 100 people.
Background
The Northern Ireland clothing industry
Northern Ireland has a long tradition of
clothing manufacturing; today's industry can
be traced back to the beginnings of the linen
industry in the 1700s. The North of Ireland's
fine linen cloths and yarns became known
world wide for their quality, and the linen
industry remains to this day an important
part of the textile sector.
Tradition and expertise built up in linen
provided the foundation for diversification
into other textile products, and the
establishment of the clothing industry itself.
By the end of the Second World War the
industry peaked at 70,000 employees but
shortly after that a long period of decline
began as newly developed nations turned to
clothing as a route to new export markets for
themselves. In the intervening years the
industry has had continually to improve its
technical and manufacturing abilities,
introduce new materials and technologies,
strive for improved efficiency and even
higher levels of quality all in order to
maintain a competitive edge. The industry
today is spread throughout Northern Ireland,
providing stability to many rural areas and
small provincial towns. But although the
numbers are considerably down on their
historical peak, output is ever increasing.
The comparative performance of the sector is
highlighted in Table II.

Figure 1 Characteristics and perceptions of the

Size distribution of respondent companies by number of employees Industry
The clothing industry is also generally
perceived as having the following
characteristics:
. It is generally fragmented, and many
companies in turn lack the scales of
capability to serve the global market.
. There are many smaller firms, often
family owned, which continue to be
important, but the squeeze on profits has
led to cumulative under-investment; this,
in turn has led to falling competitiveness
in companies which failed to adopt new
technology or incorporate greater design
input and specialisation.
. The public perception is thus of a ``sunset
industry'', seen as low tech and low wage ±
with an associated impact on recruitment
and retention of labour.
. The sector is facing fierce international
competition, especially from lower wage
Table I countries of the Mediterranean, i.e. Spain
Size distribution by number of employees and Portugal ± wages are 50 per cent
Northern Ireland Clothing lower, Eastern European ± some 80 per
Industry Survey (1998) cent lower, some Asian (i.e. Hong Kong,
Company size n (%) and Singapore) ± wages are 90 per cent
lower; so companies in Northern Ireland
25-50 1 (1) can no longer compete on labour cost; cost
51-100 25 (37) differentials are widening too, with the
101-200 25 (37) current effect of the strong pound and the
201-500 10 (14) introduction of the minimum wage.
501-1,000 4 (6) . There is a history of a lack of
1,000+ 4 (6) differentiation from imports; i.e. under-
Total 69 (100) utilisation of design and a perception of
[ 81 ]
Trevor Morrow inflexibility, lack of versatility and quick
Training and development in response.
the Northern Ireland clothing . There is also a lack of cross-sector
industry
communication or co-operation, but this
Journal of European Industrial
Training is being rectified to a considerable extent
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89 in recent years since the formation of the
Northern Ireland Textile and Apparel
Association.
Literature review
Training and development
Ashton and Felstead (1995) acknowledge the
widespread consensus that training and
development should be encouraged. However
the important thing to note in this statement
is the word should; in reality effective
training is costly and requires expertise, and
the benefits are often not immediately
tangible. In many cases organisations simply
are not prepared to invest in training. Holden
(1994) believes that the recognition of the
importance of training in recent years has
been heavily influenced by the
intensification of global competition and the
relative success of economies like Japan,
Germany and Sweden where investment in
employee development is considerable.
Technological developments and
organisational change have gradually led
some employers to the realisation that
success relies on the skills and abilities of
their employees, and this means considerable
and continuous investment in training and
development. This has also been underscored
by the rise of human resource management
with its emphasis on the importance of
people and the skills they possess in
enhancing organisational efficiency. Such
HRM concepts as ``commitment'' to the
company and the growth in the ``quality''
movement have led senior management
teams to realise the increased importance of
training and development or so logic would
suggest. In considering this change it is
important to note that some commentators
have taken this even further, describing
human resource development (HRD) as a
discipline in its own right and one which is
as important as HRM. Examples of
organisations placing emphasis on HRD as a
Table II
Performance of clothing sector 1991-1997
Northern
Ireland UK ROI EU
Production % change 10 ±13 ±9 ±5.4
Employment % change ±8 ±20 ±12 ±17
Source: Strategy 2010 Clothing Sector Working Group Report
[ 82 ]
discipline related to HRM, but meriting
separate attention, are few and far between.
In terms of this review, the issue of how
training and development has changed in the
HRM era is of extreme importance. Ashton
and Felstead (1995, p. 245) draw the following
conclusions. If the HRM ``revolution'' has
truly occurred, British managers should be
committed to investing in their workforce,
this commitment should have hardened
during the HRM era. Companies should also
be looking more inwardly ± training and
developing existing employees rather than
buying in appropriately qualified and
experienced workers. Despite the conceptual
debate already referred to about what HRM is
and whether or not it is something new, there
is widespread agreement on the above points.
The key areas discussed in the literature on
training and development include
upskilling/deskilling, training and
development, and HRM.
As regards the degree of skill possessed by
employees, the evidence would appear to
show that cases of both upskilling and
deskilling exist across a wide variety of
industries, although upskilling appears to be
more common. This provides optimistic
evidence for the development of HRM
policies and practices among British
employers. In considering this point, Ashton
and Felstead (1995) offer two notes of caution.
The first is based on the fact that data
available is based on individual, not
corporate responses. Employee and employer
perceptions may be vastly different. The
second note of caution is based on the fact
that the evidence does not make the link
between the alleged change in the
management of human resource and
individual employee training. Indeed, the
upskilling/deskilling debate is couched in
terms of the effect of technological change,
rather than management change on the skill
composition of the workforce, although
technological change and the process of
management interact. Ashton and Felstead
feel they are still left with a question: has an
HRM revolution taken root in British
companies, as reflected in their treatment of
training and development?
The ``flexible firm'', training and
development, and HRM
The debate surrounding the construct of the
``flexible firm'' returns us squarely to alleged
changes in employer strategy. The idea of the
``flexible firm'' is based on the development of
a ``core'' and ``peripheral'' group of
employees. Although the ``flexible firm'' has
assumed an important place in academic and
policy-making circles, it is not without its
critics. Doubts have been expressed as to how
Trevor Morrow
Training and development in
the Northern Ireland clothing
industry
Journal of European Industrial
Training
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89
extensive a phenomenon it really is, and
whether it represents a strategic rather than
an ad hoc response to fluctuations in work
activity. What is true is that non-standard
forms of employment have grown rapidly
during the last decade. It is among these
workers that the training incidence is lowest
and in these situations that the emphasis on
labour as a cost to be minimised is greatest.
This appears to be totally against the soft
HRM rhetoric, and provides even greater
evidence that hard HRM is the version being
practised in a majority of organisations.
HRM appears to be failing to touch the
growing army of ``peripheral'' workers; if
HRM is to be found anywhere, it will be
among a narrow band of ``core'' workers.
Company-level data, training and
development and HRM
Ashton and Felstead (1995) assume that a
good place to look for evidence of the
development of HRM is WIRS 3. But the
evidence provided by this survey, important
though it is, remains fragmented. They give
the example of the substantial fall in the
number of personnel specialists who regard
themselves as being responsible for training
± down from 78 per cent in 1984 to 62 per cent
in 1990 (Millward et al., 1992). The survey
unfortunately does not tell us the reason for
this; it may be part of a shift towards line
managers as training providers, or the
contracting out of the training function. At
first sight, this would also appear to suggest
that employers' training practices have
changed dramatically in recent years. If we
are to put this down to the adoption of HRM
techniques, then the factors behind the
upwards trend in training incidence and the
factors holding it up in recessionary times
must be an internal desire to develop human
resources. Closer examination of survey
results would appear to suggest that the
increase in training activity is not closely
linked to any widespread adoption of HRM
strategies. This can more easily be attributed
to external factors such as the BS5750, ISO
9000, the Investors in People scheme, health
and safety, and occupational regulations.
We have witnessed, at the individual level,
an increase in the proportion of people who
experience upskilling and who attach greater
value to training. At the company level the
situation is far less rosy. Major developments
in training, such as the introduction of
NVQs, have been driven by government
initiatives rather than being employer-led.
In summary, the available evidence would
suggest that HRM policies and practices
associated with training and development
have taken root in only a few companies,
falling far short of that which would be
required to fuel an HRM revolution.
Methodology
Quantitative research methods
The quantitative data collection method used
was a postal questionnaire, with a sample of
90 clothing companies. A response rate of 76
per cent was achieved and 69 usable
questionnaires were returned. This method
of data collection can be described as ``thin/
broad'' survey data, and although it allows
the researcher to gain an overview of
organisational practices, it is an
inappropriate methodology for establishing
the practical reality of process and behaviour
at the operational level (Brewster et al., 1983):
. What contextual features impact on the
human resource management process?
What is the precise nature of the internal
and external variables and how do they
impact on the process of devising human
resource policies and implementing them?
. Are the sophisticated management
practices associated with HRM manifest
and observable at organisation level
through changes in the key tasks of the
personnel function with regards to
training and development?
. What is the impact of human resource
management on particular outcomes, both
at an individual level and an
organisational level? What is the impact of
specific human resource interventions on
individual or organisational outcomes?
. How does human resource management
influence everyday managerial behaviour
in the clothing industry?
. In particular, what roles do the line
manager and the human resource
professional play in delivering human
resource strategies, and how is their
behaviour influenced by these strategies?
Findings and discussion
Training and development in the Northern
Ireland clothing industry
Among the key differences between HRM and
personnel management is the belief that the
organisation's human resources are its most
important assets. There are a number of
ways in which this belief can be identified at
organisational level; the issues relating to the
effective recruitment and selection of
employee and innovative, flexible pay and
benefit systems have been discussed in the
previous sections. The area of training and
development will be discussed in this section.
The organisation's human resources are now
[ 83 ]
Trevor Morrow
Training and development in
the Northern Ireland clothing
industry
Journal of European Industrial
Training
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89
[ 84 ]
seen as one of the major contributors to
competitiveness and every organisation
should take the human resource dimension
into account before making strategic
decisions and implementing a new corporate
strategy.
The benefits of effective training and
development have long since been evident at
organisational level. Looking again at the
four key policy goals of HRM, the three
operational goals of commitment, flexibility
and high quality are all intrinsically linked
to training and development. Employees who
are highly trained and whose career
development is effectively managed by the
company show high levels of commitment,
are flexible, invariably multi-skilled and can
make significant contributions to the quality
of goods or services the company offers,
regardless of the level at which they operate.
In considering this issue, Heraty and
Morley (1997) believe that in light of the
growing recognition of the value and
economic necessity of training and
development by all partners at the macro
level, it is essential to investigate training
and development at the micro or
organisational level. The purpose of this
section, therefore, is to investigate the nature
of current practices in the Northern Ireland
clothing industry. Key issues discussed will
include the level at which training and
development policy decision and
implementation takes place, the financial
investment in training, the amount of time
spent on training, how training needs are
assessed, the evaluation and monitoring of
training and the identification of future
training requirements.
Responsibility for training and
development policy decisions
Responsibility for training and development
has traditionally been centered solely with
the dedicated P/HR function. Moreover, one
of the most valued skills of the competent P/
HR specialist is an in-depth awareness of the
key issues involved in the design, delivery
and evaluation of training and development
interventions.
Heraty and Morley (1997) describe a
situation where many commentators have
identified a shift in emphasis from the
personnel function to line management in
conducting tasks which traditionally were
considered the responsibility of personnel,
especially in the human resource
development area (see Heraty and Morley,
1995; Brewster and Soderstrom, 1994; Holden
and Livian, 1993). The arguments for line
management involvement are well founded,
and there is a general consensus that line
managers have an active role to play in
employee development generally. In
progressive organisations strategically
focused training and development functions
typically devolve responsibility for employee
development to the line (Zenger, 1988;
Schuler and Walker, 1990).
In the Northern Ireland clothing industry
survey, respondents were asked where
primary responsibility for training and
development policy decisions lay in their
organisations (see Figure 2). The data
supports the hypothesis that line managers
are taking greater responsibility for
employee development, and that this
represents a major shift in company policy in
the last three years. The P/HR department
still has a major role to play in training and
development at all levels, but the evidence
would suggest that the function is primarily
responsible for the design and evaluation of
training and development interventions.
Line management is primarily responsible
for the day to day implementation of
programmes, and has a high degree of
responsibility for linking such programmes,
the appraisal of employee performance.
It should be noted that the devolution of
training and development to line
management can cause problems. Ashton
and Felstead (1995) highlight four problems
when delegating to the line, namely:
1 ownership of the training and
development process;
2 language relating to the problem of
cognition outside the specialist area;
3 role clarification in terms of the degree of
line involvement in varying training and
development activities; and
4 the competence of line managers to
undertake such specialist activities.
Heraty and Morley (1997) cite Brewster and
Soderstrom (1994, p. 144) who in line with this
argument suggest:
Tasks are being taken away from specialists,
with usually appropriate training in skills
and crucially, with a concentration in this
one area. They are being passed to managers
who may well have little training or skill in
the area and who are often uncomfortable
with or lack confidence in it, and who have
myriad other responsibilities . . . Risks also
occur if HR tasks are transferred to
(managerial) employees who already have a
full or more than full workload. In such a case
the new tasks get a low priority from those
who are now responsible; in effect this may
imply that development equals a liquidation
of tasks or, again at least a serious loss of the
quality of performance.
Training and development expenditure
The issue of expenditure has become central
to the debate on training and development. It
Trevor Morrow is important to analyse this issue in the
Training and development in Northern Ireland clothing industry for a
the Northern Ireland clothing
industry number of reasons; first, the belief that there
is a low investment in this area at company
Journal of European Industrial
Training level; second, the fact that UK companies are
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89 not legally required to invest a minimum
proportion of annual turnover on updating
the skills and knowledge of their employees,
nor are they even required to make known
the amount they spend on training and
development.
In considering the issue of training and
development expenditure, respondents to the
survey were asked to indicate the proportion
of their company's annual salaries and wages
budget that was spent on training. The
findings on this issue are presented in
Figure 3. The findings show almost 75 per
cent of respondents spend 1 per cent or more
of their annual salaries on training. The
mean average for proportion of annual
salaries is 3.2 per cent, with the median
figure being 2 per cent.
A further question was asked in relation to
the number of days spent on training at
different levels within the organisation. This
Figure 2
Responsibility for training and development policies
Figure 3
Proportion of annual salaries/wages bill being spent on training and
development
provides a crude indicator of the emphasis
placed on training and development at
various organisational levels; and it links to
the belief that in many companies the
emphasis appears to be on the quantity of
training for manual and clerical levels and a
greater emphasis on quality particularly at
managerial levels (Wood, 1993). The findings
on this issue are presented in Table III.
The findings show that the use of training
varies widely across clothing companies and
is largely dependent on employment level. At
managerial level very few employees receive
no training; the figures are much higher for
all other levels of employment, ranging from
almost one in three clerical employees
receiving no training days to 22 per cent in
the case of professional/technical. As an
indicator of a shift towards an HRM based
approach these figures are negative. The
mean number of training days for each level
is as follows: managerial 3.51 days;
professional/technical 3.45 days; clerical 2.61
days and manual 3.71 days.
These figures show a considerable degree
of continuity across all levels apart from the
clerical level. This may be significant as this,
in theory, may be the category of
employment which is most difficult to assess
in respect of performance.
The final issue considered in relation to
expenditure on training and development
was to do with the changes, which have
occurred over the last three years.
Respondents were again asked to provide
information at the four distinct employment
levels discussed previously. The findings are
presented in Table IV.
Table IV shows that there is a considerable
degree of continuity across all levels apart
from the clerical category in that, in general,
companies are investing more money in
training and development. This goes some
way to showing that, based on this indicator
at any rate, companies are moving towards
the HRM model. One way of analysing the
depth of this shift is to look at how training
needs are being assessed.
The analysis of and approaches to the
identification of training needs
The analysis of training needs is one of the
indicators of a move towards a more
systematic approach to the management of
human resource in general and training and
development interventions in particular.
Larsen (1997) argues that effective training
is usually believed to require thorough
analysis of training needs, otherwise it is
doubtful whether the training activity will
provide the employee with the required skills
and qualifications. Larsen goes on to argue
that in any organisation there are a number
[ 85 ]
Trevor Morrow Table III
Training and development in Number of days spent on training
the Northern Ireland clothing
industry Management Professional/technical Clerical Manual
Journal of European Industrial Days training % ( n) % ( n) % (n) % (n)
Training
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89 0 3 (2) 22 (15) 29 (20) 26 (18)
0-1 4 (3) 4 (3) 7 (5) 4 (3)
1-2 17 (12) 7 (5) 25 (17) 20 (14)
2-3 30 (21) 22 (15) 9 (6) 13 (9)
3-5 23 (16) 9 (6) 17 (12) 13 (9)
5-7 12 (8) 22 (15) 9 (6) 7 (5)
7-10 9 (6) 14 (10) 0 (0) 6 (4)
Over 10 1 (1) 0 (10) 4 (3) 11 (7)

Table IV
Money spent on training over the last three years
Management Professional/technical Clerical Manual
Days training % (n) % ( n) % ( n) % ( n)
Increased 60 (42) 57 (39) 28 (20) 49 (34)
Decreased 30 (21) 22 (15) 49 (34) 20 (14)
Remained the same 5 (3) 9 (6) 9 (6) 17 (12)
Don't know 5 (3) 14 (9) 14 (9) 14 (9)

of factors which make such an analysis
difficult. In addition to pragmatic barriers
like lack of time, resources and commitment,
``needs diagnosis'' suffers from the sheer
complexity of the operation. Thus, an
analysis of training needs should in principle
reflect the future job situation (tasks and
required competencies) rather than the
present job-person match.
The argument is largely whether training
needs analysis is carried out in a strategic
proactive way, or is largely a reactive
piecemeal process. In attempting to
determine whether an underlying strategic
imperative governs employee development
activities, respondents to the survey were
asked whether they systematically analysed
employee's training needs. The findings in
relation to this issue were particularly
surprising, with 84 per cent of respondents
suggesting they did so. This finding would
suggest that employee development is seen as
making a strategic contribution to effective
organisational functioning. Respondents who
indicated that they systematically analysed
training needs were also asked to identify the
actual methods they used and to give an
indication of how frequently each technique
was used. The findings in relation to this
issue are detailed in Table V.
The figures show that a wider range of
training analysis methods are being used on
a regular basis, and include the use of
formalised mechanisms (particularly
performance appraisals) and more informal
methods (line management requests). The
high degree of utilisation of each method (the
number of respondents who never use any
[ 86 ]
method is particularly low) would suggest
that companies are taking a much more
formalised approach to training needs
analysis and this should facilitate strategic
integration and effective employee
development.
The effectiveness of training
Larsen (1997) believes that measuring and
ensuring the effectiveness of training is one
of the most difficult HRM issues. With the
increasing focus on and allocation of
resources to various forms of training the
need for documenting the return on
investment in training costs has accelerated.
The survey asked the respondents whether
they monitor the effectiveness of training.
The figures show that 90 per cent of
respondents do so.
Respondents were also asked to provide
information regarding the techniques they
used to monitor the effectiveness of training.
The findings are presented in Table VI.
The findings suggest that training
evaluation is informal in the context of the
clothing industry. Over 50 per cent of
respondents never used what can be
categorised as the structure evaluation tools
such as tests of formal evaluation, tests
appear to be particularly under-utilised.
There are a number of reasons why
organisations may be reluctant to use tests,
the most obvious being that a post-training
test may have a negative effect on employee
commitment. Many employees may view the
purpose of training as being centered on the
ability to test for performance after training.
Informal evaluation techniques are popular
Trevor Morrow and many companies appear to place The findings show that clothing companies in
Training and development in significant value on feedback from both line Northern Ireland do not place as much
the Northern Ireland clothing emphasis on management development as
industry managers and trainees.
might be expected. The figures show that
Journal of European Industrial Management development and future under each method analysed, companies are
Training training requirements
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89 more likely to have trained at least one-third
The final areas considered in the area of
of mangers in the area than not, although the
training and development considered were
percentages are not vastly different. This
management development and future would indicate that extensive/widespread
training requirements. This has long been management development, as presented in
one of the key areas discussed in the HRM models, does not occur in the clothing
literature on the subject. There is a long- industry.
standing belief that management Finally, what are the training
development forms the core of many requirements of respondents over the next
organisations' training and development three years? Heraty and Morley (1997) have
plans, and that this is the employment described the identification and
category into which most resources are prioritisation of future training
invested. In line with this, respondents were requirements as being as central to effective
asked to detail the areas in which at least training practice. Respondents were asked to
one-third of managers had received training. identify those training areas they perceived
The findings in relation to this issue are to be important and to rate their relative
presented in Table VII. importance (see Table VIII)
The identification of future training needs
appears to be a major issue in the clothing
Table V industry. Priorities varied considerably,
Methods used to determine training needs although in general companies have a wide
range of training priorities. A number of the
Always Often Sometimes Never
key priorities are obviously being driven by
(%) n (%) n (%) n (%) n
the external operating environment; for
Analysis of projected example, quality management is essential for
business plans 19 (13) 35 (24) 35 (24) 12 (8) the future success of companies in the
Training audits 28 (19) 33 (23) 39 (27) 0 (0) industry as they can no longer compete on
Line management 38 (26) 12 (8) 38 (26) 13 (9) price with competitors from the developing
Performance appraisals 54 (37) 25 (17) 17 (12) 4 (3) African and Asian economies. They also face
Employee requests 28 (23) 22 (15) 46 (32) 4 (3) a price disadvantage in relation to
competitors in Southern Europe, in addition
Table VI Spanish and Portuguese companies have
Methods used to evaluate the effectiveness of training made significant improvements in the speed
at which they can get their products to the
Always Often Sometimes Never market. Many clothing companies in
(%) n (%) n (%) n (%) n Northern Ireland are now identifying the
Tests 6 (4) 4 (3) 18 (13) 71 (49) quality of their goods as their major
Formal evaluation immediately competitive advantage and those companies
after training 19 (13) 10 (7) 20 (14) 51 (35) which have previously based their strategy
Formal evaluation some months on price competitiveness are now shifting
after training 4 (3) 19 (13) 27 (19) 50 (35) emphasis towards a high strategy.
Informal feedback/line The weight being placed on change
management 30 (20) 39 (27) 27 (19) 4 (3) management can be directly linked to the
Informal feedback/trainees 33 (23) 29 (20) 36 (25) 2 (1) globalisation of the market, increased
competition and the move towards design led
organisations and in some cases away from
Table VII mass production for the major retailers.
Areas in which at least one-third of managers Internally the emphasis is being place on
receive training developing skills in the areas of people
Training areas Yes No management/supervision and computers/
% ( n) % ( n) new technology. Given the pace at which
technological change is occurring in most
Performance appraisal 64 (44) 36 (25) organisations this finding is to be expected.
Staff communication 55 (38) 45 (31) Heraty and Morley (1997) cite Block in
Delegation 65 (45) 35 (24) highlighting the growing realisation that
Motivation 52 (36) 48 (33) strict, tight controls, greater pressure, more
Team building 61 (42) 36 (25) clearly defined jobs and tighter supervision
[ 87 ]
Trevor Morrow Table VIII
Training and development in Importance of specific training areas over the next three years
the Northern Ireland clothing
industry Very Quite Average Not very Not at all
Journal of European Industrial % ( n) % (n) % ( n) % ( n) % (n)
Training
25/2/3/4 [2001] 80±89 People management and supervision 58 (40) 26 (18) 9 (6) 7 (5) 0 (0)
Computers/new technology 62 (43) 26 (18) 4 (3) 7 (5) 0 (0)
Business admininistration 15 (10) 45 (31) 22 (15) 18 (13) 0 (0)
Strategy formulation 46 (32) 33 (23) 14 (10) 6 (4) 0 (0)
Marketing and sales 37 (26) 22 (15) 12 (8) 17 (12) 12 (8)
Health and safety 45 (31) 33 (23) 22 (15) 9 (6) 1 (1)
Customer service skills 56 (39) 22 (15) 9 (6) 13 (9) 0 (0)
Management of change 72 (50) 17 (12) 7 (5) 4 (3) 0 (0)
Quality management 78 (54) 16 (11) 3 (2) 1 (1) 1 (0)

have, in the last 50 years, run their course in
their ability to give organisations
productivity gains required to compete
effectively in the marketplace. Of all the
criteria analysed, respondents appear to be
least concerned with training in business
administration and marketing and sales.
This may reflect the fact that significant
emphasis has been placed on training in
these areas previously, particularly on
marketing. It may also be directly linked to
the fact that these areas require a
considerable investment both in terms of
time and money, and companies in the
clothing industry feel that the tangible
benefits from such training are not
significant enough to justify the resources
required.
Discussion
The findings presented in this paper show
that the training and development function
has experienced a considerable degree of
change in recent years. Although not as all
encompassing as the HRM models and the
literature on human resource management
would suggest, there is significant evidence
that clothing companies in Northern Ireland
are now involved in training and development
interventions which are much more
systematic. Companies appear to be investing
a considerable amount of time and money in
training and development and at almost every
employee level apart from clerical employees
there is a considerable emphasis on employee
development even though the number of
managers who are receiving specific training
is lower than would be expected. The average
proportion of annual salaries being spent on
training is 3.2 per cent.
Hearty and Morley (1997) believe that the
ability to accurately identify and prioritise
training needs to the maximum benefit of the
organisation's goals remains the cornerstone
of organisational training and development.
The clothing industry data suggests 84 per cent
of respondents conduct a systematic needs
analysis, primarily through performance
appraisal and line management requests.
The findings in relation to the evaluation
of training effectiveness are also extremely
positive, 90 per cent of respondents claiming
that they evaluate the success of their
training. The methods used in the evaluation
process are predominantly informal
techniques such as feedback from line
managers and trainees. Overall, training and
development in the clothing industry appears
to be strategically focused, based on pre-
determined needs analysis; and evaluation
plays a key role in the assessment of training
and development initiatives. The design and
delivery of such initiatives are undertaken in
most cases at P/HR departmental level but in
conjunction with line management.
It would appear that the training and
development function in the clothing
industry is sufficiently sophisticated to make
a major contribution not only to strategic
integration but also flexibility, commitment
and quality. And on that basis it can be said
that in the case of training and development
clothing companies in Northern Ireland are
operating in a way which is representative of
an HRM philosophy and that policies and
practices at organisational level reflect many
of the characteristics of the HRM model.
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