The other day my colleague walked up to me and asked in a rather soft tone, what’s the difference between training and professional development? My response was simple–there was really no difference. Training was a sub part of professional development. Professional Development comes in many forms and may cover a broad range of goals and objectives. According to Moore(2003), professional development is often considered the main way adults receive support in adult learning or education. For example, if Extension HR wants to increase my knowledge in new tools of technology such as the Moodle, WebEx, Podcasts, etc, the organization will simply offer me an opportunity for training. I will then go ahead and attend a training course. In my view, that’s an aspect of professional development.
Do you see any difference?
As you say, professional development includes training but does not end there. Professional development is further defined by its total strategies. The challenge to human resource managers is to identify and develop talent who are inquisitive, innovative and open to change. Richard Florida, in The Rise of the Creative Class says “the notion of oneself as a work of art has a long tradition among creative people.” A holistic and inclusive approach to professional development will nurture that creative spirit and unleash latent potential rather than fitting people to a mold. Providing the proper support requires specialized evaluation and targeted mentoring of abilities inherent in the individual.