Report on HR Professional Skills and Development at Virgin Media

This report delves into the crucial aspects of developing individuals and teams within an organization, focusing on the role of HR professionals. It begins by examining the essential professional knowledge, behaviors, and skills required in an HR role, with specific reference to Virgin Media. A detailed skill audit is then analyzed, including self-evaluation and SWOT analysis. The report explores the differences between organizational and individual learning, emphasizing the need for continuous learning and professional development to drive sustainable business performance. It applies learning cycle theories to analyze the importance of continuous professional development and produces a detailed professional development plan. The report further examines how high-performance working contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage, analyzing its benefits within the context of Virgin Media. Finally, it evaluates performance management, collaborative working, and effective communication in supporting a high-performance culture, and synthesizes knowledge to demonstrate how these factors improve employee engagement, commitment, and competitive advantage. The report concludes by providing a comprehensive overview of the findings and recommendations.

Developing individual
and teams in
organisation

Contents
Contents...........................................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
P1. Examination of the professional knowledge, behaviour, and skills that are required by an
HR professional...........................................................................................................................1
P2. Analysing skill audit and its related aspect in a systematic and sequential manner..............2
M1. Self-evaluation of the skill audit that has been done above.................................................3
P3. Analyse the differences between organisational and individual learning, training and
development.................................................................................................................................7
P4. Analyse the need for continuous learning and professional development to drive
sustainable business performance................................................................................................9
M2. Apply learning cycle theories (Kolb’s Learning Cycle and Kurt Lewin’s Change model)
to analyse the importance of implementing continuous professional development..................10
D1. Produce a detailed and coherent professional development plan that appropriately sets out
learning goals and training in relation to the learning cycle to achieve sustainable business
performance objectives..............................................................................................................13
P5. Apply knowledge and understanding to the ways in which high-performance working
contributes to employee engagement and competitive advantage.............................................15
M3. Analyse its benefits with justifications to a specific organisational situation within Virgin
Media to improve employee competitive advantage.................................................................16
P6. Evaluate ways in which performance management, collaborative working and effective
communication can support high-performance culture and commitment.................................16
M4. Critically evaluate the different approaches to performance management and make
judgments on how effective they can be to support high performance culture and commitment
...................................................................................................................................................17
D2. Provide valid synthesis of knowledge and information resulting in appropriate judgements
on how HPW and mechanisms used to support HPW lead to improved employee engagement,

commitment and competitive advantage...................................................................................17
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................18
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................18

INTRODUCTION
Developing individuals and teams in an organisation is one of the most important as well
as essential aspect as it helps in personal and professional growth and also provides a base for its
employees to work in an ethical environment that will subsequently benefit the organisation in
the long run (Akhavan and Mahdi Hosseini, 2016). In this report there is a brief discussion of the
key knowledge and skills that are required by an HR professional in the department of Virgin
Media. Apart from this personal skill audit, SWOT analysis, PDP plan, and reflective statement
is also evaluated and analysed in this report. Further in this report there are many other things
that are discussed like differences between individual and organisational learning, need for
continuous learning, examination of HPW and its contribution to employment engagement, and
different approaches that are used in performance management.
MAIN BODY
P1. Examination of the professional knowledge, behaviour, and skills that are required by an HR
professional
HR profession if one of the most important position for each and every firm that is
working in the industry as they help in recruiting talented, educated, and experienced personnel's
in the organisation so that it can help the firm to grow and prosper in the long run. There are a
number of different skills, behaviour, and professional knowledge that an HR professional must
possess and all of them are explained below in detail-
Skills- The skill set that is required by a HR so that it can help in growth and
development in the long run and that too for a firm like Virgin Media are as follows-
Employee relation- It is the foremost skill of an HR professional and it is very important for an
HR to maintain and sustain such a relationship with its employees so that all the individuals that
are working for the firm must feel connected towards the organisation so that it can lead to the
development and subsequently profitability. Since Virgin Media is a big company and has a huge
number of workforce that is working for it so it becomes much more important for its HR
professionals to reach to every individual so that it can help in increasing the overall
performance of the company (Ali Taha, Sirkova and Ferencova, 2016).
Performance management- As Virgin Media is a firm that is operating on a large scale and thus
it is very important for its HR to keep a tab on every employee’s performance so that appropriate
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tools and techniques of incentives and motivation can be used in a precise manner so that it can
add to the value of the firm in the long run.
Teamwork and collaboration- Since the above mentioned firm operates on a large scale so it
becomes important for the HR professional to make teams in such a manner so that the superior
must know how to guide its subordinate. Also HR must collaborate different teams so that all the
employees must work for the overall goal that is to gain long term profitability rather than just
satisfying personal needs (Zuofa and Ochieng, 2017).
Behaviour- Behaviour of an HR is very crucial in every company and if an enterprise is
as big as Virgin Media it becomes much more crucial and the behaviour that an HR Must possess
is described below-
Trustworthiness and transparency- As an HR handles a lot of people at the same time so it
becomes very important to be transparent and trustworthy so that it can help in grabbing the
confidence of the employees that can prove beneficial in the long run. Since Virgin Media is a
big firm so its HR must be transparent enough and must treat each and every individual
accordingly without any partiality.
Versatile and adaptability- Since Virgin Media is a huge firm and thus it becomes very
important for the HR to be versatile and adapt to the changing environment. HR must also know
about the technological advancement so that the appropriate one can be chosen which can prove
useful from the company's point of view.
Personal knowledge- As HR holds one of the most respected position so the person has
to be knowledgable according to that only. The knowledge that an HR must possess is expertises
knowledge in the field of administration, HRM, and recruitment and selection (Bano, Zowghi
and Sarkissian, 2016).
P2. Analysing skill audit and its related aspect in a systematic and sequential manner
SKILL AUDIT
Skills and knowledge that I think is important for
my current job role
Rating my ability
Communication 3
Team work 2
Time management 4
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Resilience 1
Adaptability 2
Skills and knowledge that I think is important for
my future job role
Rating my ability
Written communication skills 2
Self-management 3
Awareness 1
Positivity 5
Leadership 2
The basis of ratings-
1 = No current knowledge or skill
2 = Some awareness, but not sufficiently competent to use it
3 = Familiar with and able to use the knowledge or skill
4 = Proficient in the knowledge or skill and able to show others how to use it
5 = Expert, with a high degree of skill and/or comprehensive knowledge
M1. Self-evaluation of the skill audit that has been done above
Self- evaluation of my skills audit
Skills and knowledge that I think is important for my current job role
Communication- I rated myself 3 out of 5 because as I am comfortable in communicating with
others and able to convey my mindset too but at times it becomes difficult for me due to
barriers in communication and thus it results in hampering my skill. So I want to acquire more
of this skill so that it can help me in the current job role.
Team work- I have rated 2 out of 5 in this skill as I am not much comfortable in teams and
lacks some of the things that are necessary in working as a team. Thus I want to acquire this
skill so that it can help me in contributing more and more while working in a team.
Time management- I have rated 4 out of 5 in this skill as I am very good at managing my time
and that too in an effective and efficient manner but still I want to update my this skill a little
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bit so that it can become as an advantage in my current job role.
Resilience- I have rated myself 1 out of 5 in this skill as I am very bad in recovering from
difficulties and it is a limitation of me as I am struck in a particular situation and it takes a lot
of time for me to recover so I want to achieve this skill so that it can help me in the current job
role.
Adaptability-2 I have rated myself 2 out of 5 in this skill as I am not that good in adapting to
the changing environment and thus as a result it affects my overall working so I want to
improve this skill of mine so that it ca help me in the current job role.
Skills and knowledge that I think is important for my future job role
Written communication skills-2 I have rated 2 out of 5 in this skill as I am good at
communicating but when it comes to written skills of the same I lack in that so I want to
improve this skill of mine so that it can help me in the future job roles.
Self-management- I have rated myself 3 out of 5 in this skill as I am good at managing myself
but at times I just need to remind me constantly so as to manage myself in an effective manner
so I want to improve that aspect of mine so that it can prove beneficial in the future job role.
Awareness- I have rated myself 1 out of 5 in this skill as I am not very well aware of the
situations that are prevailing in the market and thus it acts as my limitation so I want to
improve this aspect of mine so that it can help in future job roles of mine.
Positivity- I have rated myself 5 out of 5 in this skill as I am highly positive in every aspect
and it acts as an advantage to me since it proves very helpful in tackling adverse situations in
an impactful manner which can prove useful for me in future job roles.
Leadership- I have rated myself 2 out of 5 in this skill as I am confident enough but lacks the
basic qualities of a leader since I gets a bit nervous in front of others so I want to improve my
this skill which is very crucial for me in future job roles.
SWOT ANALYSIS- Analysis of my strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and
threats are described below-
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES
My strengths are my self and time management Since I am not that aware about things and also
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ability as it is proves very beneficial for me as
it helps me in adapting to the changing
environment.
I am not that resilient that acts as my
limitations since it hampers my overall
performance in the long run.
THREATS OPPORTUNITIES
As every firm wants individuals that that can
lead from the front and I lack that ability and
other competitors of mine have that quality so
it pose as a big threat to me.
Since there are a number of different
opportunities to acquire new skill set and
improve the existing one by attending seminars
and workshops and it is a big opportunity for
me that can help in the long run.
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Personal Development Plan (PDP)
What are my objectives?
(short & long term)
Success criteria What activities/actions do
I need to undertake to
achieve my objectives?
Implementation –how
activities will be applied to
achieve objectives
What
support/reso
urces do I
need to
achieve my
objectives
Time period required
Career goal To get the dream
job
Constantly work on
improving the current
skills
Work with an organisation that
helps in improving skills
Constant
support
from team
members
2-3 years
Financial goal To be financially
stable in every
situation
To save more from the
income
To give services to that
company which provides good
salary
Higher rate
of return
policy
5-6 years
Academic goal To be aware of
every situation in
the market
To keep learning new
things
Taking admission for various
courses that are very crucial in
present like AI
Finding best
faculties in
the market
1 year
Health goal To be physically
and mentally fit
To be active every day by
doing different exercises
To gain knowledge from
various sources so that it can
help in the future too
Finding best
couches of
the industry
6 months
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Reflective statement- It can be evaluated from the above that I have the basic skills just I need to improve that so that it can help me in achieving
and accomplishing the goals and objectives that can help in sustaining and surviving the industry which is highly competitive and dynamic in nature.
P3. Analyse the differences between organisational and individual learning, training and development.
What is learning?
Learning is simply the process of acquiring new skill sets in the and moving from traditional methods of performance to new methods which are
quicker, efficient and more productive. The learning has become more common in the organisations, because new developments in business practices and
operations are coming very frequently in some way or other. However, the process of learning is not about only acquiring new skills and knowledges bout
also making changes in the existing methods as well (Bark, Kragt and Robson, 2016). Through learning changes have to be bought in knowledge, values,
skills, attitude, preferences and behaviour as well. These developments in collective sense defines learning in best manner. In psychology, it is attributed
that learning for an individual comes through multiple channels and not just through any single way, like going to school or college.
What is organisational learning?
Organisational learning is the process through which an organisation itself tends to gain new knowledge and experiences over the time, these
changes thus leads to organisation learning about new environment, developments and dynamics in business as well as society. The process of learning in
the organisation comes truly in effect when the organisation as a whole tries to cope with these by making improvements in its structure, methodologies,
policies and processes. Taking the case in Virgin media Ltd. The company learnt to make changes in bringing up internet services more efficiently and also
tried to rely on internet usages more for its business operations, seeking to cope with modern requirements. Therefore organizational tool is important tool
for all companies for creation and retention and transfer of knowledge and talent in the organization itself, so that overall objectives could be supported.
Looking at this observation of organizational learning, conceive, act and reflect becomes the most important techniques of action.
What is Individual Learning?
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Individual learning is the smallest learning process in an organisation community. It refers to the transfer of knowledge and skills to individual
employees from various sources, such as transfer within the employees, transfer of knowledge from changing methods in organisation to the employees or
when employees are needed to cope up with dynamics of business and society themselves. In each of such case, individual seems incurring new skills and
knowledge to enhance their performances. In the light of individual learning, one strives for availing new information, or developing new strategies to
find solutions of many difficult problems and situations. This could be the result of experiences, reflections, teachings and many more such agents that
will improvise knowledge of a learner. Usually, Individual learning is considered as the synonym of individual improvement, but if studied through the
psychology, individual learning is as simple as a change between two moments for an individual, from lacking in knowledge to proficiency in same.
What is Training and Development?
The process of Training and developments is far different from the process of learning in organisation. On the one side, where process of learning is
natural and automatic, in which individuals and the organisation learns and gain new knowledge while coping up with significant developments. Other side,
Training and developments are imparted deliberately to the individuals for acquiring new knowledge and skills so they could cope with changes. The
training and development process requires efforts. Consider a case when digital marketing became the new normal in the business processes of marketing.
The marketing team in virgin media would have surely required to learn new skills so it can make use of digital and social media platforms and learn new
business techniques like social media campaigning etc. to achieve competitive edge in business. There, imparting training and developments to the
marketing team was inevitable. But, when these methods got adopted the entire company got to learn about new developments in business environments.
This is the result of organisational learning (Carlsson-Wall, Kraus and Karlsson, 2017).
Differences between the above three.
Basis Organisational
learning
Individual learning Training and
development
Type of learning Type of learning is
natural
Type of learning is
natural
Type of learning is
deliberated
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Transfer of knowledge Knowledge transfer
sometimes in
hierarchical manner or
to the organisation
holistically
Knowledge transfer
takes place for
individual employee
Knowledge is
transferred for a
particular purpose and
fulfilment of specific
development
Quantum of of leaning Quantum of learning is
entire organisation
For one individual To a department or
particular group or a
team
Development Sometimes brings new
ideologies, policies
and structural changes
(Cavka, Staub-French
and Poirier, 2017)
Enhancement in
performance of
individual and thought
process
Leads to new learnings
in team and
department, sometimes
new recruitments and
increase team spirit
P4. Analyse the need for continuous learning and professional development to drive sustainable business performance
The need of continuous developments and acquiring new skills and knowledges is inevitable in the modern business operations. Because of the facts
that businesses practices, operations and functions have become very dynamic. They are apparently taking new shapes and dimensions almost every week
or every month. These developments are not only limited to those organisations which have internet and digital platforms as integrated part of their
business but these are extended to every sort of organisation in every sector, be it relate to primary activities, manufacturing, transport, health, education
etc. These developments new changes in business practices and operations and tactics, and if any Business refuses to or fail to cooperate with these changes
than it loses is competitive edge in the market at first stance and than ultimately loses the complete market. Therefore, it is imperative for business to take
every possible steps to cope with these developments and make their employees cope with new needs too, in order to avail maximum advantages of these
developments (Charland and et.al., 2016).
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