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Managerial competency needs and training requests: The case of the Spanish tourist industry
Author(s) -
Agut Sonia,
Grau Rosa
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
human resource development quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.756
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1532-1096
pISSN - 1044-8004
DOI - 10.1002/hrdq.1012
Subject(s) - emotive , tourism , order (exchange) , sample (material) , training (meteorology) , marketing , business , needs analysis , information needs , knowledge management , psychology , computer science , sociology , political science , chemistry , physics , mathematics education , finance , chromatography , meteorology , anthropology , world wide web , law
There is some inconsistency between the theory and practice of the analysis of deficits in managerialcapabilities. Some academic literature suggests that the study of needs should be considered as gaps incompetencies (Bee and Bee, 1994; Peiró, 1999), but organizations actually analyze needs as training preferences (Ford andNoe, 1987; Guthrie and Schwoerer, 1994, 1996; Tharenou, 1991). The aim of this study is to analyze technical and generic managerial competency needs and managerial trainingrequests in order to conclude which method provides more accurate information on the real deficits in managerialcapabilities. The sample was made up of eighty managers from hotels and restaurants in the Valencian Community onthe Mediterranean coast of Spain. The results show, on the one hand, the existence of technical competency needs in many topics or areas ofknowledge (for example, economic‐financial management, marketing and market analysis) and also ingeneric competencies (such as control of hasty reactions in highly emotive situations). However,managers request additional training only in technical aspects, such as information technology and languages, butnot in generic aspects. In any case, both methods could be considered complementary. The authors discussimplications and limitations of the study as well as directions for future research.