Abstract

Training and development (T&D) (also known as Human Resource Development – HRD) and its strategic role are currently debated at the national, organizational and individual levels. General literature regarding its impact is undecided. In the airline industry, training literature and studies have been confined to either “great carriers” such as Southwest and Singapore Airlines or to technical areas of expertise such as engineering, maintenance and navigation of aircraft. Very little work has been done at the broader levels of a typical network airline carrier, particularly its frontline branches. Therefore, the current qualitative study will focus on if and how training and development is strategic at the organizational, departmental and individual levels of an international North American airline. Here, a collective case study approach is used whereby three frontline departments from three distinct branches (Airports, Call Centers, and In-Flight) have been assessed. Semi-structured interviews have been conducted with a Training Manager, Curriculum Developer/Instructor and Frontline employee from each branch making a total of nine interviewees. This study will show if and how each department deems T&D as strategic in its own way. It also shows how the three different T&D departments have different requirements to become more strategic due to the very different nature of their work.