What is human resource development?

Human resource development is an organization’s plan to help hone the abilities, skills and knowledge of its employees in order to enhance overall efficiency.

It’s a win all around. Human resource development benefits employees, departments and the entire organization by aligning individual growth with organizational goals.

Boise State University’s online Master of Science in Organizational Performance and Workplace Learning (OPWL) program prepares you for learning and development careers by implementing human resource development with advanced knowledge and training.

Key areas of human resource development

The three primary aspects of human resource development include:

• Career development: Improve individual career planning and management through mentorship.
• Organization development: Enhance organizational effectiveness and well-being via macro and micro changes.
• Training and development: Increase knowledge and skills necessary for future roles or responsibilities.

Human resource development guarantees that employees are competent enough to perform their current job and gives them the necessary knowledge and strengths for potential career growth.

How Boise State prepares you for the field

With fully-online coursework, industry-reflective curriculum and caring, passionate faculty members and staff, the OPWL program is dedicated to helping you succeed and pursue a meaningful career.

You can earn a master’s degree or graduate certificates and finish with a robust portfolio, research and development experience, a broad professional network and on-the-job experience from internships through Boise State.

Faculty are experienced professionals and researchers dedicated to helping you create inclusive, effective learning environments and performance solutions.

Next level

The online OPWL program also offers you an opportunity to participate in faculty-led research through 100% online development labs.

You can apply your learning and deepen your connections to faculty and peers with an optional lab to go along with your degree. There are six lab options, but two in particular focus on human resource development. They are:

• Critical Human Resource Development Lab: Advance critical scholarship and practice in training and development, organizational development, career development, leadership development and learning and development. The work is grounded in a critical lens that examines how identity and power dynamics shape experiences within organizations and communities.
• Human Resource Development and Strategic Partnership Lab: Develop human resource development and organizational development solutions for organizations while working as partners, engaging in research, publications and presentations and expanding and fortifying the human resource development arm of the OPWL program.

The labs turn learning into action by helping you make workplace connections using a hands-on approach instead of traditional research methods. The labs provide you with insight into the importance of human resource development in the workplace.

Quality human resource development provides other benefits to organizations, including attracting the best employees, increasing loyalty and satisfaction, preparing for the future, raising the bar on performance level and fostering healthy relations.

Boise State’s online OPWL prepares you to engineer inclusive learning experiences and performance solutions informed by evidence so organizations can best address individual, team and organizational challenges.

The program strives to be an internationally recognized center of teaching, learning and scholarship that influences inclusive practice in adult learning and performance improvement for individuals, teams, organizations and society.

Learn more about the Organizational Performance and Workplace Learning program

Earning an online Master of Science in Organizational Performance and Workplace Learning from Boise State University can open doors to new opportunities and a brighter future — and we’re here to support you every step of the way. Whether you’re exploring if an online degree is right for you or need help transferring credits, connecting with a student success coach is the perfect first step. 

Ready to learn more? Attend one of our online information sessions or contact a student success coach today.