Technology in the Work Place

Because technology is here to stay and continuing to grow, we ask the question, how do employees keep up? Organizations, schools, social services, any field you can think of, is probably using technology in some shape or form. In the article “Communication Technology Integration into Social Work Practices” they say that in “Social work services include much wider range of digital and electronic options. These options allow social workers to engage clients through email exchange and text messages using their smart phones or through video teleconferencing…” Since this is the case, who is responsible of making sure employees stay up to date with technology? This is how I see it, when you apply to a job, you get a job title based on the skills you currently have. An individual goes to school, becomes educated, and gains experiences to put on their resume when applying to jobs. When an employer hires an individual, it is typically primarily based off what is on their resume. When you start the job, you have things that you have to get done and whatnot. Which is part of an individual’s job. If employers want to use more advanced technology and programs, it is up to the employer to make sure that employees are properly trained so they can continue to get the work done. It is honestly in the employers best interest to give the training. Let’s say that an employer upgrades their technology or program they were using and decides not to give training to their employees. “Here’s the new program/technology we are going to start using, you have 6 months to figure it out, good luck!” Sounds a bit ridiculous right? In the previous article, they also stated that “Poor implementation and lack of training of technological tools has also been cited as an explanation for social worker’s resistance to technology.” We also have to take into consideration that everyone is different and might not be able to understand something without some guidance.