Innovation at the age of globalization: A review of the psychological and economic aspects fostering change in organizations

The contribution deals with the interconnected concepts of training, development and innovation and the potential they have in dealing with change in organizations all over the world. We call change both the process through which something becomes different and the result of that process. Change management is the expression used to define the complex of economic activities and psychological tools through which an organization deals with the introduction of something new that is relevant for both its survival and growth. Training and development are labels used to define those educational activities implemented in organizations to empower the competences of workers, employees and managers in the lifelong learning perspective of improving their performances. Consequently, we define competences as those personal and psychological characteristics that allow people to be effective in their changing economic contexts. Competences are also necessary for organizational innovation, which is the process of transforming ideas or inventions into goods or services that generate value and for which customers will pay. Training, development, and innovation are three different but interconnected functions by which organizations manage change all over the world. What is the state of the art of the literature dealing with this topic? Here, is a critical review on the matter.