Why is Employee Training And Development so important?
Tags: Upskilling, Human Resources, Training, Employee Engagement

INTRODUCTION

To spoil the broth, you don’t even need too many chefs. Just one untrained chef is enough. Similarly, one untrained employee is enough to risk your company’s reputation and function. Training is not just important but vital for the success of any company. Especially in today’s ever-changing industry, training, and development of employees is essential. This statement is true because of not just one but numerous benefits that directly impact the company’s bottom line. It helps companies gain and retain talented employees, boost productivity, and profits. Often employee training is the lowest on the priority list especially when the budget is tight. Companies need to take this aspect more seriously. After all, short-term investment is better than long-term losses to the company.

Training and development opportunities increase employee loyalty and engagement with the company.

For small businesses and startups, training employees is all the more important as the continuation of the recruitment and hiring processes to foster employee engagement and hence, the company’s financial performance.

WHAT IS TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT?

What is training and development?

Training and Development is organizationally a part of the Human Resource. The main goal of T & D is to align employee performance and goals with that of the organization.

How to do that?

By identifying skill gaps amongst employees, the organization trains and develops employees with the latest knowledge and skills. It makes the employees capable of managing challenges in their job. Regularly training your employees means that they are never too old for the industry. In the modern workspace, Training and Development is not just one word. It encompasses multiple aspects or responsibilities which include-

Evaluate employee and organizational development needs. Formulate and implement learning strategies to meet both the needs. Ensure alignment of training and development with the organization’s goals. Optimize the training process for a better return on investment. Facilitating and managing advanced training initiatives. Identifying and implementing the latest and effective training methods. Personnel management in the organization’s training and development department. Formulating and regulating training and development budgets within the organization. Ensure employee commitment and benefit from the training program. Design the latest training content as per the organizational needs and values.

WHY TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT IS IMPORTANT TO YOUR SMALL BUSINESS?

As the new technologies emerge, they will. have a profound impact on both education and development. The need of the hour is to recognize the latest skills and creative learning methods to ensure future-oriented employee training. This, in turn, will help companies to thrive in the competitive market.

Here’s an elaborate account of why training and development is so important for any business-

1.Positive employee retention

According to the Workforce Learning Report by LinkedIn, 94 percent of employees say that they will stay longer in a company if it invested in employee development programs. This is enough evidence that the current workforce has a deep interest in learning and development while working in a particular job role. Offering such programs within employee contracts establishes a sense of commitment in employees, fostering loyalty, engagement, and retention. The more they care to put an effort, the better they perform their job role.

So, by providing employee-focused training and development, you can initiate this chain reaction and see your company prospering

2.Overcoming shortcomings and benchmarking employee skills

Taking and development offer an opportunity to identify and address shortcomings in an employee’s technical and workplace skills. This is beneficial as it removes the weak links within an organization, ensuring consistency. Employees look at training and development as a skill roadmap that allows them to become better in their jobs and advance in their careers. An employee with regular training never really becomes out-dated!

3.Boosts productivity and profitability

Learning new skills and trends is an empowering endeavor. Employee training and development initiatives are most likely to improve employee productivity because-

Employees feel empowered.

They have the necessary skills and knowledge of advanced tools to get work done more efficiently.

Human resource is the lifeblood of an organization. As productivity improves, companies have a fair chance to thrive financially.

4.Increased customer satisfaction and loyalty

Business today is all about a rich customer experience. Customers seek the support of talented employees to introduce to them, more advanced features. If employees have a thorough in-depth working knowledge of services and products, they are sure to provide a better customer experience. Regular customer-based employee training and development improves customer retention and increases company profits.

5.Boosts employee satisfaction

Employees are more likely to feel valued if they are invested in it. Moreover, an important aspect of employee training and development is the confidence it gives them about their personal growth. Overall, training and development established a healthy competition and a supportive environment in a company. As employees feel more validated and appreciated, they also feel more satisfied with their jobs.

6.Lifts company profile and reputation

Having an effective training and development strategy is a way to empower your employees as your brand. After all, a talented and updated pool of employees only makes your company a prime consideration in the job market. This in turn also helps the company attract potential recruits who seek to improve their skills and opportunities associated with those skills.

All in all, employee training and development is one such feature that creates a 360-degree growth impact in your business and hence cannot be avoided.

How can you create a high-impact employee training and development plan for your business? We will address this question in the next section.

CREATE A HIGH-IMPACT EMPLOYEE TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Continuity and connection are the two factors that divide the impact of any employee training and development program. Companies find it hard to develop and implement programs that connect every department of their business and build towards the final business goal. Several reports show that there is a significant gap in training and development and business goals. So, it isn’t an easy job but it isn’t an impossible one too.

Here are a few things to keep in mind to create and implement a centralized world-class training and development plan in your organization-

1.Soft skills are essential

Modern workplaces don’t just demand experts in specific fields but adaptable employees who have great communication and critical reasoning skills. So, soft skills are essential for an employee to engage as per the company environment and remain productive.

2.Self-driven employees

Employees that undergo the right training and development should be able to address tasks and challenges independently. For this, the training has to be planned in a way that it imparts all the necessary skills and knowledge that establish a culture of continuous learning and self-driven employees in a company.

3.Create a strategic development plan and regularly update it

Before developing and implementing a training and development plan, employers must start with defining the business goals. The increasing skill gap is a cause and consequence of improper plans and irregular updates. Employers and development professionals need to ask the question- Why are we providing the training and what impact we want to make through it?

This will help them align the training process with business goals. Also, the training plan must incorporate effective tracking for analysis of before, in, and after the training and for continuous updates in the industry.

4.Leverage learning on digital platforms

Most companies omit training due to the time involved in undergoing the training. Employees have to miss out on work to learn new skills and upgrade their knowledge. This challenge or rather resistance to learning can be addressed effectively by engaging employees on multiple platforms that are dynamic inaccessibility and offer a personalized learning experience. Engaging employees on platforms they like spending their time on is the best way to empower them!

5.Take expert advice and help

As more and more businesses are shifting to digital media platforms, business processes are no more the same. Workplaces and workforces have all turned remote and companies have a hard time making the best of these new trends. Today everything right from onboarding or recruitment to workforce management is done online. In this situation, you can rely on experts and get your work done effectively. And online platforms like TechKit offer A-Z services for digital workforce management. Whether hiring the best talents, managing the remote orifice, or upskilling employees for the latest skills and trends, TechKit is a one-stop for all the business-related needs in one touch. The best part is, all the services are super accessible and affordable.

So, both small and big businesses can avail of services offered by online platforms for expert suggestions and seamless management of remote employees.

CONCLUSION

Development programs are a way to authenticate the growth of a company. As the workforce is quickly changing and adapting, it is high time for businesses to harness the potential of associated employees by developing and implementing effective employee training and development programs. Organizations with a diverse workforce should and have to value their most valuable asset i.e., the human capital. Knowing is just half the battle. Now that we know what training and development mean, how important it is to any business and how you can create a high impact plan for your business, it’s high time you put it into action. You can start with small steps. Maybe by writing your business goals and learning objectives. Remember. Your employees are already in action, it’s your time to work out some incredible plan for them to stay and do better!