Building an employee training and development program doesn't have to be complex. In the days of the Industrial Revolution, philosopher Jeremy Bentham proposed the carrot and stick approach to motivation, based on an old story. This theory suggests that people can be motivated by rewards and punishments.
While any form of "punishment" is out of the question in the 21st century, what about rewards? What are the rewards that employees seek today?
Surprisingly or not, it’s not money. It’s employee training and development. In this article, we will take a closer look at employee training and development programs.
What is Employee Training and Development?
Employee training is an ongoing process where companies help their employees acquire the knowledge and skills needed to reach their full potential and perform optimally. Often, employee training and development are used interchangeably.
Employee training focuses on teaching them how to perform a specific task or procedure, usually aiming for short-term gains by enabling employees to become better at their current jobs. For example:
Training employees on using the latest office software updates.
Training a new employee on using your billing system.
Introducing the latest digital marketing tools to your marketing department.
On the other hand, employee development is about growth and acquiring skills that will be useful in the long term. For example:
Hosting a boot camp on workplace communication.
Establishing a culture of knowledge sharing.
Starting a mentorship program for new employees in your sales team.
Benefits of Employee Training
There are multiple benefits to investing in an employee training and development plan, such as:
Improved Internal Service
Training and development help employees communicate, collaborate, and interact more effectively, contributing to improved internal customer service and creating a more efficient and harmonious work environment.
Enhanced Performance
Employee training is directly linked to better performance as it helps employees become more skilled, confident, and knowledgeable about their industry.
Increased Job Satisfaction and Motivation
Continuous employee training and development make workers feel more valued, inspiring them to give their best effort.
Improved Loyalty and Retention
Employees see training and development as additional benefits, staying longer with companies that provide such opportunities. Allocating resources for employee training and development offers them a chance to grow within your organization. There is a strong correlation between employee growth and long-term retention, thus reducing turnover rates.
Enhanced Engagement
Job-specific training and development opportunities are among the top factors that make employees feel more engaged.
Reducing Skill Gaps
Employee training and development programs help companies bridge any existing or imminent skill gaps, strengthen weak links, and enable internal hiring (which is more cost-effective than external hiring).
Competitive Advantage
Empowering employees with the knowledge and skills they need helps your company remain competitive in today’s fast-paced business environment.
Better Problem-Solving Skills
Training and development provide employees with the skills and knowledge needed to analyze situations, find innovative solutions, and make better decisions for any problems they may face.
Promoting Knowledge Transfer
By encouraging employees to learn from each other, you ensure the transfer of vital skills, expertise, and knowledge to other employees within the organization.
Enhancing Company Reputation
In today’s competitive labor market, companies are vying for workers. Investing in employee training and development makes it much easier to attract and retain top talent.
Profit Growth and Cost Savings
Employees struggling with technical aspects of their job can be sent to effective training, returning with greater speed, judgment, and accuracy. This can make them up to 15% more efficient in their jobs. Research studies confirm that employee training and development programs can help reduce hiring costs while maximizing profits (up to double).
Lesser-Known Benefits
There are several lesser-known benefits of employee training and development:
Networking:
By participating in training and development programs, employees get the chance to meet others from different parts of the organization and at various levels. These interactions can develop into beneficial professional relationships, friendships, mentorships, and ways to discover new opportunities.
Camaraderie:
Employees often feel isolated in facing their challenges. Participating in training and development programs helps individuals understand that what they are going through has been encountered by others as well. It provides a sense of “you are not alone; many of us are in the same boat, and there are people who can help.”
Creating Important Feelings in Your Team:
It fosters a sense of belonging, importance, pride, and competence within your team. Often, we neglect the daily work experience and the experiences that make us feel valued, which can build positive relationships between leaders and direct reports, as well as among colleagues. Training and development programs can also nurture your culture and job skills. Culture can be considered as your shared definition of success and how to achieve it. If you have technical training, this is also an opportunity to teach and apply your values.
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The Role of DocSuite in Employee Training
DocSuite simplifies HR management processes and helps organize employee training and development programs. It can be used to track employee progress, deliver appropriate training courses, assess performance, and analyze HR-related data, facilitating strategic decision-making related to team development and improvement. Here are some of the key roles DocSuite plays in employee training and development programs:
Organizing Training Programs:
DocSuite can organize training programs and identify the skills employees need to achieve company goals.
Tracking Career Development:
The system provides features to track employee development and monitor their progress in training and development over time.
Performance Evaluation:
DocSuite can be used to evaluate employee performance, identifying strengths, weaknesses, and individual development needs.
Data Analysis:
The system helps collect and analyze relevant HR data to understand trends and needs necessary for team development.
Providing Reports:
DocSuite can generate customized reports illustrating training progress and its impact on employee and company performance.
Facilitating Communication:
DocSuite facilitates effective communication between employees and HR management, enhancing the effectiveness of training and development processes.
Supporting Decision-Making:
The system provides necessary data and analysis for making strategic decisions about human resource development in the company.
Give your employees the opportunity to share what they know with each other, and there will no longer be any “I am waiting for someone to find time to teach me how to use this program.”
All you need to start an employee training and development initiative is to create an account, invite your team, and they can start sharing nuggets of knowledge in a searchable portal. All employees will be able to find the information they need at any time.