Investing In People: Training and Development

Training and development of your employees is a critical investment for any successful business – after all, they are your most important asset.

There is a financial and time investment in training and developing your workforce. Often, organisations feel they can’t afford the financial investment or have employees out of the office for the time it takes to attend the training. However, there are many reasons why organisations can’t afford to not invest in the training and development of their employees.

So why should you make training and development a priority?

Employees want to feel valued by their employer – that much is obvious. While employee nights out or other incentives go a long way in keeping your workforce smiling, investing in your employees as people will make them feel much more valued and will increase engagement. An employee who feels valued will be much more loyal to their employer, making them less likely to leave and much more likely to recommend you as an employer to friends and family, increasing the organisation’s employer branding.

Engaged employees are naturally more motivated, harder working and require less supervision. Employees who are knowledgeable, given the right tools to manage their role, and feel valued professionally are much more likely to reach their maximum potential. They provide a better service to your customers, set good examples for other employees and are more effective leaders – all of which improve your bottom line.

Most employees have some weaknesses in their skills. A failure to address these weaknesses and support employees to develop these areas can cost an organisation far more than the investment of a training program.

A training and development program brings all employees to a higher level giving them similar skills and knowledge. This helps reduce any weak links within the organisation that rely heavily on others. Providing the necessary training creates an overall knowledgeable workforce with employees who can take over for one another as needed, work on teams or work independently without constant help and supervision from others.

Henry Ford is reported to have said, “The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave is not training them and having them stay.” If employees only perform at 40%-60% of their capability, how much will that cost your organisation each year? Under-performers are less likely to leave, and although you could manage them out, how much would that cost in terms of employee downtime of everyone involved, recruitment costs and the cost of getting the new hire up to speed?

If you believe that recruiting an experienced employee, already trained to the level you would like, is less expensive than training employees yourself, you are mistaken. You will have to pay them much more, increasing recruitment fees, and they are less likely to be devoted to your organisation, especially if you are not willing to develop them further. They will be much more likely to leave and in a shorter period. When they leave, you’ll have to go through the whole process again. Whereas, if you are looking to recruit candidates with some skills that you can develop, you can train them as appropriate for your organisation and are much more likely to become loyal employees.

High employee turnover rates harm your employer branding, employee engagement and profitability. While there’s no magic wand you can wave to stop good employees from leaving, you can take steps to ensure that there are no incentives for them to look elsewhere.

On average, the Fortune 100 “Best Companies to Work For” provide 73 hours of training for full-time employees, compared to 38 hours delivered by others. These organisations also had 65 per cent less employee turnover than other organisations in the same sector.

As the talent competition grows, organisations need to continually review and improve their employer branding and employee value propositions. Offering an employee development program as part of your perks and benefits is an excellent way to stand out above your competitors, attract high-quality candidates and retain your high-quality employees.

To discuss your training needs and how Delphinium can support you in your employees’ training and development, contact us to arrange your free no obligation consultation.

Author: Gemma Rolstone | Published 24^th July 2018