There’s an old joke about an executive who worries that training their employees will be a bad investment because they might leave, to which the sage CEO says, “What if we don’t train them and they stay?”
There are certainly a lot of misconceptions about training employees. The most important thing to keep in mind is that it shows you have trust in their abilities and you’re committed to their career growth. Employees who feel valued, appreciated and invested in are more likely to have overall improved performance and will put their new skills to immediate use, which will help solidify their knowledge. The positive reinforcement you provide will encourage continued use of the new skills.
While training employees doesn’t usher them out the door, training may prepare employees for employment outside your company. However, it also prepares them for a better future working for you, and allows them to provide improvement to your company as a whole. An employee who feels valued and invested in, is more likely to remain in the positive environment you’ve created.
Aside from the immediate obvious benefits employees receive from training, it can also be a good way of building good professional relationships. This goes for both team training and individual training. Being up front about your commitment to their career growth is vital; tell them you hope the training provided to them gives them more opportunities within your organization, but also more opportunities in their overall career development and growth. Follow this by involving them as much as possible in the future of your organization so they will feel they have a place as your company grows, overcomes challenges, and prospers.
Having trouble convincing your employees to follow trainings? Involve them in deciding where to focus their development. Ask them what knowledge, skills, and abilities they would like to improve. The training might pertain directly to their jobs or cover matters beyond their day-to-day work. Time management, injury prevention, and customer relations are popular training topics.
In short, training makes for a better workplace and happier employees. When your employees expand their knowledge, skills, and abilities, they’ll do better work. When they do better work, they’ll better the company. Morale will increase as their passion and excitement grow, and the company performs better.
