Hiring the right employees to fill roles in your organization is a vital step, but finding a qualified candidate is only part of the equation. If you want to get great results from your employees, you must provide sufficient training. Even someone who seems to have all the right credentials may not live up to expectations if you do not give them the tools they need for success. From outlining company procedures and policies to helping workers improve their skill sets, improved training can lead to dramatic results for your bottom line. When you put in the effect, you will see these (and more) outstanding results.
- A proven program to productivity. Starting a job with a new company, or even changing roles within the same organization, is a significant growth experience. But for employers, hiring staff or helping existing workers transition into new positions can translate to a period of lost productivity. A quality training program will provide clarity regarding a new hire’s role and responsibilities while also trying to fill any knowledge gaps that could be holding an employee back. Even addressing everyday workplace issues like social integration and knowledge of company culture can help a new hire gain confidence in his or her role faster to make the desired impact. By ensuring that all new hires have a firm understanding of needed skills and practices, he or she will make a more significant contribution from the get-go.
- Lasting engagement. Effective training is also directly tied to employee engagement levels. When an employee first joins your company, they are in the “approval” phase—eager to work hard and prove themselves. However, if your training does not empower them to perform at the highest level, you can be sure engagement will drop. Many workers are not engaged or actively disengaged and do not feel connected to their job giving the bare minimum effort. Quality training directly counteracts this influence, which could otherwise drag down your entire company culture if left unchecked.
- Improved employee retention rates. Retention is not just about making sure that employees do not jump ship for the first new offer that comes their way. It is about helping them feel like they add value to your organization. This makes them want to stay, and the groundwork for this connection is typically established through training. A well-designed training program plays a critical part in mentoring employees’ performances. Employees want to feel that the job they do is essential to the business's success and that the business is investing time and money in them to have the job done correctly and at the highest level. When employees feel valued and that their contribution matters, they are more likely to stick around for an exceptionally long time. Of course, you must continue to foster a quality culture that incentivizes them to stay, but training will set them up for lasting success.
- Short-term profitability. Quality training will have a direct impact on your bottom line. By improving retention rates through training, your company can avoid losses, something that can make all the difference for a startup that is strapped for cash. When your employees are more engaged and productive, profitability will also naturally increase. From improved customer service to a reduced frequency of errors in daily tasks, these are areas that typically improve over time, but providing quality initial training will ensure that many of these areas are strong from day one.
About the Author
Lewis Yasenchak, MBA, BS, is the founder and owner of P&Y Management Resources, specializing in building and improving the plastics industry supply chain.
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