“Train people well enough so they can leave. Treat them well enough so that they don’t want to.”
These are the words of Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group. He clearly saw the benefits of supporting and developing employees as a means of keeping great talent on board.
To quote another industrial icon, retired General Electric Chairman and CEO Jack Welch noted that, “An organization’s ability to learn and translate that learning into action rapidly is the ultimate competitive advantage.”
Employee development is a win-win: it empowers your team members to become better by enhancing their overall job performance, and with that goes your company’s progress and profitability. And, it helps build retention, so you can keep your superstar performers satisfied and under your own roof.
Here are some ideas to help optimize your training and development strategy:
Stick to a regular schedule.
Set your training plans and schedule – and stick to it. It can be all too easy to “cancel training” or hold individual employees back from programs due to production demands. This quickly becomes a slippery slope.
- Enable people to set aside time for training and development. For many companies, it works well to hold training at the same time each week; for instance, Friday mornings. This way, employees can plan the rest of their work around it and look forward to it as the week unfolds.
Start a mentoring program.
Both mentors and mentees can benefit from the skills and knowledge acquired through a mentoring program. While the basic premise is for more veteran employees to pass their expertise on to subordinates, it works both ways – especially given the rapid pace of technological advances, which tend to be the bailiwick of younger workers. Mentoring can lead to the establishment of strong, productive and long-lasting professional relationships.
Include gamification in your training toolbox.
Gamification continues to pick up speed as a popular professional development option. The purpose is not to turn work into a game, but rather to blend game mechanics with professional tasks to improve productivity and make a job more fun and engaging.
Offer personalized programs.
Personalized marketing is an emerging and successful trend in customer service. Leverage it to the advantage of your most important customers: your employees. Especially if it’s challenging to conduct multiple training courses at the same time, opt for online programs that cater to the individual needs and schedules of your team members.
Cross train among departments.
Let employees explore what other areas of your company do. This helps build strong relationships and, in the case of an individual seeking something new, can be the secret sauce you need to retain them. In addition, it builds employees’ understanding of their organization and sense of ownership in it.
At PrideStaff Kentucky, we’re committed to helping you grow your business through hiring, retaining, training and developing a winning workforce while controlling costs and realizing the optimal return on your talent management investment. Reach out to us today to learn more.
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