Benjamin Franklin once said that the best investment that pays the best dividends is an investment in knowledge. Did you know that all you need to increase your employee productivity by over 200% is by equipping them with the right skills and training? According to Go-Gulf, 68% of employees think training and development is a critical workplace policy. Moreover, research by the Association for Talent Development (ATD) indicate that firms that offer training and development programs enjoy 208% higher income per employee than those companies that don’t have such programs. That is not all! Such companies also reap 24% higher profits compared to those that spend little to no resources on employee training and development.
Although training your employees will cost money, time and materials, it is worth it. Most business owners and HR managers end up employing under-qualified personnel. Sometimes employees automatically become under-qualified and redundant due to rapid changes in technology and business environment. Sometimes new methods are developed, making employee training a necessity rather than an option.
Reasons to train your staff
Losing employees is expensive
If you thought that employees don’t value training then you are wrong. According to a recent study, around one-third of employees leave their job within first six months of their new job. The process of hiring new employees can be expensive and time consuming. So it absolutely makes sense to offer training and development opportunities to your employees even if it costs money and resources.
Trained employees are more productive
Employees who are trained regularly are more productive and efficient because they are able to complete tasks more quickly and are less prone to making expensive mistakes. As a result, customer satisfaction also increases, hence, attracting and retaining more customers.
Improved consistency
Structured training and development programs improve employee consistency. It is good when employees are reading from the same script. This means that your employees are able to move in one directions when it comes to company mission, policies and procedures. That consistency ensures all employees are aware of the goals of the company and what is expected of them.
Employee satisfaction
Employees who have access to training and development opportunities report higher job satisfaction rate compared to those who don’t have such opportunities. Employee training and development also improves employee engagement. In other words, employees become more engaged with their company, colleagues and organizational goals.
Conclusion
According to one Deloitte report, many companies are increasing workplace training budget. Given the benefits that come with employee training, it is not unreasonable to expect this trend to continue as technology changes and the workplace environment experience rapid revolution.