Consistent Training Creates Long-Term Results
One of the oldest and most repeated adages in the business world is that “people are your greatest asset,” and it is certainly an attractive statement. However, as the Harvard Business Review tells us, it isn’t always that simple. This belief needs to be taken a step further, and your real greatest asset is how you develop your staff over time into truly extraordinary people. New hires can never be expected to be perfect right out of the gate, and they will always need to be trained and molded to become a perfect fit and another working part of your enterprise. Because of this, today we are going to explore some of the reasons why ongoing training may be exactly what you need to make the most out of your staff.
1) Progress Never Stops
As time has gone on we have seen the world change dramatically. Just 20 years ago nobody could have possibly imagined that we would be holding computers in our pockets and that the internet would become one of the most important inventions in the history of humanity. These two developments changed the world dramatically, and who knows what the next big advancement in technology will be?
Although we may not know the correct answer to that question, there is one thing we can all be sure of: the landscape of business is constantly changing. In order to combat this, it is important for enterprises to never get complacent and have a staff that is trained accordingly. Ongoing training ensures that your staff stays up to date on the industry and always ready for any change that comes their way.
2) Becoming “Learn-it-Alls”
Microsoft is one of the most well-known household names in the tech industry, right up there with Apple, Google, and Facebook. However, several years ago it was no secret that the tech giant was in a slow decline after their booming success in the dotcom era. Nowadays, Microsoft has risen back to prevalence through their innovative strategies and excellent business moves. Many people attribute this success to Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s newest and current CEO. One of the most powerful pieces of advice Satya has given is that in order to be successful you should not be a know-it-all, but instead be a “learn-it-all.”
As time goes on it becomes easy for people to get complacent in their body of knowledge and let their seniority go to their heads. You can counter this by providing ongoing training to your staff and helping them become the successful learn-it-alls that Satya is describing.
3) Seeing Real Results
In some industries, like sales and education, you can generally judge how well your staff is performing due to real data such as sales figures or grades. These are just two examples, but the same idea can extend to other industries where the “success” or effectiveness of your employees can be judged by looking at a spreadsheet. However, it’s not always that cut-and-dry; and even in the aforementioned industries it isn’t always easy to accurately judge where your staff members actually stand.
Ongoing training allows you not only to develop your staff over time, but as each member completes parts of the ongoing training you can see where they are performing best and where they could use some work. This strategy works no matter what industry you operate in, and as time goes on you can apply your staff’s strongest points where they are most useful while developing their weakest skill sets, too.
4) Creating a Mindset and Environment
Results and metrics are important in business. However, it is important to remember that employees are more than parts of the corporate machine. Each employee is different and operate in their own unique way. Providing comprehensive training allows you to foster a mindset in your employees that might not otherwise be achieved if they were left unsupported in the corporate environment. Many employees are looking for growth, and most importantly they are craving advancement opportunities.
Investing in your employees with ongoing training gives them a sense that they are accomplishing something and growing in your company, rather than becoming stagnant. If employees do not receive these benefits then they can grow disengaged or complacent, and without some kind of advancement they may eventually start looking for those opportunities elsewhere. The mindset you are fostering by training your employees is one of growth, loyalty, and opportunity, and what’s not to like about that?
Going Forward
If there is one thing to take away from employee training, it is that too much is always going to be better than too little. Your staff can never be too prepared for the future, and as time goes on you will see ongoing training start to pay dividends. Employees will become far better prepared, more positive, and more loyal, reducing your churn rate and costs to hire as time goes on. By using ongoing training in your enterprise you are not only investing in your enterprise, you are also investing in your staff and turning them into extraordinary assets.
