Any organization, whether it is established and is thriving, or whether it is new to the U.S. market and still finding its way, should strongly consider the benefits of employee training.
While training definitely has its costs – both in time and money spent – it is an important investment.
Training should not be limited to teaching someone a new job or a new skill once they have been hired or promoted. Rather, training should be implemented as a regular course of business.
The Benefits of Training
- Employees feel valued when their company invests in them and their skills.
- Well-trained employees can improve your bottom line. According to the Association for Talent Development (ATD), companies with formalized training have a 24% higher profit margin than those that spend less on training.
- When employees have the resources they need to do their job, their performance tends to increase, and employee retention tends to follow. According the Shift Disruptive Learning, “40% of employees who don’t receive the necessary job training to become effective will leave their positions within the first year.”
- Training can help the organization identify weaknesses, thereby providing an opportunity to strengthen areas that need improvement.
- Employee morale can increase as a result of training.
- When employees are trained, output tends to be more consistent because workers can work more efficiently within the implemented procedures.
Training is a broad term that can consist of many things:
- Training on specific software – don’t let your company fall behind technologically
- Technical skills, like writing, coding, analysis, etc.
- Training on products or services offered by your company – you want all your employees to be “sales people” when it comes to your products and services
- Safety training – which is especially important if your employees are expected to work around heavy machinery or in otherwise unsafe conditions
- Team training, which can improve workplace relationships and increase efficiency
- Soft skills, like leadership, presentation, communication, and problem-solving
The bottom line is that it is cheaper to retain employees than hire new ones. So invest in them to ensure they stay with the company long-term and continue to add value to you and your customers.