by Flex HR

How to Improve Employee Training and Development Programs

Although training programs provide benefits for both employers and employees, most workplaces still don’t offer comprehensive training and development programs for their workers. Ipsos reports that only 41% of professionals have employers that provide workplace development programs.

Today’s top talents want more training programs from their jobs, and a lack of development opportunities may leave employees feeling frustrated. HR professionals can meet the demands of today’s workforce by offering improved training and development programs to employees. Below are a few suggestions.

Improve Employee Training & Development

 

Make learning more accessible and flexible

Whether the organization has a remote work setup or not, you need to provide more accessible training opportunities. The former president of Udemy for Business, Darren Shimkus, explains that e-learning programs provide a low-pressure environment that allows employees to work towards their success. Since they can learn at their own pace, employees can understand and absorb more information from online training programs.

You can make your training programs more accessible by providing online learning options for your employees. This can include training videos and presentations, so they can devote their attention to the courses and learn at their own paces.

 

Integrate the programs into the company culture

Given that many employees want more training programs, you need to make these opportunities a part of the organization’s culture. Maryville University notes that training and development are integral to a positive company culture because it provides employees with an opportunity to advance their skills and be recognized for their talents. By fostering a supportive learning environment, HR professionals can increase employee satisfaction and retention within the organization.

To integrate training programs into company culture, start by announcing the achievements of employees that finished the courses through internal communication channels. You also need to demonstrate that professional development contributes to growth in the company by providing participants with promotion opportunities. By celebrating the learning development of your employees, you can create a company culture that embraces the growth mindset.

New Hires

With most organizations now allowing a work from home environment, training new employees is cumbersome. “Many companies are now moving to online training programs in order to achieve teaching the fundamentals in a new job, get acclimated with the culture, ensure proper process and SOP training,” says Jim Cichanski, Founder & CHRO of Flex HR. As each new worker joins the company training application, tasks are assigned to that individual with a timeline to complete the initiative. This introductory education is consistent with what the entire staff has acquired to be certain that all new hires have been thoroughly trained on the proper processes and procedures that drive the culture of the company.

 

Survey your employees about their preferences

Apart from celebrating the progress of the training participants, it’s important to ask the employees about their thoughts on the training program itself. Our article on ‘How to Calculate Employee Retention Rate’ emphasized that most employees quit their jobs because companies don’t appreciate their talents and invest in their careers. Thus, HR professionals must invest in employee professional development by considering their preferences for the learning opportunities.

After each training session, you can provide feedback forms through work communication channels so that employees can express their thoughts about the training they received. If the programs do not meet their needs, allow employees to provide suggestions about the instructors and the topics for each session. Through these feedback mechanisms, HR professionals can get a concrete direction for the next batch of training programs.

 

Analyze the outcome of the training programs

Finally, HR professionals must gather data and analyze the efficiency of the training programs. Training and development programs can consume a lot of time and money, which is why organizations need to see a return on their investments. Most importantly, this step ensures that your organization is developing relevant training programs for its employees.

SecurityWeek recommends that HR professionals integrate key performance indicators into the training evaluation process to measure any progress. The organization must also measure the results of the training programs by assessing the efficiency and productivity of the trained employees.

Organizations need to take advantage of their employees’ willingness to learn, since these training programs can improve employee morale, increase talent retention, and boost their productivity. By providing efficient development programs, you can create a win-win situation for both the organization and the employees, and a chain of productivity and success for years to come.

Contact us now to get the solutions to maximize your HR needs today!

 

Penned by Emi Finley