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How much professional development training should you be completing?

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John Sherman
2018-04-25

Did you know that 40 percent of employees leave their job within the first year because they don’t receive the professional development training they need?

It’s easy to assume the most important people in your company are your customers and they should come first. But, the best asset you have is the people working for you – your employees. When you look after your team, your customers will also be happy and your business is successful.

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Yet, a lot of employers overlook professional development training and see it as a luxury they don’t have to provide for their employees. But, employees now expect ongoing training in their workplace. It’s no longer something that can be ignored.

Of course, we don’t want to sound like providing professional development training is a burden or something that’s going to drain your business. In fact, it’s the complete opposite – you should be excited about providing professional development training because of the benefits it will bring to your business.

The obvious benefit of professional development training is that it’s going to teach your employees new skills and provide them with the materials they need to understand their job role. Knowledge is always key and will make sure that employees perform well.

Whether your employees work in food handling or sales, training is important for performing your job to the best of your ability and in order to be a productive team member. That’s why training shouldn’t just be an induction when you’re new, but an ongoing process.

Plus, never underestimate the power of professional development training when it comes to keeping employees happy. Providing opportunities to learn has proven to increase job satisfaction and we all know that a happy employee is more motivated, workers harder and creates more success for your company.

In today’s society, employees want to learn and feel like they have the opportunity to grow personally and professionally in their workplace. When you provide professional development training, you offer them the chance to grow with your company.

This will mean that you can enjoy having more skilled workers, as well as making sure they stay at your company for longer. So, don’t give your employees a reason to leave – give them a reason to stay.

Not to mention, when you create a company culture that promotes professional development training, you can attract new talent and this will be an element of your business that influences millennials to join your ranks.

So, now you know the benefits of professional development training, the next question is how much should your employees be completing?

Well, what we say is that professional development training should be a regular part of the workplace and ongoing for your employees. This way you can make sure it is effective and memorable. After all, who is going to remember training that takes place once or twice a year?

Just like your business should never stand still, neither should your training.

Ongoing training means that your employees can keep up with the latest changes in your industry. Regulations and strategies are constantly changing and the worst thing you can do is fall behind.

With regular professional development training, you can make sure that your employees stay up-to-date and are compliant with the rules that apply to your business.

Like anything, if you don’t keep practicing your skills, you will eventually lose them. Ongoing training makes sure that everything an employee needs is fresh in their head and allows them to perform their jobs better on a daily basis.

In addition, there is also the opportunity to advance their skills through regular training and even gain certificates and qualifications that will allow them to advance within the company.

Of course, regular training also means you can stay ahead of the competition in your industry. You have got to keep moving forward and making sure your employees are productive and knowledgeable will make sure that you do.

When you pair your professional development training with ongoing performance management, you can make sure that employees are doing well and keeping up-to-date. You will be able to identify any weaknesses in your team and work on those weaknesses, as well as fill any skill gaps that exist.

After all, if you catch problems and issues quickly, then you can stop them becoming a problem later down the line. Whether it’s a lack of time management or there’s poor bookkeeping, you will be able to adjust your training appropriately to make sure these problems are fixed.

So, do you think it’s finally time to invest in professional development training?

A lot of people don’t provide professional development training because they think it’s expensive and time-consuming. Sure, there’s some short-term expense when you buy e-learning courses, but this is an investment that you will always see a return for.

The last thing that you want is to lose employees because you aren’t providing them with the opportunity to learn through professional development training.

Ultimately, this will cost you the most money because the everyday efficiency and productivity of your business will suffer, as well as employee turnover costing you more time and money.

Of course, it’s not only important that you have professional development training, but also that it’s provided on a regular basis. This will make sure that there’s a continuous opportunity for employees to learn, progress and succeed with your business.

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