Train your employees: It’s more beneficial than you think!

December 18, 2013 Occasional Contributors HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Training and Development

Even if you’re running a small business, it’s tough to scrape out the cost of training your new hires from your earnings.

In most cases, employees get promoted on merit, and are left to their own devices to perform as managers. The next thing you know some flourish, some trudge along, some falter hopelessly, some get too anxious or uptight.

Managing skills are a separate entity, poles apart from work skills.

Even a simple task like scheduling your employees in shifts need managerial skills; and it’s certainly different in Call Centres than in retail or the hospitality industry.

In Canada, a low emphasis on training and equipment cost by businesses is fast becoming a nemesis for its workers.

In an ideal scenario, it’s best if your employee has some sort of training. Let’s explore why.

How it works in your favor?

Cutting the training might be a tempting idea to cut corners, but this is exactly what you shouldn’t do.

Firstly, it has a substantial cost related to employee turnover and customer discontent. Your brand promise is entwined with the expertise and talent of your people, it in fact thrives on it. It’s like spending nothing on the maintenance of your heavy machinery, but expecting first grade productivity. In the service industry your workers are your machinery! Any loose ends can compromise the output.

Training is an excellent retention tool. It also offers your seasonal workers a reason to come back to you. They know they can learn a new skill. In turn you too can benefit from the presence of an old employee who knows your firm better.

Likewise, social media literacy is fast becoming compulsory in big organizations like Dell, Intel, IBM etc. Such training can help employees use social media responsibly, as many firms have paid a price for irresponsible usage of social media before. Besides, it can be a very valuable tool to boost their productivity.

‘Training’ isn’t the same anymore

Rules of the game have already changed.

Employers in Canada for the 1st time in 20 years have slashed training cost to almost 50 percent of what it used to be.

Besides, no longer is training in technology or work skills so important as – analysis, problem solving, communication and creativity have become. Apple, trains its retail employees in style. The training lasts from a couple of days to a couple of weeks.

But the most interesting bit is what it looks for in people – amiability and self-direction, not tech expertise; they feel technology can be learned.
It’s not just Apple who’s doing it, many smaller firms aren’t too far behind. If you look closely, you’ll find ways to train your employees; among them some are really cost-effective.

Wrapping up

In Europe, there’s no shortage of skilled workers as training and apprenticeship is mandated in most countries like Germany, Switzerland and Scandinavian countries.Their Low level of unemployment, owes to this.

Promote a culture of learning right from the top-down to your last intern. Make every manager responsible. You can start out by choosing the most efficient instructors. Review the results after every session. Encourage suggestions, share best practices. Cross training and training on live projects is a great idea.

As a concluding thought – training prepares your team better, not just against your competitors, but to outdo their own best abilities.

As Pete Cashmore, founder of Mashable puts it,

We really compete against ourselves. We have no control over how other people perform.

Bimal Parmar
As VP of Marketing, Bimal Parmar manages the global marketing strategy and execution at Celayix– a leading provider of Employee scheduling software. Reach him at educate@celayix.com.

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In addition to our regular guest bloggers, First Reference Talks blog published by First Reference, provides occasional guest post opportunities from various subject matter experts on the topics of payroll, employment and labour law, payroll, HR analytics, corporate immigration, accessibility related issues in Canada. If you are a subject matter expert and would like to become an occasional blogger, please contact Yosie Saint-Cyr at editor@firstreference.com. If you liked this post, subscribe to First Reference Talks blog to get regular updates.