Uncover the Benefits of Long-Term Employee Development

Most businesses understand the importance of providing new employees with preliminary training. Unfortunately, only a few know how crucial it is to continuously train their hires to keep them engaged and well-equipped for the challenges of their profession.  

And the consequences of this negligence can be dire. High turnover rates, loss of competitive advantage, missed opportunities… The list of potential adverse effects of a lack of continuous training goes on. The basic training that someone receives during the onboarding process is not enough for consistent and quality employee performance. You also need more to keep your employee retention on a steady level.

Talented and engaged employees will search for new growth opportunities if you don’t give them room for development. Bearing that in mind, you should make sure that your organisation provides your staff with a development programme and growth opportunities. To keep pace with the latest industry challenges and satisfy your business goals, make sure to introduce continuous employee development programmes. 

Continuous Employee Development 

So, what’s all the fuss about? Continuous Employee Development (CED) is the process of supporting and improving employees’ current skills, as well as giving them opportunities to acquire new ones to suit your company’s needs and market requirements. 

Continuous Employee Development covers a wide variety of abilities and spans the entire lifecycle of an employee in your company, allowing them to increase their proficiency and competency. 

Benefits of a Long-Term Employee Development Plan

Some organisations, discouraged by the short-term increase in employee productivity, resign from continuous training programmes. But they’d be mistaken for doing so. Even though introducing training sessions may disrupt your employees for a short time, the overall benefits of long-term education far outweigh the initial setbacks. 

Let’s explore the key advantages of introducing continuous training for employees. 

Increased Morale 

There’s no denying that employees who are consistently trained and motivated have increased morale. The rule is simple: the more knowledge your employees are equipped with, the easier it is for them to excel at their job. Obviously, it is way easier for the team members to operate new software or use a new skill after proper training, instead of learning on their own.

And that’s not the end of the positive side-effects of continuous employee development. Employees who receive regular training and support are more likely to make informed decisions and come up with original ideas to develop their businesses. Equipped with new knowledge and self-confidence, they’ll no longer feel afraid to speak their minds and propose new solutions. 

Recognition of Talent 

Continuous learning programmes give managers a chance to take a closer look at their employees and their professional performance. They also allow them to see which employees are the most interested in developing new skills or improving their competencies. 

Having that knowledge, managers can recognise true talent and invest in the further development of employees who not only have talent but also a willingness to develop their own skills and acquire knowledge. These employees are then more likely to receive praise for their efforts or get a promotion. 

Increased Focus and Productivity 

It’s common knowledge that training sharpens focus. Subjecting your employees to regular training can help them develop good habits and successfully fight distractions. Speaking of this, it has been found that distractions can lead to committing twice as many errors as usual. Moreover, it takes 23 minutes and 15 seconds to fully recover focus after a distraction. 

With the continuous employee development programme in place, your employees are more likely to stay focused, which directly improves their productivity and performance at work. You need an engaged workforce for your company to function properly. Encourage your employees to learn and remain competitive, and let them know their development efforts are being noticed and appreciated.

Cultivating the Culture of Learning 

According to LinkedIn, 94% of workers claim that internal career development programmes would motivate them to stay longer with their employer. Making employee development a priority and supporting continuous employee development programmes can help you keep your employees loyal and motivated and create a culture of learning. 

The culture of learning makes knowledge a standard, not some additional activity that distracts you from your responsibilities. In organisations that promote a culture of education, training becomes an indispensable and valuable part of work. A learning culture also gets employees thinking in practical terms about developing the skills that they will need in new positions and over their career paths. 

Providing your employees with an opportunity to learn new skills is crucial - their individual growth mindset will collectively turn into an organizational growth one. When the team members receive good training, they are more likely to feel a connection to the company and will be more likely to remain there for a longer time. A robust employee development program is key to ensuring long-term engagement and job satisfaction.

Improved Employee Knowledge Retention 

Did you know that employees tend to forget up to 70% of all information learned during a training session within 24 hours, and 90% within a week of the training day? Unluckily, the stored information can rapidly become inaccessible if not well-retained. After a few days, without repetition and consolidation of the new knowledge, it is necessary to learn it all over again. 

However, it doesn’t have to be like that. With frequent exposure to skills and knowledge in the continuous employee development programme, your employees are more likely to remember acquired knowledge and use it in their everyday work. 

To achieve both employee satisfaction and company growth, make sure your employees actively participate in practice-based learning. Make sure to make the learning process fun and free of distractions, so people take part in activities that are actually engaging. This way you ensure talent development and raise employee engagement levels. This is the key to employee satisfaction - always remember that the company culture would not function properly without happy workers.

Remaining Up to Date on Technology and Industry Changes 

It’s hard to keep up with the dynamic and drastic changes in the market. However, it doesn’t mean that you should stop trying.

Now it’s more important than ever to follow market trends and tendencies and keep an eye on the ever-developing world of technology. Introducing regular training will ensure that your employees are up to date with the newest revelations and modern methods. Your employees need proper training whenever new software is introduced in the company, or when their skills become outdated due to new technology implemented. Their existing skills need sharpening consequently, so offer some training courses that focus on the technology they already use, too.

It’s High Time for Employee Development Programs

With the intense advancement of technology and the intensification of competition, modern businesses understand the importance of continuous training. While introducing a long-term employee training programme requires investment in time and capital, its benefits can easily outshine it.

Employers need to remember that employee development programs do not only benefit the employees. Improved employee retention is a good enough reason to have a professional development plan in place, but there is a multitude of other benefits as well. Higher productivity, a more engaged workforce, better employee performance and many more are surely worth setting up proper development programs.

If your business doesn’t have a continuous training plan in place, it may be high time to introduce one and enjoy its countless benefits.