Many businesses don’t prioritise employee training, but it should become a priority for all business owners. Regular training helps teams stay on top of changing business practices, new methodologies, developing trends and allows them to keep their competitive edge. Especially as AI and technology rapidly evolve. Training on AI tools, for example, ensures employees remain relevant and efficient.
To make training effective, follow these five key tips:
Conduct A Training Needs Analysis With All The Team
A training needs analysis outlines the needs of both your team and the business itself which is an essential first step. There is no point in offering training to learn to juggle if you’re in the IT industry. Determining the direction in which you would like to guide your business, will help you outline the skills necessary to get there.
Assess your team’s skill gaps and business goals before selecting a programme. Involving employees in the decision-making process increases engagement and ensures relevance.
Create A 12 Month Training Calendar
Creating a timeframe in which training will occur is ideal to ensure that your training programmes and overall objectives are reasonable and attainable. Outlining deadlines by which certain things need to be achieved will keep everyone on track and accountable. In the instance that people fall behind, a training calendar will assist in getting them back on track.
Implement Training Feedback In 121s
Employee feedback helps refine future training initiatives. By implementing training feedback 121s you can assess the new skills of each employee, whilst also retrospectively looking at their personal successes or weaknesses during the programme. By having these meetings, you can work with each employee to adjust their roles to suit their strengths or offer more training if necessary. This should of course only be done in a one-on-one setting to encourage openness and ensure privacy.
Share Training Feedback Across The Team
Analysing your team's results using the 121 feedback and then sharing that with the team in statistics, graphs or general opinion, is necessary to broach further discussion amongst your team. Feedback is the best way to determine a training programme’s effectiveness. In assessing these results, you can see which sections of your team achieved high levels of success, and which sections did not perform well. Regularly assess training outcomes to identify strengths and areas for improvement. This should not include naming and shaming as a tool to “incentivise” team members.
Create A Training Wins List To Demonstrate The Impact
As this is a team empowerment activity, discussion about the training, with a focus on wins and successes achieved by all, should occur. Focusing on the positive impact of training will prove that the programme was successful and that it did have a valuable impact on the team. Highlighting success will also encourage positive attitudes the next time you choose to offer training and it will improve your staff’s confidence.
“The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as we continue to live.”
-Mortimer Adler
ActionCOACH Harrogate, Unit 1, The Innovation Centre, Hornbeam Park, Harrogate, HG2 8QT
01423 223 826 mikemoss@actioncoach.co.uk