Small businesses do not always prioritize training and educating employees. In the corporate world, providing regular training opportunities is standard practice. Corporate employers recognize the benefits of Six Sigma training courses for their employees. In the world of SMEs, the benefits are less well known, so not all employers are willing to invest.
Most employers provide some level of training for new employees. This might include a course on how to operate factory floor machinery or use bespoke software packages. The benefits in this instance are obvious, as without specialist training the employee is not going to be able to perform their job. But what about existing employees? Here things are a bit murkier.
Staff Retention Issues
Staff retention is a big problem for many employers. In some sectors, employee turnover is high, which costs the business money in recruitment and training costs. Often a lack of training is cited as the reason why the employee is leaving. Despite this, employers are still wary of spending money on staff training, only for the person to leave as soon as they have a new qualification on their CV.
A continually revolving door of staff coming and going is not good for your business. It creates uncertainty in the workplace and there is a real danger that you will lose your most productive team members, which will inevitably affect your bottom line.
Happy Staff are Well Trained
The best way to avoid staff retention issues is to create a happy workplace. Providing staff training opportunities is a key part of this. In the corporate world, companies have processes in place to assess their staff training requirements, but many small businesses do not do this. And even if they do, the training provided does not always meet the employee’s requirements.
The majority of employees view training opportunities as a way to increase their productivity. They want to access training so they can be better at their job. They also expect training to continue once they have completed their inductions.
This should make perfect sense to any small business owner. By allowing staff to continue training to improve their skills, you end up with employees who are more productive. Training can be costly, but it is invariably money well spent. Employees are less likely to leave if they feel their employer values them enough to spend money on training courses. Their loyalty levels increase and they are happier because they are better able to do their job. It is a win-win situation for employers.
Implement Employee Training Programs
It isn’t difficult to implement a staff training program. All you need to do is put funds in place to cover training requirements and make it quite clear to your staff that you are open to covering the cost of courses, as long as they are relevant to the person’s job.
Staff training is the easiest way to address a skills shortage, so instead of recruiting new employees to fill a skills gap, look at training your existing employees instead.
Pay Them What They Deserve
Rewarding your employees is going to help retain them and keep them in the company for longer. A lot of us are driven by our passion for the job but we cannot deny that what we get paid, is also very important. As life goes on, things change and some staff may need additional funds in the form of bonuses and raises, in order to support their financial responsibilities like children and a home. It’s worth looking at what you pay in an hourly salary and consider raising this whenever you can in order to continue paying them for what they deserve. They work hard for your company to make it a success, so they should be rewarded as much as possible.
