To succeed in any industry, employers must innovate and evolve to stay competitive; and that involves helping employees to continuously develop. Making employee development a key part of the business culture ensures workers stay up to date on industry best practices and learn new skills, which increases employee engagement and attracts top talent.
So, why is employee development so important and how exactly will it benefit the business?
What is professional development?
Professional development involves any professional training or continuing education that an employer facilitates to support employees in furthering their careers. It covers a variety of learning opportunities and can include seminars, certified courses, higher education, and mentorship programs among others.
It is meant to improve employees’ skills and knowledge with the aim of progressing their overall career path, and not just build a skill set for a particular role. While it is ultimately the employee’s responsibility to manage their own professional development, it is to the employer’s benefit to encourage continuing training by facilitating internal and external learning opportunities.
What are the benefits to the business?
The benefit of professional development to employers is tenfold. Not only does it hone strengths and grow skills, but it better equips employees for their current roles, adding more value to the work done and directly benefitting the business.
From improving employee engagement, and enhancing productivity, to increased profits and helping employees reach their full potential, professional development is key to success. Importantly, having clear and well organised people development opportunities is attractive to employees and candidates alike, creating an employer of choice business.
Employees want career growth – Often, employees leave roles due to a lack of career advancement opportunities. Employers who prioritise the career development of employees will be rewarded with improved performance and higher retention.
Employees stay at the business – Employee development is a long-term investment that can help retain and grow talent. Employees who are satisfied with their jobs are satisfied with their opportunities for training and skills development. Therefore, dedicating resources to employee retention is more important than ever.
Employees reach their full potential – Without access to training and development opportunities, employees may feel undervalued and underdeveloped, which can inevitably lead to a disengaged workforce and high turnover rates. Investing in people development promotes positivity around growing skills that translate into success and recognition within the business, allowing employers to retain top talent.
Employees are more productive – Learning and development opportunities improve productivity. Employees become more confident when given chances to build their skills and knowledge, allowing them to complete wok more effectively and efficiently. Not to mention, as employees become more capable, teams achieve more without the need for additional personnel.
How do employers introduce a professional development plan?
Tailoring a professional development plan to the workforce is critical. The industry and size of the business will be driving forces, as well as learning styles, preferences, and subject matter are all important considerations too. Any learning and development opportunities should appeal or benefit employees, otherwise there will be no interest and employees will disengage with the program.
Evaluate long-term goals – As a first step, employers will need to assess the current workforce and business with future goals. By talking stock of how employees and teams operate today, business owners can consider what needs to change in order to progress, and what challenges could arise along the way.
Develop employee-specific plans – Managers should have regular discussions with individual employees to better understand what is enjoyable about their work, what is difficult, what disinterests them and what progress they want to make in their role. While employees are responsible for undertaking the development plan, managers are responsible for guiding and supporting employees throughout the process.
Create development opportunities – Utilise employee-specific plans to create professional development opportunities throughout the business. If any trends or interest in a specific subject matter is identified, employers could look at implementing team workshops or seminars.
Evaluate and seek feedback – The strongest indicator of success will be the response from employees. Conducting regular employee engagement surveys is an effective way to measure team members’ interest in and happiness with the professional development offerings. Additionally, having managers routinely check in with employees on progress is key.
Ultimately, the benefits of employee professional development can be significant; to both employers and the business. If you’d like assistance creating and implementing effective learning and development opportunities in your business, get in touch with our team today – we can help!
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