People are the greatest asset to any organization. When it comes to supporting employees, companies must work toward creating and enhancing effective training programs. Employers are encouraged to rise to the challenge, but are often faced with obstacles.

3 pain points employers face when developing employee training programs

Not enough time for training: Production work is crucial and often pushes personal and professional development off into an unknown future date that seems to fall off the calendar. The development of non-technical skills consequently becomes an afterthought. After initial onboarding, leaders should be empowered to take time for their own development and encourage their direct reports to do the same.

Leaders are not equipped, empowered or encouraged to coach direct reports: It’s no secret that the quality of an employee’s experience lies heavily with their direct manager. When leaders have the skills to guide for growth, training and other support is more readily accessible. From the hiring phase to coaching and feedback throughout the year, managers must make an effort to connect on a social learning level with other leaders to share best practices, network and find shared solutions.

Lack of consistency: When one approach to training feels different than another, objectives aren’t as clear for employees. Each portion of the training program should be delivered in a way that’s digestible, use the same platform throughout and provide space for questions. Building a team of instructional designers and strategists focused on the growth and leadership of that particular business unit is another way to improve the experience. These efforts create a consistent and holistic approach to corporate onboarding, annual compliance and leadership development.

Striving for engagement, productivity and connection

To elevate employees’ knowledge, skills and abilities requires a thoughtful strategy. Studies show that organizations that implement successful training programs have happier, more engaged and more productive employees.

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