At the corner stone of success in any field, is learning. To ensure that there is continuous learning in an organisation, managers need to prioritise training for employees, right from junior staff to the CEO. To get training right, there is need for a training plan.
A training plan contains all the details of a proposed training program. It will show what type of training is going to be carried out and who it will be for. This helps to guide those responsible for the training and those who will authorise it as well as those who will benefit from it.
Components of a training plan
A good training plan will have some of the following and more:
- Training goals or objectives
- The needs of the staff to be trained
- The curriculum or lessons to be followed
- If and how learners will be assessed
- What training materials will be needed
- When the training will take place
- It will detail what premises need to be reserved for the training if any
- Who will carry out the training
- What the entire training will cost
- How you intend to measure success
The benefits of training employees have been documented
Training of staff when done right can lead to greater productivity and efficiency. There are also a host of other benefits, which include;
It prepares employees for more responsibilities and gives the business a chance to hire from within the company. This reduces hiring costs as well as increases employee motivation.
Training develops employee skills and shows them that they are valued. This will increase employee engagement. It also leads to increased confidence and morale.
It helps to standardise work across the organisation. If everyone is trained, errors and substandard work reduce.
Training will lead to improved services. As an example, employees who undertake a customer care training will be able to serve customers better.
Consistently training employees on a wide range of areas will lead to better skilled staff who know how to work well together. This can translate to a better culture and work environment.
Why your team needs a training plan
A training plan helps to create and guide training programs that will have positive outcomes for both the business and employees. We discuss in depth why your team needs a training plan.
It will unearth employee needs before they turn critical
Any training plan will be preceded by a needs assessment. This will involve researching and identifying where there are knowledge gaps in the organisation. It might also involve conducting surveys with employees to find out what areas they might need improvement in.
Doing this will reveal needs before they turn into actual problems for the organisation. If there is a gap in safety knowledge, fixing this can literally save lives.
It ensures the right people get the right trainings
Your team needs a training plan to ensure that the right trainings are given to the right people. No matter how good your trainings are, they will not be beneficial if they are offered to employees who do not need them.
Giving an advanced training to a team that is yet to go through a primer will be a waste of money and time and can make employees apathetic towards future trainings.
A training plan details who will get what training and why. Remember that it will be preceded by a need assessment to ensure that the employees who receive it will find it valuable. In addition, you can use a training plan to ensure that the trainings proposed are aligned to business goals and objectives.
It keeps you ahead of the competition
In today’s world, different companies find themselves continuously vying for the attention of the same customers. To survive and thrive, a business needs to stand out.
One way to get ahead of your competition is to innovate new products and new ways of doing things. In order to do that, you need staff who are continuously trained and working at their highest level.
To support them in doing this, you can set up a training plan that targets skills development. You can also structure one that encourages collaboration, a known raw material for innovation.
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It aids in timely resource allocation
Picture this scenario: The head of research and design learns of a valuable training that is leading to improvements in the market. They rush to their boss to ask for funds for that training but are told there is no money in the budget to cater for it. If only they had put in the request at the start of the quarter.
A training plan will help to forecast the training needs of departments and the organisation at large. This ensures that those in charge can plan for the resources required well ahead of time.
A training plan will help you increase employee retention
While it is great to have a training plan, it is equally important to let employees know about it well in advance. One of the reasons that leads many employees to look around for another job is a lack of growth.
Employees will feel more secure working at a company that is prepared to invest in them and their future. If your employees have a knowledge gap, it is good for them to know that there is a plan to help them improve.
Being able to do their best work is good for employee morale and engagement and productivity.
Being aware of a training plan can make the difference between an employee staying with you and them looking for a position where training is loudly advertised.
In Summary
A training plan is helpful in allowing those in charge to plan for and allocate resources to programs. In the long run, a training plan will result in a more engaged workforce, it will save you money in rehiring because retention will improve and because staff will be better skilled, it will result in more productive employees.
Finally, it is crucial that there are mechanisms to measure the success of any training carried out. Those in charge need to examine the post training behaviour. This will enable them to improve trainings and correct any gaps.
