A recent survey conducted by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) stated that British employers should design and tailor their training courses to the specific need of their business. The assumption that organisations haven't already adopted a tailored training programme is more than worrying.
Smart organisations accept personalised training programmes as common knowledge, and those organisations implementing a 'one-size-fits-all' approach are missing a trick. This is because targeted learning and development programmes have been proven to help staff retention, productivity and job satisfaction - all characteristics of a happy, well-balanced employee. In this unstable financial climate, where every penny is being counted, an employee who is satisfied with their job and excels with their workload is invaluable.
But rolling out a generic training programme is a significant waste of money, as each employee has different roles and tasks and thus varying training needs. Employees also have very different ways of learning and should be looked at as individuals, with the employer designing training programmes to benefit staffs' individual needs. This type of blanket training can also be deemed as somewhat irresponsible. An employer has a duty of care to provide relevant training to its employees, as well as ensure they have the appropriate tools and information to fulfil their daily tasks. If this training is pushed aside, then the quality of work and overall staff productivity will begin to suffer and ultimately affect the business as a whole.
The best way to rejuvenate your training is to align your company alongside a specialist learning partner, who has the expertise needed to find what will work best for your business. A learning partner should be able to provide not only the technology necessary for implementing a training programme, but also the expertise to suit each employee's specific needs. The relationship between the learning provider and employer is one that requires attention, dedication and know-how; otherwise organisations are just wasting money.
By implementing a tailored training programme employers can maximise both its training budget and workforce. In fact, personalised learning and development programme should be non-negotiable for any organisation looking to grow whilst getting the most of their training budget. It is a vital part of any business and those companies that use a wide brush stroke across the organisation are set to lose out over the long run.
Kevin Young (pictured), MD SkillSoft, EMEA
