What Types Of Training Should You Provide?

Business training differs based on the needs of the company. As Chron notes, there is both a time and money investment on behalf of the company when it comes to training employees. Some businesses don’t see this as a viable use of their funds or their time. On the other hand, to offer a competitive workforce and keep their employees informed of what’s happening at all points in time, training is a necessity that shouldn’t be overlooked.

According to HR Guide, the identification of needs of the company is the first step in the design of an instructional program. Due to this, businesses need to weigh how they expect their employees to perform and the current level of real-world performance. That difference is what training should exist to address. However, just like any other business need, training must suit the situation. A needs assessment ensures that the company is paying time and money for necessary practice that can be useful in helping employees reach peak efficiency in their performance.

Types of Training Methodologies

Training can be delivered in several different ways, depending on the subject matter at hand. Several different methods of training delivery exist:

Orientation

While commonly confused with onboarding, orientation is a different type of training entirely. Orientation usually happens within the first two weeks of a new employee’s entry into the company. As Oregon State University mentions, orientation is crucial because it gives new hires accurate information about their job and the organization, and enables the employee to adapt to the situation quickly and with confidence. It also allows the new employee to deal with regular organization setup, such as securing a login to the company’s intranet.

Onboarding

Training that focuses on in-depth reviews of the organization’s departments and reviews is known as onboarding training. It can last over a period between six months to over two years. Exact Hire notes that onboarding is the process by which employees become aware of the organizational structure and learn how to navigate it successfully as insiders. The most significant aim of onboarding is to reach organization goals by teaching employees how to navigate the company’s internal systems efficiently. It shows employees how to use company resources and channels to perform their tasks better.

Services/Products Training

Companies sometimes have to look at the implementation of new hardware and software or an overall migration of systems. When this happens, the system may be wholly changed from the one that employees are used to, and a period of training is necessary to reacquaint them with the new system. Product training comes from the product supplier at little to no added cost. Depending on the level of complexity of the software, the company may need specialized training personnel to deliver the training to employees.

Hard (Technical) and Soft Skills

Hard skills, as defined by The Balance SMB, are teachable abilities that the company can quantify. The instruction for these skills may be industry-specific, for example, Smith’s Tree service would provide training in the forestry sector. Soft skills are less tangible in their benefits and usually deal with interpersonal interactions. In the past, companies neglected soft skills training, but human resource departments have come to realize that these skills are essential to the all-round development of an individual. It also leads to a more manageable corporate culture, as things like conflict resolution and problem-solving skills are core functionalities of soft skills training.

Mandatory Training (Compliance)

In some jurisdictions, companies are required to perform certain types of training to conform to the law. While the legislation around some of these compliance training programs is still contentious, companies need to be certified to operate within a particular district. Compliance training helps employees be aware of the legislation surrounding their employment and how the company is working to adapt itself to those laws. Some compliance training can even be used for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) hours to retain or renew a license to practice.

How Training Can Be Delivered

Companies who are looking at training their employees can deliver that training in several ways. Some methods are more useful for getting the message across to employees than others, and the type of delivery would depend on the internal corporate culture of the business and what appeals to employees of the firm.

Retreats

Having the company pay for a visit to somewhere exotic seems like it might not be worth it from the business’s perspective. However, Entrepreneur mentions that retreats can have some unexpected benefits for the corporate structure. Coworkers can reveal hidden talents, and the sanctuary helps to focus workers towards a single purpose. At the end of the retreat, the team is a tighter knit community, allowing them to take on the responsibilities of the department in a more proactive fashion. Retreats may vary in the delivery of exercises and may sometimes run for a week or more.

External Training Companies

While many businesses believe they can offer high-quality training in-house, sometimes it’s necessary to call in experts from other companies to perform specialized training. External training can cost the company a lot in terms of time and money. However, the companies that deliver this training usually have quality control methods in place to help the employees going through training learn more effectively. The result is that workers get the chance to experience this training and learn new methodologies with the aid of professional educators who are versed in the techniques they are teaching.

In-House Training

Businesses can leverage the expertise of their own in-house crews to train employees. The company can subsidize these training sessions. There is o need to pay the instructors who the company already pays through their salary. The benefits of in-house training, as opposed to outsourced training, extend to the employees as well. It’s easier for workers to relax with members of the same company performing the exercise. Since the internal company culture is already in place, it makes an environment that is more conducive to learning and asking questions.

Electronic Learning (E-Learning)

Web-based training programs have made a significant impact on the training procedure. Small Business Trends mentions that as many as 98% of all companies are leaning towards using e-learning as a training tool by 2020. It’s convenient for both the company and the employee. The business only needs to develop videos and other materials for training once and host them online for employees. Workers, on the other hand, can log in to the training portal at any time and access the on-demand courses to complete at their leisure. Additionally, businesses can adapt training to be as complicated or simple as they want, keeping the core concepts intact regardless of the level of delivery.

Is Training Employees Necessary?

If a business is already performing at peak efficiency, then training employees might be a waste of their time and resources. However, most companies (if not all) stand to improve in certain areas of operation. The amount of time and effort put into keeping employees informed is proportional to how well those employees take the message to heart. The onus is on the employer to ensure that their employees are adequately trained and familiarized with their work environment. Proper training ensures that workers can leave the company, but also provides incentives for employees to stay.

from Feedster https://www.feedster.com/business/what-types-of-training-should-you-provide/