Our last blog talked about why it’s important to spend company resources on developing employees. There are numerous ways you can do this.
Here are a few:
Education and training: providing time off and/or financial support for employees to acquire new skills via vocational school, higher education classes, or professional workshops.
On the job experience: One of the best ways to learn is by doing. Providing assignments in which employees are forced to stretch their current knowledge and adapt their skills enhances learning and communicates to the employee that you see greater potential in them.
Give effective feedback: When employees are facing a learning curve, you’ll want to give feedback that enhances their growth. Engage them in conversations about what they are learning and ask questions that encourage them to think about their work at a deeper level.
Mentoring: Role modeling is an extremely powerful way to teach. Be sure you are modeling the behavior you want to see in your employees and look for ways to connect them with others who will inspire and teach them.
All of these methods will be most effective when accompanied with clearly defined goals and regular monitoring of progress toward those goals.
What is the return on your investment? Improved employee performance, increased job satisfaction, and improved employee retention, to name a few. In addition, you’ll have created future leaders for your company which translates into peace of mind and vacations that are uninterrupted by work!