Companies require more strategies to entice and keep employees as the costs of the Great Resignation rise. Offering more training and development opportunities is one obvious strategy. In a 2019 LinkedIn study, 94% of employees said they would stay with their employer if it made an investment in their development.
However, involving managers may be a more localized approach to increasing employee engagement. According to a recent Gallup survey, the manager or team leader’s effectiveness “explains at least 70% of the variance in team engagement.” It appears that this remedy is frequently disregarded because most managers express a negative opinion of the performance of their Learning and Development (L&D) function.
Creating an Employee Development Plan for Improved Employee Performance
What is employee development?
Initiatives to increase an employee’s knowledge and skills are referred to as employee development. Employee engagement and respect for the company can be increased through personal and professional development initiatives.
Ways to improve employee development
Here are 11 suggestions to enhance and promote employee development at your business:
1. Use individual development plans
A discussion about each team member’s interests and career aspirations can help identify areas for professional and personal growth. By taking the time to go over this strategy, you can boost employee engagement and accomplishments while also keeping yourself informed about the careers of your employees.
2. Offer professional training
Professional development is just one of the resources that workers need to succeed in their positions. You can create opportunities that prioritize professional development, from onboarding to continuing education. Your company can use a range of virtual and physical training tools and methods, such as self-paced online courses or inviting a subject matter expert to give a lecture over lunch.
3. Remove barriers
Your employees can thrive if you remove obstacles like a strict organizational structure or antiquated procedures. Workplaces that promote change, investigate cross-departmental participation, and facilitate high performance training are more appealing to today’s workforce. When you give employees the freedom to use their skills and pursue their interests across the company, growth and development can occur.
4. Provide effective coaching
Workplace leaders can become better coaches by learning what inspires their team, what distinguishing qualities they possess, and even where they feel challenged. You can establish a connection with your team members by posing thoughtful, in-depth questions. Here are some suggestions for questions to ask:
5. Set performance metrics
To evaluate ongoing projects and establish attainable objectives, leaders can benefit from developing performance metrics. When setting and achieving new goals, using a specific quantitative performance metric can help employees feel accomplished. This may encourage staff to take on more responsibilities or learn new skills in order to continuously improve their performance.
6. Teach collaboration
Educating your team on effective teamwork can enhance departmental and cross-departmental cooperation. This can enhance project outcomes and assist staff in learning about other areas of the company. As each department adheres to the same set of corporate standards, departments that collaborate effectively frequently produce better products and provide better customer service.
7. Nurture soft skills
When interacting with clients and within teams, soft skills are crucial. By giving your team members opportunities to collaborate and be creative, you can motivate them to hone crucial soft skills like:
8. Give constructive feedback
The majority of workers want to know how they are doing in their position. It’s beneficial to regularly give employees unbiased, constructive criticism in addition to the designated employee reviews. When feedback is linked to performance metrics, personal development plans, or other opportunities for professional development, it can be used as a tool for growth and recognition. Making your recommendations more actionable for the employee by tying feedback to data, specific examples, and individual recommendations can be effective.
9. Encourage personal development
It can be simple to only consider employees in terms of their work, but every member of your team has personal as well as professional objectives. You can support your team members both professionally and personally by using a holistic approach to employee development. In order to promote personal growth among their team members, leaders can do the following:
10. Connect with professionals
One great way to provide more assistance is to link employees up with other professionals. Some ways to do this include:
11. Be an example
Be an example of the character traits you want your staff to possess. When a team member observes their current leader continuing to advance professionally, credibility and trust are increased. Employees will see the value in taking part in development activities when you foster an internal culture of constant improvement and growth.
FAQ
What are the four 4 approaches to employee development?
Four broad categories—formal education, assessment, work experiences, and interpersonal relationships—comprise the many strategies for employee development.
Why development is important to an employee?
Learning and development opportunities improve productivity. It’s as simple as that. According to Indeed, giving employees the chance to advance their knowledge and skills boosts their confidence, enabling them to complete tasks more successfully and efficiently.
How can employee development be improved?
The Huffington Post claims that personal growth and development is the art of helping your employees discover who they are and change into that person through an examination of their identity, talents, and potential as well as their goals and dreams.
