I recently asked the question:
“In your opinion, which of the following is the biggest benefit to companies in regards to effective Employee Training?”
- Happier & more satisfied employees
- Promotes greater productivity
- Reduces employee turnover
- Increases company’s profits
First I would like to thank everyone for your responses and comments! Most of the comments were in regards to Happy Employees and Greater Productivity.
Almost everyone was in agreement that all of the choices were a little like the chicken and the egg, which came first?
- Are happy employees more productive, they don’t leave resulting in the company having bigger profits?
- Are productive employees happier, they don’t leave resulting in the company having bigger profits?
- If a company doesn’t have turnover, does that mean the company will have bigger profits because the employees are happy and productive?
- Does a company having bigger profits make employees happy and productive, and therefore stay?
One comment by Khurram Mansoor, a Marketing Officer summed it up, “All of these are inter related, and it’s a chain circle. Training results in satisfaction, creating better productivity and fewer turnovers, where by the organization saves its vital human resource and earns more profit.”
Craig Chaplin, a Regional Manager wrote, “Effective training creates an alignment of process, vision and mission for a team. When alignment and clarity exists within a group of people, THEN your “A,B,C,D” happens.”
The Results!
In FOURTH place: Increases company’s PROFIT. 8 people or 6% said that profit was the biggest benefit of effective training to a company. I must admit that I was a little surprised at how low this was, but as most people said, profit would come because of the other choices.
John Prpich, Owner/Employee at Talent Blueprint LLC wrote, “Most organizations are operations driven and clearly one key goal for every organization is to drive revenue and profit. The choices A-C are positive bi-products of training; the real reason is clearly profit.”
In THIRD place: Reduces Employee Turnover. 10 people or 7% said that reducing employee turnover was the biggest benefit to a company. The general consensus was that effective training would keep folks around, make them happy, increase their productivity and therefore make the company more profit.
In SECOND place: Happier and more satisfied employees. 51 people or 37% felt that effective training resulted in Happier Employees. 37% put an emphasis on “Happy”! Imagine that! We want our employees to be happy!
Pawan Agrawal, a Private Banker wrote, “Well, I feel, the first one, Effective Training, results in happier… should be the key for any organization. All others will follow—happier employee means reduced employee turnover that will result in more focus on corporate goals which will lead to more productivity and in turn more profits for the organization.”
Carlyle Smith, a Multi-Unit Luxury Retail Management Professional wrote, “I would say A. because happier and more satisfied employees usually results in achieving the other stated goals. Most people want the tools to be successful at their current job and to acquire skills for the job that follows.”
Lawrence R. Huerta, a Retail Professional followed up with, “It is like the domino effect. Once your staff is happy they have confidence in what they need to do and or sell, creating better productivity and increasing both the company, and their profits, thus no need to look elsewhere for employment, keeping a good team in place.”
In FIRST place and the winner is, with 70 votes for 50%, Effective Training promotes Greater Productivity!
To recap a number of comments I received, employees want to be productive! When they are properly trained they know what to do and how to do it. They do not get bored or frustrated. They feel valued, a part of the system. They work harder. Imagine that! They work harder and are happy doing so!
Anu Wakhlu, Leadership Facilitator and Executive Coach wrote, “I believe the biggest benefit of training is ensuring higher productivity and thereby more satisfied and happy employees. This results in the other two automatically. The reason we invest in L&D / Training is primarily to ensure that people have the requisite capabilities for their current and future jobs / roles. When people feel that they are capable and can do their jobs effectively, the motivation, productivity automatically increases. People intrinsically want to contribute to their organizations.”
Outstanding Anu!
No matter which of the four you chose as the biggest benefit it is clear that we are all in agreement that they actually go hand in hand. Effective employee training is essential, at all levels for a company to succeed. Too many companies are neglecting to see the benefits. Too many employees are settling for less than they deserve, to be trained!
I received two more great comments that really sum things up.
The first is from Ian Bartholomew, a Retail Operations Manager who wrote: “I would add that the missing link for most companies is communication—happy employees that don’t talk to each other or share knowledge are only happy. I also believe that training can be at its most effective when the outcome is that the attendee comes away with a greater belief that their role actively contributes to the company’s objectives— i.e.: that they really matter.”
Marie-Louise Jacobsen, Managing Director at RMS-Retail Management Solutions Pte Ltd followed with “In addition to effective training, Employers need to have a clear corporate Vision and Mission; one that makes their staff feel appreciated, one that instills work-pride, one that gives each staff member a sense of responsibility towards the growth and success of the company. People need jobs but will excel in one that makes them feel good and valued hence the building block of company loyalty. So effective training needs to be looked at on all levels of the organization starting from the top.”
