Make 2023 the year of do or die for learning and development

We could join a chorus of training companies that predict just what will shift and change over the coming months...like the unstoppable rise of e-learning, the shift to focusing on soft skills, or the efforts to enhance digital skills. But that would be ignoring the single most pressing issue. Namely that, globally, millions of pounds are wasted on ineffective employee training and development. The result? Woeful retention rates and disengaged employees. Not to mention top talent poached by the competition.

That’s why, at Total Excellence Centre, we believe the right learning and development strategy will prove central to your success in 2019.

Workforces have never been hungrier for learning and development.

But where should your efforts be focused? Whilst employee turnover at the upper levels of business naturally costs more, there are many advantages to investing in entry-level workers. These include boosted productivity, driving down staff retention rates and attracting the right calibre of employees. What’s more, loyalty among entry-level workers contrasts starkly to graduates – 56% of whom don’t expect to stay in any one job for longer than two years.

In short, this means there is equal merit in developing both leaders and entry-level workers.

A leadership crisis is on the horizon

84% of businesses anticipate a shortfall of leaders in the coming five years.

The up-and-coming worker generations are already here. Ambitious Millennials are now 35 years of age at the top end of this demographic and routinely plan to stay with any one company for just three years.

In other research, 95% of high achievers have been found to be regularly updating CV’s and actively seeking out that next rung on the career ladder.

To retain your talent today (those who’ll navigate tomorrow’s successes), and drive business performance from the ground-up with entry-level workers, you need to invest in them.

But are you falling into one (or more) fatal traps with your development planning?

1. You only focus on today In a frantically fast-paced trading landscape, your company seems to be continually reorganising to adapt to change. Development planning therefore tends to focus on the needs of today, rather than planning for the future. The outcome is an endless cycle of being caught on the back foot.

2. There’s a disconnect between assessments and meaningful plans

How do your leaders feel about employee assessments? Research shows that more than 50% of UK employees see appraisals as pointless, so it follows that these, more often than not, never develop into meaningful, practical action plans.

3. There’s simply no time

Employee learning and development, when done right, is capable of building loyalty, retaining employees and ensuring that workforces are engaged. Which, is worth making regular time for.

Looking for support with learning and development?

Contact us today on 0161 274 9292.