Skills & Training
Significant returns can be derived when training is well-designed, expertly delivered, when the transfer and acquisition of skills and knowledge is facilitated and when organisations employ the new skills and knowledge productively.
Direct costs
Indirect costs
Benefits arising from training
Organisations finance training because they expect benefits to flow from it. Some of these
benefits may be difficult to quantify, while others will be relatively easy. The following is a list
of the benefits for which data were collected in the process of evaluating the case study
organisations. All of these were expressed as dollar values:
Enterprise return on a training investment
Since recruiting, separation and replacement are costly processes, organisations strive to minimise staff turnover.
Benefits of training
Companies that have a healthy training culture report the following benefits:
Perhaps the most important benefit of a healthy training culture is that the skills of your staff are formally recognized and that your employees feel their contribution to the company is valued.
Benefits of investing in staff training
Developing a training culture
An organisational training culture starts with the owner or manager – you. A management team that is knowledgeable about training issues will send the message that your company cares about the professional development of staff, and that training is part of ‘the way we do things around here’.
Having a ‘training champion’ in senior management is paramount to successful implementation of your training initiatives. To champion the development of a training culture, you must first know a little about the benefits of training, and how you can access the training system. This knowledge will enable you to make informed decisions, and will provide support to those members of staff who will be charged with implementing the system.
A training culture is not something that develops overnight; it needs to be fostered and encouraged. Although building a training culture can be hard work, companies that have successfully developed a culture of training are perceived as quality organisations.
Close collaboration and open communication between management and staff on training issues results in improved working relationships and, in most cases, greater productivity.
Acknowledgement and promotion of the training achievements of trainers and participants, both in-house and to clients and suppliers, will also assist in making training a valued component of your company’s operations.