Training and Development Boosting Employee Morale

Think of your company as a car. The employees are the engines that keep your car running. Just like any car, the engines need maintenance and constantly fine-tuning. A vibrant training program gives that sought-after maintenance. Without it, the engines might start giving troubles and eventually stop working.

This pandemic has fast-tracked the evolution of workplaces globally.

As the economy has bounced back, most employers watch out for the top talent. But the diamond lies in their own companies. By training their existing employees, employers have the opportunity to grow as a company by growing new skills from within.

Organizations are forced to retool their strategies to accommodate the changing needs of their employees, especially in the learning and development area.

Companies have realized that their employees will have to be enabled with critical skills to thrive in this new hybrid workplace since physical proximity seems like a distant dream.

With work from home mental fatigue taking over employees of most companies, it is important to show your employees that you care for their well-being and growth in the organization. According to LinkedIn, 94 percent of employees would stay with a company longer if there is an investment in training and development.

Hybrid workplace as the new normal

In the hybrid form of work, rules have changed ineffaceably over time while employee development and training have taken on a distinguished role. With the playing field changing dynamically, training initiatives now require a more proactive approach than a reactive one.

Digital transformations across all companies are already happening. This has also helped in identifying skill gaps and reiterated the importance of employee experience. Training the employees will help companies overcome internal and external obstacles towards development as they move forward.

Need of training evolving

With millennials and Gen Z replacing the existing workforce, they highly value learning and growth opportunities as they see them as critical perks. Thus, employee training has become an essential part of the development of the organization as it eventually turns into a primary contributor to engagement and retention.

Let’s look at how the lockdown in 2020 has impacted companies. Most companies required siloed teams to be interdependent and work together. Due to the lockdown, continuous learning and training became a prerequisite for most companies in order to cope with the change in the workplace.

Kind of training program matters

A flexible learning program is the need of the hour where employees of all levels of hierarchy can benefit. When it comes to modality, high-quality virtual learning takes the front seat.

There are two types of learning a good training program can offer but it acts as a double-edged sword. On one side of the spectrum, it is an academic program- straightforward and mundane; On the other side of the spectrum, it is human learning- fun, exciting but ineffective when learnings are not put into action.

What is the new approach to training?

Now that workplace 2.0 or hybrid workplace is in full effect, the learning and development programs in your organization should map the skill requirements needed to adapt to a hybrid future. There is an ocean of opportunities to transform your talent pool.

Upgrading learning tools

Digital learning strategies are the way to go. The hybrid work model has replaced the traditional workplace models across almost all sectors. From a recent survey conducted by us, 40% of the respondents said they are not using digital learning experience platforms. Also, 65% of the respondents said that their investment in training digitally is less than 25% of their overall learning and development budgets.

It is important to audit your learning tools. Now the time has come to ask ‘how’ to train your employees rather than ‘what’ is being learned because the what part can always be customized. The hybrid work culture offers new ways to improve employee learning experiences.

Skills and competencies for the future

The pandemic has shifted the priority of organizations from productivity to skill development among the employees. To continue progressing without any productivity loss, the workforce requires tech, emotional and social skills to sustain through the hybrid workplace and other changes that may come.

Developing skills to overcoming unfamiliar situations and quickly adapt to changes is the key requirement in any training program right now. Employees who freelance/work from remote in the hybrid workplace need mentors and coaches who would guide and motivate them to perform better.

With the right coach/trainer, employees maneuver their path in the hybrid workplace, close performance gaps, and achieve organizational goals.

Link between Learning and Engagement

Training employees with location agnostic approach for a hybrid work culture is just the tip of the iceberg.

Firstly, the workforce has to understand the organization’s vision and identify what their learning needs are. This can be done using data since the ability to exhibit soft skills is limited over a virtual environment.

Personality factor assessments, behavioral tests and other psychometric tests will give you a clear idea as to where training and development are needed.

Flexibility and Trust Go Hand-in-Hand

Though hybrid work culture has raised plenty of challenges, it has also given rise to a new level of trust and flexibility which should be tapped by employers. Employees have more control over their work schedule and thereby showing increased productivity.

This level of trust has to be nurtured by employers by identifying their training needs and helping them reach their maximum potential.

Not only will this avoid employee burnout, it’ll also increase employee engagement, happiness, and productivity.