By Chris Adam

It’s Monday morning and you inform your employees that it’s time for their weekly training meeting. Instantly, their faces change color and you can almost hear their nagging. Indeed, training is not anyone’s favorite, not even for the owner, as it can be quite expensive, particularly for small business.

On the other hand, small businesses that systematically train their new employees seem to yield higher revenues and often feature excellent goal completion compared to businesses that do not pay much attention to employee training. Also, how you communicate the need for training to your employees is important. If it’s positioned as helping them develop skills that will enable them to achieve greater career success, like the personal development training described on the Hansen beck homepage, it will go a long way toward improving their viewpoint of the value of the training you’re offering them.

What we have to remember is that training is a continuing process. It resembles normal everyday activities, like eating and drinking. You cannot drink seven gallons of water in one day and then abstain from water for a whole month! Correct training demands constant attention throughout your business’s course, thus laying the foundation of its constant development.

We know you wish the best for your company. Therefore, consider these tips regarding training employees. 

Make the most of web training courses

Web training courses can facilitate this process. Of course, you will still be responsible for illuminating your staff regarding present and future goals and practices, but you can also use web programs to instruct them in several fundamental elements of your business’s operation.

For instance, even if you already have an IT department in your business, other staff members should be instructed in IT basics and update in order to be able to handle on their own minor technical problems. Several companies, as CBT Nuggets for example, offer brief and concise IT webinars without particular expenses.

Make skilled employees your trainers

As a small businesses, you do not have to train great numbers of employees. Of course, as your business grows, the need for skilled and well-trained employees becomes greater, and you are struggling to find some extra time to tend to it.

But, there is no reason for stress and anxiety. Instead of trying to be there yourself or to hire a professional trainer, you can always use skilled employees as trainers of the newcomers. Just ponder on whom can you use and for which training session, and I’ m sure you will find plenty of talent and valued experience that can be transmitted to the rest of your staff.

For instance, find an experienced employee with excellent communication skills and appoint him as the trainer for that skill, organizing a monthly seminar on that particular subject.

You could also offer some incentives (bonuses, for example, or some extra time off) for every training session. Thus, probably more of your experienced employees will be interested in serving as trainers.

Set assessable goals

Every single aspect of your business needs a good and feasible plan, from your scheduled weekly meetings to your interviews with your customers. This fact, subsequently means that certain training goals are required, and every successful businessperson understands that there is no point in having goals unless you create a means of assessing and measuring their progress.

Set aside some time to discuss with your staff and clarify the goals you wish to accomplish. Next, figure out a way to assess and measure them.

For example, you could use monthly reviews to spot any faults in training. Such assessments will let you know whether you have succeeded or not, and which sectors need more attention and effort.

Exploit the generation gap

All staffs, even small ones, suffer from a generational gap. You are probably no exception to that: you could have some younger employees who like messing with their smartphones during breaks and taking selfies. Beside them older employees probably prefer reading the news while sipping their coffee.

A multi-generational staff can give you different insights and ideas because of their different perception of things. In the meantime, you may also discover some gaps in their training.

It is vital to acknowledge that some members of your staff learn in a different way than others. Probably, some individual training sessions will help them close that gap.

Urge your employees to accept training

The best possible employee for any company is the one that does not need special motivation to learn something new and loves training. But that is a rare “type,” don’t you think? A small percentage of workers love new knowledge.

Indeed, most employees don’t find anything appealing to training and can turn your training sessions into a living nightmare. So, if you want your trainings to meet their goals, start by encouraging employees to see training in a more positive light.

A good way to accomplish that is to identify your employee’s interests. Then, incorporate them into your trainings. That will grab their attention and help them remember and use the knowledge you bequeath them.

Organize seminars

All fields organize regular training seminars in to keep businesses updated on recent developments. If your staff is small, you could consider taking all your employees one by one to at least one of these seminars each year.

If you manage a larger company, you could send a small number of valued and trustworthy employees as representatives and then have them present what they learned to the rest of your staff in special meetings. It usually costs, but it also pays.

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Chris Adam is a content writer at Global Serve Consultants, a leading organization specializing in international tax advice and planning, management and company formation in Cyprus and other international countries.