Want to really develop your employees and ensure they become long-term valuable assets able to lead your business? Building a layered Learning and Development (L&D) program can be a great way to do this. L&D programs in some organisations are focused on ‘high potential’ employees, but should really be implemented across the employee base, dependent on the development needs of staff. Some companies utilise L&D as a means to recognise staff performance and also motivate them to further develop themselves.

So what is employee development exactly? Aquent categorise Learning & Development as a joint initiative and agreement between an employee and an employer. This covers both personal and professional development. Essentially, it’s the responsibility of the organisation to ensure that its employees have the skills and knowledge to meet the strategic and operational objectives of the company. AHRI cites that the main objectives of learning and development are:

• To help your business gain a competitive edge through improved business performance, productivity and efficiency
• Improvement in employees’ skills and knowledge for their current job role
• Increasing employees’ generic skills – i.e. employability skills or key competencies (e.g. team work, problem solving, communication)
• Compliance with legal requirements
• Organisational development – i.e. the fostering of shared attitudes and values, change management, etc.
• Talent management and succession planning
• Employee career development
• Employee motivation

David Hassell, author of ‘5 Ways To Improve Employee Development At Your Company’, recommends approaching L&D through 5 different ways, depending on the requirements of your business:

• Professional training
• Coaching and mentoring
• Cross-departmental training
• Development of ‘soft skills’
• Personal development

Many employees are promoted to people leaders without the requisite skills required to effectively manage a team. For this reason, ‘Train the trainer’ courses can be particularly effective when you are building your team.

If your business requires support to grow your employee development strategies, speak to the HR Consulting team at Flexi Personnel.