Last Updated on March 23, 2024 by Owen McGab Enaohwo
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Employees are a company’s greatest asset. To invest in your employees is equal to investing in your company. The growth of the employee means growth in your company. Training should not stop with the onboarding process.
Many companies are not placing enough focus on employee training and development and it will cost them in the long run.
Picture this: Two companies operate in the same location. They were set up almost at the same time. Both of them produce bags and for a couple of years, they’re both on the same financial level. Fast forward a few years and company A has way more customers than company B. What did company A do differently?
While company B was comfortable with its current state, company A was always looking for ways to improve and train its employees to be more productive and meet the changing demands of customers.
This article covers what you should know about employee training and development and why it is so important. There’s also a free downloadable checklist to guide you through preparing an effective employee training and development plan.
Chapter 1: What is Employee Training and Development?
Employee training and development is a program designed to help employees learn a particular skill. It equips them with the right knowledge to improve productivity and performance in their current jobs.
Training keeps you up to date with the latest developments in your fields as you stay ahead of the competition. There is higher employee motivation, improved productivity, speed, and competency for business.
Underskilled employees cost companies yearly. Employee training and development is used to increase the employee’s efficiency, productivity, and performance.
There is always room for improvement in an organization. Leaders should be proactive in training their employees and not reactive (not training them when there is an emergency). Having this habit has many benefits to the organization as a whole.
Differences Between Training and Development
Employee training is a short-term activity that focuses on the employee’s specific role. The immediate needs and requirements of the job are what training focuses on. It provides the needed skills to an employee for some specific task.
Employee training and development has become a single term that is used when referring to employee training or employee development. However, there exist some differences between the two terms “training” and “development.”
Again, employee development is a long-term activity that focuses on the development of the individual. Here, the employees learn and develop new skills that align with the goals and vision of the company. Unlike training, development is not limited to a single task, but the whole being of the individual. It teaches how they can be groomed for newer possibilities and how they can grow as a person. As a result, it equips them with the right attitude and skills to face future challenges.
Employee training is set to make an employee better at what they do. It helps them solve current problems they’re facing and develop the needed skills to solve them. While training delivers information people use in their jobs like competencies, knowledge, and needed abilities, development deals with experiences that make people better. It is a tool for increasing organizational productivity, excellence, and health.
Development training areas include professional growth, leadership, communication, and decision-making skills. Training areas could also be how to use software, or how to fix a fault in the tech department.
Training involves learning new skills and development is about building on existing skills.
How Employee Training and Development Affects Employee Performance
Employee training is greatly beneficial for the individual. Not only does it give them room to develop in their careers, but it also makes them feel valued and satisfied in the company. Let us see how employee training and development directly affects the employee.
Training for new opportunities
Employee training and development programs prepare the employee for newer and bigger opportunities. These opportunities can be within or outside their present workplace. The idea mainly is to equip employees with the abilities needed to take on new roles in the company. Rather than look elsewhere for someone to fill in a role, you have qualified hands waiting to take it on.
Learning about industry and technology updates
With the constant change in technology happening rapidly, the employee is not left behind or taken unawares by a sudden change in the market. Employee training and development plans are usually up to date on current market trends, and so the employee is kept abreast of these trends making them more useful to the company.
Adapting to remote work
With a culture of learning already instilled using the employee training and development program, it would be easy for an employee to adjust to remote work. Already, they will be familiar with most of the learning tools. Not only that, but getting acquainted with unfamiliar tools won’t be a hassle either. There will be less hold on work activities as a result.
Developing soft skills
Soft skills are necessary skills every employee should possess. These are interpersonal and non-specialized skills like leadership skills, communication skills, and decision-making skills. Employee development training takes care of this. It makes the employee better able to handle unique situations.
Boost employee productivity
Properly and regularly trained employees perform better than stagnant employees. Their productivity is improved and you’ll see a high return on investment. They’ll also be more productive and efficient at whatever tasks they get because they possess the necessary skills needed for the task.
Chapter 2: Benefits of Employee Training and Development
Having a good employee training and development plan installed in your organization is extremely beneficial. You’ll learn shortly that the benefits are worth the time you went through to set it up. Styles change every year, and so do demands on your business. Your product may evolve, your customers may evolve, and your business goals may evolve. Hence, there’s always a need for continuous learning, and a training and development plan takes care of this. Other reasons why you need this are discussed below.
Increased business impact
Employees are better suited to perform tasks if they are trained with a successful employee development plan. This will in turn positively affect your business and lead to greater income for the organization. There will also be sustainable growth in the work environment. Furthermore, employees comply with work standards, making activities run seamlessly.
Saves time and cost
When you have employees who know how to execute tasks with as little error as possible, it saves the company costs that would have been spent on fixing errors. Time is also saved on the supervision of employees seeing that they are capable of handling their jobs. Skilled employees use their time effectively and efficiently after they have been trained and developed. You also won’t have to hire someone to fix errors, or expand a team into more people because of weak employees.
Employee retention
Employees will stick with a company they know is interested and willing to invest in their growth. Studies show that employees like to feel valued. Ninety-three percent of millennials left their company because they believed they had little to no opportunity for growth. They will be loyal to you and your company. Chances of them being swayed by a competitor are reduced too. Losing employees costs you more because recruiting and onboarding talent takes time and money. With training and development, there will be less absenteeism in the workplace because employees truly feel like they are accepted in your company. Better still, they’ll work hard to meet your goals and objectives.
Train future leaders
Training and development programs prepare your employees for better roles and skills they’ll need to handle difficult situations. Instead of employing qualified talents to suit a higher role, your available workers can carry on such tasks because you’ve prepared them for it and provided them with an environment to help them grow.
Increased workplace engagement
Employees feel more involved with workplace activities as they undergo training. Training breaks off the monotonous work cycle and gives way to more bustle and enthusiasm. Encouraging new thinking with a solid development program also improves employee engagement.
Weaknesses get recognized
Employee training and development requires an assessment of the skills of employees. This assessment reveals areas an employee needs improvement and fixes it. Also, training needs analysis, and gives employers a clear picture of their employees’ current skill level and identifies their strong points and areas for improvement. In the end, you have a formidable workforce.
Employee empowerment
A good employee training and development plan gives your employees the confidence they need to carry out their duties. Because they’ve been empowered with the right training, they feel confident about handling roles.
Better company reputation
Having an employee training and development program makes your company more appealing to future candidates. When you do want to hire new talent, you have an edge over other companies. This is because these days, employees look out for companies that can help them grow in their careers. Fifty-nine percent of millennials say opportunities to learn and grow are important to them when applying for a job.
Boosts workplace camaraderie
Different employee training and development program methods exist that require employees to solve problems together, share experiences, and teach some skills to their colleagues. This creates room for employees to bond with each other through collaboration.
Reduced micromanagement
More efficient employees require less supervision and detailed instructions. This frees up time for management to focus on more productive activities. Management is confident in the abilities of employees because of the training processes they’ve had.
What Happens When You Don’t Implement an Employee Training and Development Plan?
To not invest in an employee training and development program is a continued risk you don’t want to take. A few downsides to not implementing this strategy are listed and discussed below.
Increase in employee turnover
Employee turnover is the loss of talent in your workforce. Employees can begin to feel bored, stuck in a cycle, not valued, and leave your company. This will cost your company time and money. As a result, it is more beneficial and cost-effective to develop existing employees instead of seeking out new talents. An employee training and development plan will reduce the rate of turnover.
Static growth culture
Without an existing training and development plan, a company will have a stagnant growth culture. There will be no motivation for employees to be innovative and put in their best work.
Existence of obsolete practices
A training and development plan comes with regular updates as regards to the times and needs of the organization. Not having regular training to update your employees will be detrimental to the organization’s health. Such a company will be far behind in the times and lose customers.
Overworked staff
Employee training and development plans see processes that are ineffective and remove or update them. But when there is no such thing in existence, employees keep doing the same thing using stressful methods. They end up overworked and become unproductive.
Chapter 3: Employee Training and Development Methods
Various employee training and development methods exist that an organization can make use of. Some of them work more effectively when they are mixed with others. There isn’t a method that is recommended as a one-fits-all. Depending on your organization’s needs at the moment, one method can be better suited than the other. Here are some of the popular training and development methods.
Gamification
Gamification is a visually stimulating environment that creates near-real problem scenarios with a solution approach. It allows students to become more active learners by inserting themselves into different scenarios. It creates a game-like scenario around the objective of the course. In addition, it increases employee engagement and provides instant feedback. It is costly to develop.
E-learning
This is an online training database that can be accessed any number of times without a physical trainer and without necessarily leaving the comfort of their homes. Employees learn from educators and interact with other learners. It saves time and energy. Better retention for the employee, personalized learning and cost-effectiveness are some advantages. There is a lack of social interaction in the method.
Feedback-oriented training
Any strategy introduced for the employee will be assessed by asking questions. This approach ensures that what worked in the past will be used still and what has not worked will be eliminated.
Traditional training
An expert in a particular field is employed to train your employees for a period of time. The interactive nature of a trainer’s presence makes learning more effective. Mixing human learning and AI has proven to be effective over time.
Sharing employee success stories
Employees can learn from one another in the workplace. This approach to training sees that those who have a better experience and more knowledge about a task pass their knowledge on to those who want to learn. Appreciate and reward the right behavior in the work environment to truly benefit from this approach. Including this approach to others, like the collaborative peer training approach, makes training more effective.
Collaborative peer training
In this training and development method, employees help one another throughout the learning journey. Employees create learning content for their fellow team members. They share knowledge with each other.
Learning as a service
This method of learning streamlines and automates a large amount of repetitive work. It combines information and makes it easier to access. It is cost-effective.
Roleplaying
Role-playing is an active learning technique in which employees act out situations under the guidance of a trainer. They take on a role and act out the scene as though it were real. It helps to prepare for life situations. However, this method may make some employees uncomfortable. Others may not take their roles seriously.
Hands-on training
This is also known as learning by doing. It is a training method that directly involves the learner by actively encouraging them to do something about a challenge they’re currently facing.
Mentoring
Mentoring happens when a new employee is given to a much-experienced employee to learn from. They study and observe how the experienced employee performs a task and asks questions. This method increases collaboration among workers.
Job shadowing
This is the process whereby an employee gains a certain experience from another employee. This experience helps with the development of the career of an individual.
Job enlargement
It involves adding more activities within the same level to an existing role. It broadens the scope of one’s job and reduces monotony. It also creates a wide range of activities and teaches a variety of skills. This method may lead to lower efficiency, lower quality, and an increase in training level costs.
Stretch assignments
Stretch assignments are tasks given to an employee that is beyond one’s level of knowledge or skill. It is done to develop them by challenging them to learn and grow. It inspires engagement and critical thinking. This method could lead to self-doubt and anxiety.
Job rotation
This is when employees rotate jobs at the same business for a period of time before going back to their original jobs. They gain experience and skills by taking on new responsibilities. It eliminates boredom and encourages development. Additionally, it is a way to discover where employees work best. This method can be costly and time-consuming. Workers might feel that a colleague might mess up their work.
Succession planning
Succession planning involves making plans to replace an organization’s current leadership. It is a form of risk management in which management prevents loss of productivity by developing plans to continue operating as normal if key members of the organization can no longer fulfill their roles. Succession planning might be a waste of time if what is feared to happen doesn’t happen. It is still a good way to prepare for the worst.
Microlearning
Microlearning provides employees with some amount of information centering on a specific task. It improves knowledge retention and is good for mobile learning. It fills the performance gap and is cost-effective. This training method is not suitable for complex tasks. It may not help with long-term performance goals.
Orientation
This is training done for new employees. It covers matters such as workplace safety, policies, and promotion. It helps newly hired employees become familiar with an organization.
How Employee Development Changed Over COVID-19
There has been a noticeable decrease in employee engagement since the pandemic. Employees are resigning because they don’t feel valued, connected to their workers, bored or burned out. The pandemic has made the need for training more important as employees are adjusting to working remotely.
The form and method of employee training have also been affected since COVID-19. It has become necessary to move training from a physical training space and face-to-face contact to the internet environment.
The priorities and competencies of organizations have also changed as well. There has been an increased need for employees to acquire new skills.
The video format is the best available alternative to face-to-face meetings. This new development will last longer and be a part of our lives. Employees who have not been used to such tools will need help getting acquainted with them.
As your organization implements its development processes, it should be done effectively to gain competitive advantages.
Tips to Overcome the Challenges of Remote Training
Remote training has its challenges that could undermine your employees’ efforts. The lack of face-to-face supervision can make employees not focus on the training. They can get easily distracted and lose motivation when answers to their questions are not readily available. Here’s a few points to help you with remote training.
Set reasonable goals and objectives.
Establish meaningful two-way interactions.
Employ training methods that suit the purpose of training.
Find the right training software.
Use single sign-on technology to track the usage of the system you’ve employed.
Engage with trainees to keep them focused via messaging forums.
Ask for feedback to get insights to their progress and performance.
Chapter 4: Skills Learned in Employee Training and Development
There are numerous areas where training can be given to employees. Some of these areas are listed below.
This video explains the types of training and development:
Technical skills
This is the training of employees on the use of technology or tools in a company. If a position requires the use of software, technical training covers it.
Leadership skills
This focuses on the interpersonal abilities of the individual. They’re trained on skills that directly influence leading others. It also builds on foundational skills, communication skills, project management, and crisis management.
Management skills
This involves all the training that is put in place to make management better at what they do. It provides management with the knowledge and skills they need to be more effective managers and developers of talent.
Executive development
This training provides senior leaders and executives with the knowledge and skills they need to improve their roles.
Compliance
It involves any kind of training every employee must undergo—that is, everything your employees must know to ensure the company runs efficiently. Such knowledge includes guidance to the rules, regulations, safety, policies and procedures in day-to-day work.
Team development
This training helps your employees work better together. It improves cohesion between teammates.
Products or services
This is training done for the products or services you offer. The training touches on the selling points of your products or services. It teaches the features of each product or service.
Soft skills
Soft skills refer to skills that are taught to employers to develop the character of the person. It involves communication skills, crisis management, emotional intelligence, and leadership skills.
Safety
This is a necessary training that is given to all employees on the safety procedures of the company. It is to make sure that accidents are avoided and employees know what to do in an emergency situation.
Sales training
It is similar to product or service training. It focuses on how employees can effectively advocate for your products or services and answer customer questions. It equips employees with the knowledge they need to market and sell your products or services.
Barriers to Employee Training and Development
Thinking of implementing a training and development program in your organization can be met with some barriers when you do start to implement this plan. A number of factors are responsible for the lack of effectiveness of your employee training and development plans. A few of these barriers to employee training and development have been listed below.
Lack of robust training department
Establishing a training and development culture in your organization needs the help of an established committee. It is not a one-man job. If this committee is not capable of seeing through the implementation of the training plan it will soon be left unattended because of the frustration that will come with it. As a result, before you venture into a training and development phase, you need to set up a team to handle this aspect of your organization. This committee will ensure proper planning of the training and development process and ensure that each step is fully implemented.
Lack of management support
Having the support of the right people as you embark on an employee training and development program is very crucial for the support of this venture. Before you go into this, make sure you have the full support of management so they can back you up along the way.
Resistance to training
Employees might resist the change you’re trying to bring into the workplace and this will make the training process ineffective. For one reason or the other, employees might not be willing to change the way they have been doing things from the beginning, and this can be a headache. A good way to avoid this is to have a talk with the employees before you begin your training program. Let them know the reason why it is necessary to have it.
Budget constraints
An employee training and development program can be quite expensive. Seeing a need to make this program a part of your organization is a good one, but some organizations do not have the required funding to fully set up this program. And because of this, they give up the whole idea of having an employee training and development program. However, there are some funds available for companies that wish to train their employees.
Ambiguous company policies
Your company goals need to be clear for you to set up an effective employee training and development program. When your policies, goals, and objectives are not clear it affects the planning process of your training and development plan. Your goals won’t align with your training plan and this makes the whole process ineffective.
Quantifying training effectiveness
As an organization implements a training and development program, not measuring how effective it has been will be a huge hindrance for reasonable progress to occur. As you implement your training plan there has to be a means to track that whatever changes you’re making is meaningful and effective. When this is not properly done, it is very easy to fall back to the old way of doing things.
Delivering consistent training
Training has to be continuous for one to see the benefits and reap the rewards. When training starts and is not seen through to the end, it can lead to a lack of motivation since results may not be immediate. What your training plan needs is consistency in its implementation. Only through continuous implementation of your strategies will you see the benefits of having a training and development plan.
Discrimination
Discrimination in the workplace can be a barrier to employee training and development. An employee training and development plan is supposed to be encompassing for all employees. Hence, no one should feel left out, as a weak link in the chain can ruin your whole preparation. You should not make an employee feel like they’re not important as you initiate your training and development plan.
Chapter 5: How to Create an Effective Employee Training and Development Program
A training plan should include everything new employees need to know to be effective. What they’re to know should be placed in the order they’re to learn them. A training program comes with measurable goals. Keep this in mind while creating the program.
Identify your company’s goals
Your training and development plan should be in line with your company goals. Identify these goals then look at areas you need your employees’ skills to align with them.
Do a gap analysis
A gap analysis shows where your employees currently are and where they are supposed to be. That is, it shows the skills they lack in contrast to the ones they are required to have. Review your employees to better understand where you stand and how much needs to be covered.
Identify competencies
Competences are your company’s unique abilities, products and services that give it a competitive advantage in your industry. Find out what these are and build on them.
Set the program’s goal
What do you hope to achieve at the end of your training? Set clear targets to evaluate how effective a course has been.
Interview employees
Ask your employees questions to gain insight into their minds. It’ll let you know what problems they face and how to address them properly. You’ll also learn the areas they wish to grow.
Offer formal training
Bring in a coach to execute your training. Even if you are opting for an online course, having a human expert adds more insight into the learning process.
Select the right training methods
Choose the method you will be using for your training. The right training methods will affect how your employees learn. Not all methods will be suitable for some specific tasks. Know the advantages and disadvantages of each method before making up your mind.
Allow self-directed learning
Employees should be able to learn at their own pace. Grant them access to books on skills they should have.
Measure the results
Frequently assess the outcome of training sessions. If a step is not giving the desired results, adjust it. If a method is discovered to be difficult for an employee, then you change it.
Stages of the Training Process
Watch this video for more insight:
The stages of your training process include the following:
Training needs analysis
First, identify the needs for training. There are three major needs analysis.
Organizational analysis: Identify the organization’s strategy that needs to be changed and what the goals are.
Task analysis: Identify activities that need to be done to achieve the goals. Analyze the tasks for which training has to be given.
Individual analysis: What skills are required to perform the task? Analyze the skills required of an individual to complete that task.
Setting learning goals
After identifying learning needs, set your goals. Determine training goals and objectives. Make goals specific to effective performance. Goals should be measurable.
Designing
Here you design your training. Pick your trainees, trainers, and location. Select the employees in need of a particular skill training. Your trainers should be experts in their fields and have a good record going for them. Training can be done right there in the office if you have the space for it. A conference room can be booked. Depending on the training method, training may not be physical. What methods will you use for your training and development program? Every company has its unique needs. Carefully consider a method to see if it suits your company. You may also have to mix two or more methods for training to be more effective.
Implementation
After you’ve designed your training plan, implement it. Train your employees and monitor them. Ensure the outline for your plan is followed.
Give continuous support
Ask employees questions during the training process to know how to help if they are having challenges with learning. Document training opportunities as you observe them. Don’t leave them alone after introducing your training method. Stick with them throughout the training process. They should know that you truly have their growth in mind. This will boost their morale to learn.
Evaluation
A successful training and development plan has a form of evaluation. You should plan and revise for future training. Moreso, evaluation helps in determining the effectiveness of current training. Carry out evaluation with these steps:
Measure performance results.
Give pre- and post-training assessments.
Study data, conduct polls and tests.
What Makes an Effective Employee Training Program?
Training based on customer feedback
Your customers are the ones who make use of your products or services. As a result, they are in a better position to tell you how your products or services could better serve them. Listen to them and train your employees to serve in that line. Your ultimate goal in business is to satisfy your customers.
Lessons from experts
Employees get more out of training if you bring in an expert. They know how to really impart your employees and make learning more engaging.
Meaningful learning opportunities
Ask employees what areas they’d like to grow. Don’t just assign roles to them without knowing if they want it or not. It could breed resentment if one is not ready for a bigger responsibility.
Use of appropriate technology
The market is full of exciting technologies that come with different features. Go for those that are simple and easy to use. Get those having the necessary features you need for your tasks.
Your plans should be thorough
Plan your training carefully. Include your budget, goals, and methods. Create an organized training plan.
Make regular analyses
Analyze the impact of your program. See if things are becoming better with your training. Ask employees questions to find out if training has been meaningful. Carry out surveys.
Adaptability
Be flexible. If employees don’t connect with the program you provide, adjust it. Be willing to make needed changes when necessary.
Make personalized employee development plans
Keep in mind that all employees are different. Not all may learn as they should if you use the same plan for all employees. Try incorporating different training methods that complement the other. Your employees will be comfortable with one or the other.
Chapter 6: Tools for Employee Training
To help train your employees there are necessary tools you should have. These tools make training and learning easy and help you monitor and track progress. Some common tools are listed below.
Project Management Tools
Project management tools are tools that project managers need to help a team or an individual in getting their work organized. They have features like planning or scheduling, collaboration, documentation and evaluation. Some project management tools are:
SweetProcess is an effective and efficient software that helps you manage your project and team members. It has documentation features, task assigning and tracking features, and it lets you collaborate with teams in real time. It gives you the organization and ease you need to run your projects. The price starts at $99/month for up to 20 users. You can also sign up for a free trial without a credit card.
To use SweetProcess:
Create an account.
On the landing page, you’ll see the home icon; click on it and you’ll see the drop down options where you can create your processes, procedures and teams.
Invite your team members by sending them a message.
This is an all-in-one, easy-to-use project management tool option for functional project managers and people who are new to project management. Kissflow offers a three-tier pricing system. The starter plan costs $7 for one user per month and allows three projects. The pro plan costs $12 for one user per month and allows 5 projects. The enterprise plan involves custom, negotiable pricing.
To use Kissflow:
Sign up on Kissflow to create an account
You’ll be required to answer questions so they better understand your needs.
Select the app for you to get started on. Kissflow offers various apps or business processes, like onboarding, to help you with projects.
Trello is a project management software with built-in collaboration tools to work with your teams. Users can collaborate within the cards, share files, and leave comments. It is best for managing small projects. Trello has a basic plan that is free to use with limited features. There are paid plans that add automation, integrations, priority support, and more.
Asana is a flexible project management tool that focuses on collaboration. There are workflows that automate recurring tasks. It has different task displays and supports custom fields and forms. Asana has a free basic plan for 15 users. Their premium plan costs $10.99/month/user. The business plan costs $24.99/user/month.
To use Asana:
Sign up at Asana using a business email address.
Inside Asana, go to the team section on the bottom left to invite your team members. Click the + button close to the name of your team. They’ll get an email from Asana asking them to create a free account. They’ll be added as team members in your account once they complete this step.
To create a project, select the team you want by clicking the + icon and select what you want to do.
Zoho Projects has features like Gantt charts and the ability to create billable hours on multiple projects simultaneously. It has communication tools and real-time chat features. Zoho Projects has a free option with limited features. The standard plan costs $3. The express plan is priced at $4. The premium plan starts from $5 and the enterprise plan is priced at $6.
To use Zoho Projects:
Sign up to create an account. Add your company name and email address.
Fill in the required answers.
Your email gets verified and you’re directed back to the site.
There are different project options for you to choose from. Click on create project to begin.
Wrike is a project management app that simplifies project planning. It has advanced features like task management, Gantt charts and a real-time newsfeed. It has a free plan for five users. The paid plans start at $9.80/user/month and the business plan is priced at $24.80/user/month.
Monday is a simple project management tool that offers users great security, robust features, and easy customization. There are project templates on top which you can build your own boards. It has a free plan for up to 2 persons and paid plans starting from $8/month which includes unlimited free viewers on the project, unlimited items, 5 GB file storage, and lots more. There are various other paid plans with more advanced features.
To use Monday:
Create your account.
Set your dashboard by selecting your desired template.
ProofHub helps you plan, organize, and keep track of your team’s tasks. That is all you need for an organized project: workflows, Gantt charts, discussions, calendars, and documents. It is simple to use. The essential plan is priced at $50 per month while the ultimate control plan costs $99 per month.
Clarizen is a project management tool meant for mid- to enterprise-sized businesses. It has reporting and tracking features. It is a web-based management tool without an app. Pricing is not publicized.
To use Clarizen:
Create your account to get started.
You’ll be directed to a landing page which has three parts. The left panel contains key actions and news items. The middle panel is where collaboration takes place, and the right panel gives a view of your current and active projects.
Browse through the left panel to create projects.
Microlearning platforms
This is a corporate learning solution that provides employees with short bursts of focused educational content that fits into daily workflows. These solutions are accessible on any device.
Knowledge base
A knowledge base is a collection of documents that includes answers to frequently asked questions, how-to guides, and troubleshooting instructions. It is designed to make it easy for people to find solutions to their problems. Below are some existing knowledge base software solutions.
LiveAgent is a software that is suitable for businesses of all kinds. It enables you to streamline all of your communication channels into one unified dashboard. It has a built-in call center, gamification features, and reporting and analysis tools.
Document360 is an easy-to-use software that lets you create a well-organized knowledge base system. The price starts at $99 per month with two team accounts and $499 per month for 10 team accounts.
Get started with these steps:
Sign up for an account.
Customize your home page.
The dashboard has documentation, drive, and settings; select one to begin working.
HubSpot is an all-in-one, easy-to-use software. It has features like a knowledge base, conversational tools, help desk, customer feedback surveys, and reporting.
To use HubSpot:
Create your account.
Invite team members.
Customize your account settings.
Create your project and import your documents.
Learning management system
This is a software application used to explain, implement, and assess a specific learning process. It provides an instructor with a way to create and deliver content, monitor participation, and assess performance. It provides learners with the ability to use interactive feedback such as threaded discussions, video conferencing, and forums.
Learning experience portal
This is a platform that tries to recreate levels of engagement and interaction. It is flexible; employees can pick and choose their courses and watch at their leisure to complete certifications. It draws in employees through targeted content, social media, support, and recommendations.
Chapter 7: Using SweetProcess as a Tool for Employee Training and Development
SweetProcess is a procedure and process documenting software that is a right fit for any company looking to see a boost in the efficiency of its operations.
Tom Vranas, as the vice president of innovation and culture at Everywhere Wireless, was responsible for enhancing business processes. The company had an existing standard operating procedure but they needed a more effective system as the company grew. Empowering the new employees was paramount for them to be efficient at their jobs.
This company takes pride in providing good internet service to its customers but had an inefficient knowledge base. Tom tried out over 70 software and decided SweetProcess was what the company needed. What made him pick SweetProcess out of those other options? Check it out!
Improved customer experience: Having SweetProcess improved their customer service. They could attend to customer needs in the shortest time possible because all the information they needed was in one place.
Effective documentation:Unlike standard operating systems, SweetProcess documentation is more comprehensive and organized. It eliminates confusion and disorganization in the workplace.
Decentralized knowledge base:With SweetProcess, Tom didn’t have to worry about knowledge getting lost. All work-related information is preserved in a decentralized system that is accessible to authorized persons. Due to this, work didn’t stop if a person was unavailable because the steps to procedures are stored.
Seamless employee onboarding: As employees came onboard, they were quickly equipped with the knowledge they needed to do their jobs. Asking repeated questions was avoided because the new recruits had access to the knowledge base.
Stephanie Chavez was the chief marketing officer at Zen Media, a public relations firm specialized in the tech niche. At this company, employees used to sort out their own processes. This caused disorganization and a lack of uniformity.
This couldn’t go on for a company that took pride in delivering quality to its customers. They needed a more structured workflow for the company to achieve its goals as a team. A friend recommended SweetProcess to Stephanie and things did change for the better. With a standard knowledge base, everyone worked with the same processes and quality control became assured.
Those aren’t all the benefits that SweetProcess offers. You can:
Easily document your procedures.
Implement your policies.
Manage tasks.
Integrate your other apps.
Add files and videos.
Have a secure connection.
Quickly onboard employees.
Still not sure about this product? Sign up for a free trial of SweetProcess. No credit card is required.
Conclusion
An employee training and development program is an expensive venture to undertake, no doubt, but the benefits it offers your company are too much for you to pass up on. Make training a part of your company’s culture. Include everyone from management to employees.
Remember also that the benefits of an employee training and development program depend on how effective your program is. Be consistent in following the plan and don’t stop halfway. Don’t forget our free downloadable checklist to help you create your employee training and development plan. Sign up for a free trial of SweetProcess to get started.
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