Finding ways to encourage learning in the workplace

Parents are always looking for ways to encourage learning in their homes, but employers are also catching onto the trend to encourage learning in the workplace. Most employees are able to perform their jobs based on the training they received in school and the quick training they receive from their employers. The Learning and Skills Council reported that 11% of employers do not feel that employees are fully competent in their jobs. To combat this, many employers have begun offering additional training courses as a way to encourage learning at the workplace.

 Investing in learning can do wonders for a company; some of the improvements you will see include the following:

•  Improved motivation
•  Reduced staff turnover
•  Reduced absenteeism
•  Increase in morale
•  Improvement in performance
•  Improvement in the communication between departments.

 The reason why you will see so many improvements is because employees are capable to do their jobs. They do not need to ask a co-worker or a supervisor for help with particular problems because they will already know how to fix them.

When employers invest in employee learning, employees feel that their employers are investing in them. They want their employees to be able to perform their job to the best of their abilities and this may only happen by investing money into learning. It doesn't matter what type of skill level your employees need to properly perform their job duties, they must have some type of training. Take the Disney Corporation for example; they spend more than half the time on training of their employees that work Disneyland and Disney world. This is because they want their basic employees to have the knowledge they need to help every type of customer they are confronted with. The extra investment into learning helps the companies run successfully and there are hardly every break downs in any of the processes.

Here are some simple ways to encourage learning in the workplace:

1. Hold individual meetings with your employees to let them know you trust in their ability to properly perform their job duties. Many times people just need a little encouragement from their managers so they can get motivated about working.
2. Involve your employees. Look for ways to include them on larger projects or things that increase their responsibilities. They will feel a sense of pride for your investment in their growth within the company.
3. Reduce distractions in the office that hinder your employees from performing their job duties. Look for ways to improve their job by purchasing new equipment or things that will make their job duties easier.
4. Give your employees deadlines. Many people work better when they know an end date. If you just tell them to work on a project, they may place it on the back burner because they do not realize its importance.
5. Build a positive work environment. It is easy to encourage learning when people want to come to work. This will happen by building a positive work environment where everyone is friendly and gets along just fine.
6. Make sure your employees are doing their work. If you have some employees that just can't get motivated, talk to them about their job performance. Let them know that they need to look for ways to improve their job performance or you will need to look for a replacement. Sometimes installing a sense of urgency in a person will give them the motivation they need to work hard.
7. Send your employees to training seminars and conventions that encourage learning. This is a great way to show your employees you care about them because you are investing in their education.

Signing Off

Bhavesh Chauhan