5 Powerful Reasons Why You NEED Learning and Development in Your Organisation

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It has been said that employees are an organisation's greatest asset, something we wholeheartedly agree with. With organisations now recognising the significance of their employees and the need for learning and development, more organisations are now investing money into training and development. The reason? Because they know it's a key element for overall growth and success.

Learning and development (L&D) is all about creating a company culture that appreciates and honours the learning and growth of its employees. A recent study by Forbes, shows that 93% of employees are more inclined to stay with an organisation that is willing to invest in their career development.

Learning and development is the secret weapon to creating the ideal workforce and workplace. That's why, throughout this article, we will be sharing 5 amazing benefits of having a solid learning and development strategy in place.

1) It Attracts and Retains Top Talent Within Your Organisation

There's no denying that retention is a typical challenge encountered by employers, no matter the size or industry. This is particularly a problem when you have great employees getting offers from other organisations. One of the key benefits of learning and development is that it helps reduce staff turnover, with a recent study showing that 40% leave a job within the first year, due to poor quality or lack of training.

When you provide your employees with the resources, equipment and support they need to become their best selves and reach their full potential, they will reward the organisation with productivity, efficiency, and loyalty. When employees feel they have no room to grow, there's no surprise they feel the need to look elsewhere.

Having a good training program in place will keep them engaged, but also save the organisation money, since, we all know that recruiting new employees is far more expensive than training current ones.

2) L&D Improves Employee Engagement and Motivation

Organisations should always be looking for ways to increase and maintain employee engagement and motivation in the workplace. The science speaks for itself, with multiple studies showcasing the detrimental impact lack of engagement can have on the overall success of a business.

Finding ways to consistently create engagement within the workplace, helps lessen boredom, enhance motivation and reduce feelings of dissatisfaction.

Having a solid training program in place helps keep employees motivated and engaged, with development initiates relighting your employee's spark to learn new skills and processes. You can't expect loyalty and commitment from your employees, without demonstrating your willingness to be committed to their success. An engaged and happy workforce is more productive and efficient, with the reality being that the more you invest in your employees, the more you'll gain back as a result.

3) It Helps Develop and Nurture Future Leaders

When it comes to important organisation growth and evolution, sometimes, it's best to develop and nurture potential future leaders. Training your employees the skills they need to become potential future leaders is essential, whether they are new employees, or selected by HR to be managerial candidates.

Having training in place means that as an organisation, you're always one step ahead of the game, considering future goals and obstacles you may face whilst preparing your employees to become promotable talents.

4) It Improves Employee Performance and Productivity

As mentioned above, training and development for employees have an impactful effect on different aspects of your organisation. One of the main benefits seen when having a strong L&D strategy in place is that it has been linked to improving both employee performance and productivity.

Employee training, if done, correctly, provides the right skills and knowledge, to help your employees complete their job more efficiently and effectively. How an organisation promotes development and actively improves, has a direct impact on how each member essentially does their job. This helps boost productivity as a whole across the organisation, because a more highly skilled and efficient workplace, is a happy workplace.

Now, we know that organisations can't always operate at 100%, we're only human, but, even a 15% increase in productivity is a great place to start. When you provide your employees with the opportunity to develop and learn, you're creating a workplace culture of inspired and loyal employees.

5. L&D Is Now the Standard and Helps Give You a Competitive Advantage

We know that learning and development not only improves employee retention but also recruitment. Want to know why? Well, it's the new standard expected by society. Whilst a few years ago training and development would have been listed as an extra benefit in a job advert, now, it's what employees are looking for. Did you know that 87% of millennials believe that having learning and development opportunities influences their decision to join an organisation? By 2025, this generation is said to make up 50% of the workplace, so something organisations should keep in mind!

Whilst it has become the standard for organisations, it also gives you a competitive edge for recruitment and innovation. With new generations entering the workforce, technology constantly evolving and new models coming to light, your employees (old and new) need to learn how to adapt and adjust to the differences.

Organisations that fail to become innovative, are doomed for failure. Staying modern and developing continuously, will give you that competitive edge over your competitors, helping you stay ahead of the game.

Key Takeaways

Learning and development is paramount, no matter where you are in the world, what industry you operate in or the size of the organisation. When it comes to learning and development, it may seem like a large investment of resources, but, the benefits outweigh any costs involved.

Once you have a solid strategy in place, be prepared to have a flourishing and happy workplace that leads your business to success. When you have employees who feel valued and appreciated, you'll soon see most or all of the benefits listed above come to light.

If you want to learn more about how mentoring can be used as a tool to enrich learning and development within your organisation, you can book a free demonstration with us today.