One manager asks, “what happens if we invest in our people and then they leave us?”  To which the other replies, “what happens if we don’t and they stay?”

Even though we all know how important it is to provide training for staff, some companies still fall behind when it comes to investing in employee development. Particularly when budgets are tight, corporate training can often take a backseat in favour of more “essential” spending. But there are many reasons why staff training should always be considered an essential.

Training is crucial for organisational development and success. It is fruitful to both employers and employees of an organisation. Training is the process of enhancing the skills, capabilities and knowledge of employees for doing a particular job. The training process moulds the thinking of employees and leads to quality performance of employees. It is continuous and never ending in nature.

Here are some of the reasons why employee training is so important for any company –

1. Improves morale of employees.

   Training helps the employee to get job security and job satisfaction. The more satisfied the employee is and the greater his/her morale is, the more he/she will contribute to organisational success. Another advantage is that employee absenteeism and -turnover will reduce considerable.

2. Standardization.

   All trained employees follow more or less the same methods and techniques. This will ensure that the variation in output and standards produced by employees are limited, thus increasing the average quality.

3. Reduced supervision and direction.

   A well-trained employee will be well acquainted with the job and will need less supervision. Thus, there will be less wastage of time and efforts.

4. Increased organisational stability and flexibility.

   Training provides opportunities for employees to acquire skills to work in several departments of an organisation. Training also lowers the labour turnover rate, which means high consistency in retaining employees without them stagnating.

5. Fewer accidents.

   Errors are likely to occur if employees lack knowledge and skills required for doing a particular job. The more trained an employee is, the less the chances will be of causing accidents in the workplace and the more proficient the employee becomes.

6. Chances of promotion.

   Employees acquire skills and efficiency during training, thus becoming an asset for the organisation. Consequently, they also become more eligible for promotion.

7. Increased productivity.

   Training improves efficiency and productivity of employees. Well-trained employees show both quantity and quality performance. Wastage of time, money and resources dramatically reduces if employees are properly trained.