Does your company have an internal training and development program? If not, you could be missing out, not only on creating a motivated, skilled and effective workforce that will successfully achieve your organization’s goals, but on some major cost savings.

Like many companies, yours may be struggling with hiring and retaining employees with the specific skills and qualifications your open positions require. So why not invest in an internal training program that provides that necessary education and resources to your current employees?  Or, if you hire people based on potential, this is a great way to develop that potential and create success for your organization.

Internal development often gets cut when businesses need to save money. But don’t overlook the cultivating your own in-house talent. Development programs also help make your employees feel more engaged and connected to your business and can transfer good ideas and best practices from one department to another—or to the whole organization.

If you do not yet have an internal training program at your organization, here are a few pointers to help you get started:

• Make Sure You Have Executive Buy-In. If your leadership team doesn’t believe in the importance of a formal program, they won’t support it and it will die.
• Assign Ownership.  Someone needs to be the point person or overseer of the training program. Larger companies can hire a full-time person to take on this responsibility; smaller companies can teach a current employee how to take on the role.
• Create, then Enforce, Accountability. A comprehensive training and development program focuses on internal processes as well as product guidelines. Managers need to be sure their team members are following both.
• Develop Materials. Creating and sharing handouts with best practices and how-tos can serve as helpful resources for both new hires and current employees. Make sure you keep the information up-to-date and relevant. And empower everyone to create and share relevant content.
• Make Sure Training is Ongoing. Training doesn’t mean telling employees how to do something once. People learn by hearing, by doing, by seeing and by repetition—or a combination of the four.  You should also ensure employees are taught about new product features as needed or given refresher courses on a regular basis.

If budget is still a consideration for your business, here are some low-cost training and development approaches:

• Cross-training. Have your employees train one another to do different aspects of related jobs. This provides you with greater flexibility in assigning tasks and employees with the chance to learn new skills and diversify their experience.
• Mentorship. Pair newer employees with more experienced staff, which promotes the leadership development of current employees and increases the retention of new employees, who will adapt more quickly and confidently in their new roles.

How have you incorporated training and development at your organization? Jackson’s top staffing firm, Staffers, would love to hear what has been effective for your company. Be sure to share your comments, questions and experiences with us below!