Training in the workplace

Matthew Benton, Senior Audit and Accounts Manager at Plus Accounting, highlights some useful tips for businesses on informal training and how beneficial it is to get staff involved in the process.

Most businesses are very aware of the benefits of staff training, but it can sometimes take a back seat during the day-to-day pressures of running a business in the intense economic climate. Staff training can appear to be a big commitment in terms of time and expense, but informal training can be just as effective as formal training and can help with keeping costs low. Team meetings with well thought out agendas are a good way for staff to share knowledge and ideas

A pitfall to avoid
Avoid having an agenda set out by management; staff engage more freely in a meeting where they have had input into the topics on the agenda.

Staff appraisals
Appraisals that enable staff to put forward their own solutions on issues can generate a far more positive outcome. Solutions can be agreed between the staff members and line manager, such as attending appropriate training courses which both staff and line manager have identified will achieve the training needs. 

Management can sometimes be under a great deal of pressure to deliver training solutions which may result in them being slow identifying the correct training course or choosing the wrong course. Empowering staff to find the course and encouraging discussions as to why that training course may be suitable, why it’s important to achieve the objective, can result in a far greater ‘buy in’ from the member of staff, rather than imposing solutions upon them. 

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