We know how your business benefits from having skilled and trained employees – but if Learners fail to see the benefits for them, your beautiful training platform will go unused.
Convince them to engage by providing and communicating tangible ways their training and upskilling can result in money in their bank account.
1. Provide an Educational Fund as part of a total compensation package
While salary may be an easy way to measure compensation, the truth is that money can lie in many more places within the workplace, including employee benefits such as vacation time, paid holidays, sick or personal leave, and insurance.
Consider developing a company-wide Educational Fund, which rewards employees who complete programs. It helps to enhance the overall training across the company, and the business makes a sound investment by paying partially (or fully) for the education and training. To keep this consistent and beneficial for employers, make sure that the type of training is in line with a worker’s current or future role, and that there is a specific limit to how much they can spend monthly, quarterly, or yearly.
2. Set up employee recognition programs
Another method for your staff to gain more compensation is integration with platforms and employee recognition programs. People like to be recognized for good work. Pair that with a fun platform that allows any employee to give kudos (and points) to their co-workers and everyone feels more seen and appreciated, making them feel more invested in the business and likely to increase performance.
One example of this is Bonusly, a site where coworkers can internally create fun and easy employee rewards which can equate to monetary gains in the form of gift cards, charity donations, and more.
3. Utilize and value Badges and Certificates
Another aspect of employee recognition is having badges and certificates as rewards for training. These can be utilized in many ways. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Use a training system with a Leadership board, so Learners can compare and compete against each other to learn the most.
- Initiate an “Employee of the Quarter” reward to recognize employees who earn the most badges or certificates.
- Create an internal raffle drawing for each certificate or badge earned within your training system. By upskilling, employees can be recognized, get prizes, and become better at their job.
These tools show that your organization values work hard and constant self-improvement. It is key in helping provide a sense of security and motivation to continue producing great work.
4. Track and reward soft skills
Training allows us to notice, measure, and reward soft skills, which are challenging to determine effectively. However, a study by MIT Sloan discovered that soft skills training across five companies resulted in a 250% ROI in an eight month period and according to LinkedIn’s 2019 Global Talent Trends report, 89% of recruiters say when a hire doesn’t work out, it usually comes down to a lack of soft skills. This makes soft skills absolutely imperative.
Sadly, soft skills can be overlooked in the workforce since they aren’t as tangible as hard skills or advanced software skills that leadership tends to view as easier to track and reward. Performance monitoring that helps train employees in soft skills such as decision-making and problem-solving aids in ensuring more complex tasks can be handled. It also improves employee attendance and demonstrates the value of your business.
By using online training platforms, you can essentially measure and value soft skills and use them as an indicator of total job performance – even resulting in monetary gains.
5. Tie promotions to performance … and training
Employees should recognize that taking on training and upskilling will provide a pathway to promotions. According to Work Institute’s 2020 Retention Report, around 40% of employee turnover occurs within the employee’s first year with the organization, partially because people look for ways to move up and receive more compensation. And that’s not all! Turnover is up in recent years. To learn more, read Employee Turnover Statistics That Will Scare Your HR Team Into Action.
It should be clearly stated in your organization that if employees work to master relevant skills and participate training programs, internal promotions within the organization is more likely.
Training or upskilling employees is essential to help team members focus more on their work and ensure they are continuously being challenged.
6. Make training expectations clear during Onboarding
Ongoing commitment to an employee’s education shows that your business cares. Employees starting in the workforce are more likely to invest within a company that cares about their growth and success.
Set expectations from the beginning by telling new employees that training is not in addition to their job – it IS their job! According to a recent 2022 Forbes article, 70% of people aren’t prepared for the future of work. Be ahead of the curve by demanding upskilling and training programs within job contracts and expectations, embedding it into the fabric of your organization’s culture.