Strategies for Employee Development
Employee development is an essential element of managing workers. While workers enjoy the benefits of employee development throughout the lifetime of their careers, employers who offer career development programs also reap the rewards of the developed worker's new skills and proficiencies. Additionally, employees who believe their employer is committed to helping them reach their personal career goals are more committed to giving their best work to their organization, according to the University of Washington.
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Significance
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Employee development provides significant benefits to both the employee and the employer. Improved performance, reduced turnover and financial gains for both the organization and the employee are just a few advantages of implementing effective strategies for employee development. Enhanced efficiency and increased worker retention lead to greater financial gains for the employer while the developed employee can expect to reach a greater earning potential over the course of her lifetime.
Basic Skills Development
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Ensuring workers have the basic skills necessary to complete day-to-day activities is a vital element of employee development. Workers who are confident in their ability to do their jobs achieve greater job satisfaction than those who have not been properly trained. In some cases, employees may lack even the basic reading and writing skills necessary to be effective in their jobs. It is important for employers to assess even the most basic skills of workers to determine in which areas they would most benefit from additional training to be successful in simple day-to-day tasks.
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Professional Development
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According to the University of California Guide to Managing Human Resources, "Career development is the ongoing acquisition or refinement of skills and knowledge, including job mastery and professional development, coupled with career planning activities." Professional development activities consist of those employee development programs that are designed to help workers build skills that will help them succeed in their careers long term. Effective strategies for employee development should include long-term professional development plans designed to ensure the worker sees a successful future with the organization.
Performance Management
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One of the most effective employee development strategies is to implement training and development as part of an overall performance management program. Although the development of employees is commendable in and of itself, the ultimate purpose is to improve the overall performance of the organization. To be truly successful, employee development programs should be designed to align with the organization's overall performance goals.
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