As companies continue to look for ways to improve employee engagement and satisfaction for maximum retention, it’s becoming increasingly clear from surveys that employees want additional development. Multiple studies show that employees will remain at an employer longer when they feel like they can advance their careers.
However, starting a fully formed career development and management program for employees takes a lot of resources, and it’s not something that an organization can just spin up overnight. In addition, as companies watch costs due to economic concerns, they may deem the current environment less than ideal for spending money to train and develop employees.
Your company doesn’t have to hire professional trainers or implement massive programs to start benefiting today from employee development. Below are four great ways to start upskilling your employees and giving them control over their careers that are inexpensive or cost-free and simple to implement.
4 Ideas for Easy Employee Development to Start Upskilling Your Employees
1. Affinity groups
It may not seem obvious as a development tool, but employee affinity groups can promote growth and development through connections with like-minded people. Whether it’s a book club, charity effort, gardening group, or runner’s club, affinity groups allow people to meet with employees in different roles and functions through shared interests. These connections could open doors for conversation, internal career exploration, or mentorships for employees in early career stages.
2. Lunch and Learns
These short informational sessions don’t have to involve “lunch” necessarily, and with the rise of hybrid work, they can certainly be offered in multiple formats beyond in-person conference room settings. Topics can be wide-ranging—from shortcuts to using an internal system to life or productivity “hacks.”
Use these sessions as an opportunity to boost the platform of under-the-radar employees. For example, if the company has an excellent data analyst who is a wizard at Excel, ask that person to give a short training session on creating pivot tables. That opportunity benefits the Excel end users who need the advanced skill, but it also amplifies that data analyst’s presence across the company.
3. Mentoring connection opportunities
When done well, mentorships benefit both the mentor and the mentee in various ways. Good mentorships can last for decades or span entire careers, and they can be rich, fulfilling relationships that offer perspective, support, and connection through career ups and downs.
While the best mentoring relationships grow organically, it is possible to encourage connections by sponsoring opportunities for people to meet. Organize informal coffee connections where people can network, or organize “speed rounds” where potential mentors and mentees can ask each other questions and see if they connect.
4. Cross-functional projects
As work becomes more project-based and teams become more fluid, organizations should encourage people from different functions and roles to work across traditional boundaries. Pulling in voices from outside their functions can help provide a different perspective or input. These projects don’t have to be directly related to the business; a cross-functional project could be a charity event or a big holiday party.
Becoming a company that develops people from the moment they are hired can mean the difference between just surviving the talent wars and thriving well into the future with a staff of talented, engaged people. Even when formal development options are limited or unfeasible, you can start to grow your people today with the resources you have at your fingertips.
Self-Check:
- Can I think of two people who have a unique skill or talent that would benefit others in the organization?
- What affinity groups exist in my organization? Is there one you I can start?
- What upcoming project do I have that would allow me to pull in someone from another function or role?
