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Ravinder Tulsiani

There are two types of educational strategies that most corporations need to develop: education for new hires, and ongoing education for employees in each team, section, or division. Education for new hires is a given. How else will new employees know what is expected of them? Ongoing educational programs for employees are equally important—whether those employees be at the management level, the team leader level, or the general employee level. These educational programs can be presented in a variety of ways depending on the corporation’s business niche, and the amount of funds it has for such training. The goal of a corporate-wide learning strategy must be to ensure that all employees are not only able to perform their jobs and fulfill their responsibilities to the best of their ability, but also be able to “rise up the corporate ladder” if they so desire—from valuable team member into a management position. These educational strategies are, in essence, part of an “employee retention plan.” Education for new hiresDepending on the type of organization, new hires may enter the company en masse, or they may dribble in one at a time. All new hires need to receive education in two parts:The history of the corporation, its policies, and standards regarding how to conduct business, how to treat and interact with fellow employees, and so on.Training in their specific job responsibilities. If the new employees have been hired en masse, it is usually more time efficient if they are trained en masse, by a human resources representative skilled in giving such training. Most businesses hire one employee at a time, however, and so it is more cost-effective if the new employee be given training via a computerized lesson plan. Depending on the business, a new employee will spend his first two days sitting in front of a computer screen learning everything about the company—and then segue into learning about the specific area in which they will be working. Examples of this type of training would include employees in grocery stores or fast good restaurants. Because the new employee will be sitting in front of a computer all day long, learning information that they will be expected to remember once they are actually “out on the floor,” it is important that the training materials be well written, well presented, and require user engagement. Ongoing ed****ucation and development An effective corporate learning strategy depends on the type of corporation, of course. Certain fields require that employees attend a certain amount of hours of training in their discipline each year, from an institute of higher learning, in order to retain their certifications, for example. In-house educational programs would consist of providing training in appropriate computer applications—either job-specific applications or office applications such as Word and Excel. Both management and general employees can benefit from training in how to interact with others, appropriate behavior on the job and so on. Checklist for developing an e****ffective s****trategy Determine what education is needed for new hires, and what is needed for long-term employees. If employees need to attend certain classes at a college or university to keep up their certifications, management should ensure that they are encouraged to take these classes, and even reimburse employees for them once the classes have been satisfactorily completed.Determine the best way to deliver the education program. This depends a great deal on the corporation’s education budget. Do they have the funds to commission a training program put together on video or computer by an organization that specializes in devising such lessons, or do they prefer to work in-house and have a live individual deliver the training with the aid of PowerPoint slides, for example.Ensure that training programs are offered not only for management, but also for the general workforce. Institute a strategy to measure the success of all educational programs. Are employees taking advantage of optional computer classes, for example, or is the class being delivered to only a couple of people at a time? If this is the case, the class should not be cancelled, but efforts must be made t find out why employees are not showing an interest in such classes designed to help them improve themselves in their job!Any effective corporate learning strategy depends on communication between the instructor and the learner, between the top management instituting these training classes and the individuals, and between the management and general workforce to ensure that classes are being made available to them in subjects that they want and need to learn.

How to Develop an Effective Corporate Learning Strategy

Businesses simply can’t afford to have disengaged employees.Losses from disengaged employees manifest themselves in two ways:Lost work time. Employees call in sick frequently, or leave a job shortly after they have received paid training for it.Lost quality of work.  Employees who dislike their job often do not put forth their best effort.Poor quality work leads to lost revenue as dissatisfied customers seek out the competition for future products or services.Since 1996, the performance-management consulting company Gallup has been researching and conducting surveys on employee engagement and disseminating this information to the media. Its conclusions and survey results have been reported in newspapers, and quoted in magazine articles and books on business.All the research shows that when a business inaugurates and maintains a culture of employee engagement, the company benefits as a whole. Representative articles from Gallup Business Journal include “The High Cost of Disengaged Employees,” April 15, 2002; “Turning Around Employee Turnover,” May 8, 2008;  and “How to Tackle U.S. Employees’ Stagnating Engagement,” June 11, 2013.Despite the overwhelming proof that businesses benefit from engaged employees, there are still companies that refuse to implement any engagement practices—perhaps because they have tried it half-heartedly in the past, seen no results after a week or so, and abandoned it as a failure.But it’s 2014, and in this uncertain economic climate, employee engagement is more important than ever, but may seem more difficult than ever. How can leaders increase employee engagement?1. Realize that changing your corporate culture is a process that will take months.Employee engagement begins when employees begin to trust that management is serious about carrying out changes in corporate culture that will give them more of a voice in the company. Earning this trust takes time.For example, it’s one thing to set up a suggestion box and encourage employees to submit ideas for how things can be improved—from the way a part is manufactured to how management interacts with employees. It is quite another for management to actually communicate to employees that suggestions have been received, and to discuss with them (perhaps in a weekly or a once-a-month meeting) why this or that suggestion can or cannot be implemented.Once employees see that efforts at engaging them are being actively followed, trust develops and their efforts at engagement with the company will also increase.2. Get input from the employees themselves.There are a variety of ways to increase employee engagement. Management often makes the mistake of discussing ideas among themselves and then implementing them, without consulting with the employees to learn what they think needs to be done. Should a company invest thousands of dollars in a fitness center in their office building if only a small percentage of employees will take advantage of it?3. Put together a long-term plan to foster employee engagement.The implementation of employee engagement principles will not succeed if it is a haphazard affair, with this or that “good idea” thrown out there on a whim, where it withers and dies for lack of roots connecting it to a synergetic whole.A leader must take the time to get input from the employees as to the types of engagement they want and will embrace, as well as ideas from management, see what has worked for other companies, and then put together a plan that will implement coordinated changes over the course of the year—with, and this is extremely important, regular feedback at each state of the process so that management and employees can see what works and what doesn’t, and modify the process if necessary.By instituting a long-term process to develop employee engagement, the leader and her team/department/company will benefit.

How Can Leaders Increase Employee Engagement?

Leaders often mistake compliance for commitment. Team members’ engagement in workplace could be misconstrued as commitment. Status quo performance and adhering to policies and procedures, set forth by regulations within industry, are symptoms of compliance.  In order to know the difference between a committed and a compliant team member, leaders and managers should heed simple principles in order to keep the team on track and ensure a “buy-in” attitude.Micro-managing is a common mistake of leaders in a compliant-polluted environment. This damaging fault of leadership is one that cannot be changed easily or quickly. Acting as the grand overseer causes a state of paranoia for leadership and the team; the incessant need to watch your back and the emotionless overexcitement in an attempt to gain trust can result in an overall hostile work environment breeding compliance over commitment. Work is accomplished, but your team members are never really performing for the greater good and overall goal.Cultivating a committed team in the workforce should have the majority. Leaders consider commitment as a weakness due to general lack of follow through and commitment on their behalf. However, engineering a committed team can be accomplished in three empowering ideals:Strong vision. Team members have an emotional connection to the workplace as the majority of their daily lives are spent at work. One cannot assume that performance means commitment. Team members who lack belief in your vision will take the path of least resistance by ensuring work is completed but punch the clock as soon as the task is complete. Committed team members will go above and beyond, they will put their heart into their work.Involvement. Every good organization requires a variety of perspectives in the decision making process. Often the vision is similar for leaders and managers which can result in a tunnel vision and inability to mitigate variables in workflow. This is where feedback from team members is vital. Their democratic role in providing a valuable perspective to how they engage in a workflow or process can provide differing ideas and values when making decisions. Compiling their feedback and sharing to the audience at large keeps the team members engaged, ensures they feel valued by asking their view points and keeps the organization and team moving in the right direction.Recognition. Want to know the biggest secret to employee commitment? Endless thanks. Leadership and managers thank their team members for the greatest goals achieved, hurdles met, and when challenges are overcome. This can leave them feeling as if their daily contributions go largely unnoticed. Gaining commitment requires recognition on a regular basis, even if daily. A simple “thank you” at the end of the day thanking team members for their daily contribution shows your commitment to their commitment and daily dedication.Gaining commitment from team members boils down to individual respect and helping them entrust to their own success. When team members feel empowered the quality of their work will show the difference between compliance and commitment. Additionally, committed team members will be compliant in the policies and procedures of the organization.The two roles will begin to homogenize and meld into a cyclical nirvana of a heartfelt buy-in with the vision. Employees will begin to evolve by providing unsolicited, quality feedback to be utilized for the greater good, as opposed to the paranoid, back-biting fear that is generated by constant micromanaging and overseeing. Gratitude becomes the attitude as team members, managers and leadership nurture and develops each other personally and professionally.An overall feeling of trust and security is experienced by the team members when they feel appreciated for their efforts, their feedback is considered in the decision making process and when they can see how they all merge into the shared vision. Maintaining this mode of operation is key for any organization and their leaders in order to operate at top potential for success.

Ravinder Tulsiani

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