Introduction
An employee development program is a strategy for continuous skill improvement, organizational growth, and employee retention. Employees form part of the company’s most valued assets since they form the backbone of all operations. According to the research by Jangbahadur and Sharma (2018), organizations engage in employee development programs to constantly improve the broader skills of employees in a more holistic approach. Employee development is a core organizational practice to nurture employees and help them become more instrumental resources.
Purpose of Employee Development Program
Professional development nurtures professionals and helps them achieve career growth by facilitating learning opportunities. Employee development is vital for organizations because it evolves members’ skills to match the demands and trends of the industry (Smither & London, 2009). Employee development aims to push employees to achieve rich full potential and maximize organizational productivity (Jehanzeb, 2020). Developing employee development empowers staff to feel confident about their skills and contribution and contribute to productivity.
Companies invest in employee development because it makes them more profitable. When organizations offer employees comprehensive development programs, they enjoy higher margins since the income contribution per employee also increases (Jangbahadur & Sharma, 2018). Offering employees opportunities to develop their skills increases their knowledge and confidence, which translates into more efficiency and productivity (Jehanzeb, 2020). When employees have the skills they need, they can improve their bottom line and complete their day-to-day tasks effectively.
Organizations engage in employee development programs to increase employee engagement. Engaged employees are more loyal and productive and willing to go the extra mile for their organization. Providing career development opportunities motivate employees to engage in the daily running of their organizations (Jangbahadur & Sharma, 2018). This form of engagement increases the staff’s optimism about their ability to succeed and the business’s overall performance.
Benefits of Employee Development Process for the Employee and Organization
Organizations emphasize employee development because it makes them naturally feel inspired to be productive and satisfied with their work. By offering employees ongoing training, organizations reduce turnover while still attracting top talent in the industry (Jehanzeb, 2020). The level of satisfaction they gain from development programs might spark employees’ skills in pursuing leadership traits such as self-awareness and rational decision-making. Such measures encourage employees to seek more positions and meet the organization’s long-term leadership needs.
Employee development programs give employees a competitive advantage over their rivals. Training employees to keep up with industry trends imply that the organization will stay ahead of competitors in essential business aspects such as innovation and efficiency (Charoenlarpkul & Tantasanee, 2019). Ongoing training also ensures that employees can effectively adapt to changing business structures. This advancement enables organizations to leverage opportunities and gain a competitive edge over rivals. Training employees on critical skills is essential in letting them drive the strategic objectives in the long term (Charoenlarpkul & Tantasanee, 2019). For instance, an organization facing the retirement of older workers can focus on employee development to broaden their skills to add variety to their roles.
Process Followed to Develop Employees
The process followed in employee development begins by identifying the skill gap through performance management. This step enables organizations to determine training methods for maximum benefits (Charoenlarpkul & Tantasanee, 2019). The skill gap analysis also involves identifying staff who need leadership and career growth to structure effective learning programs. The second stage in employee development aligns the efforts with the organization’s goals. Once the company has identified skill gaps and areas that interest individual employees, it should integrate the goals (Jangbahadur & Sharma, 2018). The next step in the employee development plan is to fit learning opportunities into training. This approach will involve using a tool such as micro-learning mentorships and job shadowing to achieve the best results (Jehanzeb, 2020). Finally, the organization can track results and use data to inform feedback about the process. Tracking results help to understand the effectiveness of employee development plans.
Primary Functions and Processes for Successfully Developing Employees
Developing employees results in better assets for the organization and improved standards. The primary functions and processes for successfully creating employees are gaining executive support to structure succession and retention into the program. Involving the management plays a vital role in ensuring a connection between the real-world and development strategy (Jangbahadur & Sharma, 2018). Successful development of employee programs should relate to performance management. Performance management ensures that the organization is clear about career development plans, and short-term and long-term goals (Jehanzeb, 2020). This approach helps build skills that will enable the organization to meet performance deficiencies at all levels.
The Role Played by Feedback in the Employee Development Process
Constructive feedback is vital to employees’ ongoing development since it helps to clarify expectations, learn from mistakes, and build confidence. Constructive feedback clarifies expectations by assisting employees in understanding how they should execute their functions. Feedback is essential to employees’ success and performance since it provides honest opinions that contribute to effective results (Inayah et al., 2022). Companies can set standards to clarify expectations and enhance performance (Smither & London, 2009). Constructive feedback is essential in building confidence by empowering employees to polish their areas of weakness.
Feedback plays a crucial role in employee development by promoting employee loyalty. Providing employees with effective feedback is an effective way of helping them develop a sense of belonging and appreciation (Inayah et al., 2022). Employees who feel valued and supported by the organization are more likely to commit their long-term future to the organization. This loyalty saves the organization the cost of hiring and training new employees.
Best Practices and Recommendations Related to Feedback, Communication, Review, Meetings
Effective feedback can lead to outstanding performance by highlighting what employees are doing well and areas they need to improve. Constructive feedback should be timely, specific, candid, and meaningful. The feedback should align with the overall goal and should be provided within the window of reflecting on behavior change (Jehanzeb, 2020). Effective feedback should be aligned to organizational goals and reflect the bigger picture. It requires that the organization has a goal and provides feedback that explicitly reflects the objectives (Inayah et al., 2022). Having goal-oriented goals motivate actions that lead toward the accomplishment of the objectives.
The organization will use 360 degrees and critical incident feedback. 360-degree feedback involves appraising performance from multiple levels and providing a broader view of employees’ input. The objective of 360-degree feedback is to offer a multi-source evaluation of performance to spark behavior change (Inayah et al., 2022). Critical incident feedback is based on reports from various events to assess how employees handled the scenarios. The feedback is effective since it provides specific examples when highlighting behavior change.
Conclusion
Organizations value employee development since it increases staff competencies to make them more adaptable to changing business needs. Companies value organizational goals since it maximizes employee performance and increases organizational productivity. Employee development benefits organizations by helping them retain their staff and increase profitability. Goal-oriented feedback is objective since it focuses on the process rather than the person. Effective feedback is crucial in employee development since it provides honest reviews about performance that spark behavior change.
References
Charoenlarpkul, C., & Tantasanee, S. (2019). A proposed employee development program from objectives and key results: A case study of SG Group of Companies. ABAC ODI Journal Vision. Action. The Outcome, 6(2), 133-151. Web.
Inayah, N. A., Sulistyo, B., & Yogaswara, B. (2022). Designing employee performance appraisal using 360 degrees feedback and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) methods at Dp3ap2kb Of Lebak Regency, Banten Province. eProceedings of Engineering, 9(1), 31-35. Web.
Jangbahadur, U., & Sharma, V. (2018). Measuring employee development. Global Business Review, 19(2), 455-476.
Jehanzeb, K. (2020). Does perceive organizational support and employee development influence organizational citizenship behavior? Person–organization fit as moderator. European Journal of Training and Development, 44(6/7), 637-657. Web.
Smither, J. W., & London, M. (Eds). (2009). Performance management: Putting research into action. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.