Stephanie McGuinn — December 1, 2017 Among the key resources you have for supporting your business are your employees. Their growth and development play a significant role in your long-term success. With this in mind, it is important to set up an environment that allows them to exhibit their talents and grow as professionals. To start off on the right foot, you can apply these tips in your management practices.
Assume More Responsibility
Many managers and employers tend to forget that they too bear responsibility for the growth and development of their employees. By assuming this role, you are taking your job of developing employees more seriously. Make it your job to provide employees with the resources and information they need to excel at your business. You can schedule some monthly or quarterly reviews to check on the progress of their development and make refinements.
Identify Some Core Areas to Develop
There are some skills and talents that stand out in each individual. Identify 2 or 3 of these in an employee and make it a priority to develop them. Instead of learning too much of everything in one go, focus on developing core areas that they have a good chance of excelling at. Specific skills and characteristics can potentially become valuable components of your business strategy. Provide these employees with tasks and experiences that enable them to develop their best skills.
Establish a Firm Plan of Action
The development of the employee is not a point A to point B goal, but a result of a progression of multiple steps over time. With this in mind, establish some milestones and small objectives to achieve in order to reach the big goal of getting the employee to the level you want them to be. You can measure results by improvements in their teamwork, communication, technical abilities, and management skills.
Provide Access to Resources
There are additional things you can do to ensure your employee benefits the most from their growth plan. This includes experiences, promotional plans, and access to the templates or software. These are resources that can supplement your employee’s growth trajectory and further refine their skills along the way. In addition, you can provide employees with information about available training seminars, workshops, online tutorials, and more about certain job functions.
Create a Multi-Step Plan
There are numerous dimensions to development that can open up more opportunities for employees. This includes learning on the job, working with mentors, or reading books. Regardless of which learning style is most suitable for a specific employee, taking these extra steps can only help with development and growth in the long run. You can also work with the employee to share their plan with peers. This helps in facilitating feedback, which is necessary to keep employees motivated during the learning process.
Create Standards for Accountability
Regular check-ins and progress reviews are important for keeping the individual on track. You gain information on their progress and then continue to augment it by providing support. When you do observe progress, highlight them and let the employee know about the good things they are doing. Hearing positive feedback can reinforce improvements and provide employees with the knowledge that they are contributing to their own success as well as that of the company.
A business on its own can experience additional challenges on the road to success without the necessary support from its employees. There are measurable benefits to developing the employee along with the business. When successful, both the business and the employee have a lot to gain. Consider these tips to facilitate and promote the growth of your employees and your business can grow along with them.
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