Did you know that 87% of 25-40 year olds say that professional development is ‘very important’ to them? With such a large proportion of the workforce interested in upskilling to progress their careers, it’s crucial that employers are prioritising their continued professional development (CPD) strategies. And as companies worldwide embrace the switch to digital learning as a result of the pandemic, CPD is more accessible than ever. But how much can CPD actually do?
As it turns out, a lot. We’ve gathered five of the top benefits of online professional development training to highlight how it can elevate your employees and your business to new heights. Read on to discover how investing in online CPD can power up your workforce.
1: Upskill where it counts
Every business has its own unique specialisms and, with that, its own specialist requirements of its employees. Not every colleague will have come from the same background, however, and you’re likely to be faced with a variety of strengths and weaknesses. Through a personalised CPD strategy, you can ensure that your employees are training in the areas that matter most to them and to the wider business, helping to upskill your workforce in a way that benefits your overall company goals.
To achieve this, you need more than a one-size-fits-all approach. It’s worthwhile to develop your own training courses, rather than finding less tailored training elsewhere. With Rogo, you can create as many courses as you need, all in one easily accessible place, making it easy for your employees to learn and grow.
2: Holistic improvement
There’s so much more to a career than simply doing the job you’re assigned. To create a truly fulfilling place to work, a company needs to allow personal and professional growth within its employees. One way to do this is to help them develop their ‘soft skills’, which might not be directly related to their day-to-day activities but which play a part in their wider development.
Soft skills could include anything from leadership and teamwork to public speaking, and skipping over these core skills can leave your employees feeling less confident and holding your business back from excelling. Offering soft skill training as a part of your CPD strategy, therefore, is a great way to help your employees grow as professionals throughout their careers.
3: Spot it early, sort it early
It’s never fun to reach your annual review, only to find that you’ve been missing the mark on something that has flown under the radar. It’s detrimental to both employee and employer – the employee can lose confidence and the employer risks suboptimal performance. That’s why it’s important to ensure that any issues are identified and addressed promptly, and online training can be a great tool for this.
Through online learning, managers can choose which areas of the job need to be addressed and deliver efficient training before any major issues occur. Continued learning in this sense helps to maintain a sense of improvement in employees, increasing their confidence and standard of working while allowing managers to monitor progression.
4: A learning community
Many employers are starting to understand the importance of fostering intellectual curiosity in their workforce, and online learning is a great way to support this. Some employees might feel unsure about completing online courses, especially during the work day, as it can be seen as superfluous and distracting from the tasks at hand. However, encouraging your employees to take part in CPD during the workday can have a positive influence on your business.
Nurturing a working environment where continued learning is encouraged can greatly impact your employees’ workplace satisfaction, showing that the business prioritises their progression and improvement. Plus, creating a learning community within your workplace can encourage more employees to take part in the training, coming together to discuss their findings and developing a culture of knowledge sharing.
5: Keep updated
No industry operates at a standstill, and even the best team members can get left behind if they don’t stay up to date with the latest trends, insights and technologies of your markets. And when keeping your employees in the know is so important, online professional development is a great way to upskill with ease.
Online training platforms have features that make it simple to increase the knowledge of your employees. For example, Rogo offers a range of specialist question types, including spreadsheets for financial businesses, so you can be sure that your training is as tailored to your individual needs as possible.
Making CPD part of your company’s structure
When it comes to CPD, the term is often thrown around without much action to accompany it. However, ongoing development is crucial for every career, and online training is a great way to integrate CPD into your company.
Creating a space where your employees feel encouraged to learn and grow as people and professionals is the key to a happy workforce, so making sure your team has access to useful, interesting and engaging online training can enrich and elevate your employees now and into the future.
Want to find out more about how Rogo can make your CPD strategy come to life? Get in touch with our team of experts.
