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Investing in your Employee’s Education- Lessons from a Small Business Owner

Submitted By: Elizabeth Chuff, President, Ananda

An educated employee is very often your most valuable asset. Investing in your employees on a regular and consistent basis will give your business the edge, and your employees a sense of confidence and ownership.

What sets your business apart from other businesses is having the most competent and knowledgeable employees. If you are a business manager or owner with limited resources some of the following ideas can help you develop an educated workforce without overspending. There are both internal and external resources for knowledge that you can access on a budget.

Tap into your vendor, supplier or service provider network and the resources they have at their disposal. One example is organizing lunch and learn meetings. Not only will your employees appreciate the investment into their learning and development, but your vendors will be happy to work with you to improve sales of their products. Many vendors have at their disposal sales and marketing dollars with which they can sponsor a variety of on and off-site workshops and events. Another example is organizing hands-on training. Again your vendor will be happy to provide you with product samples and complimentary services so that employees gain first hand knowledge of the vendor’s products and services.

Have your stronger employees show-case their winning approach or style at staff meetings. Very often an experienced staff-member can serve as a mentor or a coach to the team. Encourage your employees to practice and develop their skill sets in one-on-one or small group sessions, particularly during down time. Seek feedback from your staff on ways to improve business processes or service offerings at management meetings.

A successful organization understands the importance of keeping up with trends in their industry. Investing in educational materials, like DVDs and books, can be a cost-effective alternative to a live instructor or coach. Circulate articles published in Trade Journals and Magazines. Talk about industry trends and developments at staff meetings. If you do know someone who is an expert, see if they will teach in exchange for services. Call other businesses and ask if they will co-sponsor an event. Like you, many small business owners are faced with similar challenges, and often welcome the opportunity to pool resources and collaborate.

Finally, be sure to reinforce positive actions in your employees. You can even do this on a budget: tap into your fellow business owner’s network to exchange or trade services as a gesture of appreciation from you to your employees. Not only will you earn good-will from your fellow business owners, but an educated employee with self-management skills that will pay long term dividends.