This is not a training issue- So, what is it?

Business - corporate

This is not a training issue- So, what is it?

Many issues lead to employee nonperformance at work that are erroneously attributed to skills gaps or the need for some form of training to improve employee competencies. Some issues are not directly addressed through structured training but through realigning business processes and providing an enabling environment for work and interactions.

Employee engagement and performance management are crucial human resource management functions that help in managing employee and business performance. Often, organizations fail to look at their process when performance dips but would rather blame employees.  They erroneously try to improve employee competencies rather than revamp their processes. The outcome is a highly trained staff in a poorly run business environment. When these employees understand this lacuna, they exit when they feel that the value they now have acquired is underutilized paving the way to seek a higher calling. This is the story of many organizations that experience high staff turnover after a series of training and investment in the employee. It makes no business sense to train staff for a skillset that cannot be used in their current or future role in the organisation. A group of people standing together

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Organisations that refuse to create an enabling environment, and provide the needed resources, tools and guidelines to chart a direction will struggle with achieving their goals and retaining top talents. Business leaders’ focus on strategic goals and objectives must be apparent in the processes, procedures, actions and the culture of the organization.

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Description automatically generatedWhile training and capacity building are crucial for self-growth and performance, many issues do not require training in terms of learning and development. One of the ways to diagnose supervisors' noncommitment to the growth and development of the employee is to ask direct reports to rate the level of support they enjoy from their supervisors. Activities such as mentoring, coaching and proper staff onboarding can reduce the formal training time that employees are subjected to. When a supervisor fails to offer immediate feedback and waits until appraisal season it leads to a lack of trust, lack of motivation and a disconnect from the employee.

When employers fail to provide adequate tools and resources for work enhancement, that does not speak directly to the capacity, capability and competence of the employee, but clearly shows the lack of readiness by the employer to move his or her business forward. Don’t get me wrong. Every activity within an organization requires some form of learning and hands-on experience but not all these activities require standardized training programmes that take the employee off work for a while.

Every activity requires some kind of learning and familiarization but not all skills gaps require classroom or virtual training sessions for the knowledge to be shared or acquired. Some of these activities require immediate interventions such as mentoring, work mirroring, coaching and learning on the job.

Here are some of the issues that do not directly need formal training in the organization. ensuring that supervisors regularly interact and take interest in their direct reports can shorten the learning process as well as improve organizational performance at scale. Consider these issues.

  1. Onboarding new hires: Yes, employee orientation is crucial for staff onboarding and acclimatization. However, research and experience have shown that when employees have coworkers act as “buddies” (a term used to describe learning from an older employee who may or may not be on the same grade level), they quickly get aligned with the organizational culture and appreciate the goals and objectives of the organization. The buddy strategy is very effective, allowing new hires to hit the ground running in the shortest possible time. Consider a new hire who has been to a new organization and is struggling to understand the culture of the organization. Would you suggest training or assigning a buddy to get him or her up to speed about the organization? While an onboarding can serve as a first-level intervention assigning an older or more experienced employee to your new hires would have more impact in the short term.
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Description automatically generatedPoor business processes and structure: Poor business processes and structures can hamper the flow of information, impair decision making and impede workflow, eventually leading to poor performance. Most businesses need to rethink their organisational structure and business processes before considering formalized training. Securing the service of business development support service providers or using in-house capabilities can help in repositioning organizations for peak performance. Sometimes, the problem with employee performance is not a training issue.
  3. Inadequate performance management framework: What we fail to measure might be difficult to analyze and monitor. That is the story for many. 

    Using a balanced scorecard can help organizations measure and monitor both soft and hard metrics to guide employee promotion, remuneration, placement and disengagement. 

    organizations that have not adopted standardized performance management tools, processes and frameworks. Most organizations are still using rudimentary tools or no measures at all in managing growth and remuneration. Many employers do not even bother to utilize performance management tools for promotion or staff placement and remuneration. Most of these employers promote or retain staff based on soft metrics rather than both soft and hard metrics. Using a balanced scorecard can help organizations measure and monitor both soft and hard metrics to guide employee promotion, remuneration, placement and disengagement.

Rose Window Consulting Ltd offers a 360-degree approach to business growth and organizational performance using business diagnostic tools, skills gap audits, and developing a holistic growth plan for teams, organizations, and institutions.

You can schedule a business diagnostic discussion to set your organization of intentional growth and organizational performance. If you are ready for this adventure email us at info@rosewindowconsulting.com or chat us via WhatsApp on 09024259529.