Training is a considerable investment for anyone in a management position as ultimately it means that you and your team need to take time away from current tasks to be trained. However, if training is done correctly, the return on the investment should be very beneficial. Your staff should now be fully competent in a new process, completing a task for you that you no longer need to do yourself.

I personally have found training to be a challenge for that very reason. It means that I need to stop what I am working on to train someone else. When you think of it like that, it does seem inefficient. A one-off investment can mean that you don’t need to do that particular task ever again. However, if you are outsourcing your work, it generally means that you are an extremely busy person and therefore your time is valuable – particularly if the work you need to get completed is pressing and urgent.

I came up with a technique for my team that I have found very valuable for a number of reasons. It is a simple question that I need to ask them.

What skills and experience do you have that I am not currently using?

I am constantly surprised when I ask this question and realize the valuable skills and experience that members of my team have; that I am not utilizing in my business. I have added new services and even setup entire new business is based upon the answer to that very question. Not only is there a benefit of being able to leverage those skills for your business, there is also the benefit that your staff have a skill set that has been resourced by others. Whether it be their own personal education or perhaps a former employer took the time, effort, and money to train them in that skill. It is now something that you receive the benefit from.

Something important to consider is also the reverse of that. This staff member has been trained in a skill that you are now benefitting from, but a former employer is no longer receiving the return of their investment. As employers, we all need to consider the fact that any investment we put into our team can be lost if that team member leaves our business.

From a business point of view this is why retention of your team is very important. Ensure that you are going above and beyond to keep your team members happy and fulfilled so that the return on the investment for training is received for a longer period of time.