10 Tips to Better Employee Training

While training your new employees is one of the most costly components of your HR needs, it’s also one of the most essential. A well-trained employee will thrive in her work environment, make your job easier, and keep customers happy.
 
Here we look at 10 tips to make the process easier.
 
1. Outline Each Role Thoroughly

If you’re not clear on what each position should do in your company, how can you train for it? You can use your job description as a jumping off point for this, but create a document that really details what that job requires and what tasks that employee will be responsible for.
 
2. Write How-Tos for Each Task

Taking those tasks you listed, create documents that explain, in depth, how to complete them. An employee should be able to accomplish the task simply by reading the instructions (though watching someone else will be more efficient in training).
 
3. Start with Company Orientation

Before you inundate your new hire with training, give them an overview of the company. Walk them around to meet other employees, and introduce them to any that they’ll be working one-on-one with. Let them get a feel for your company culture so they know what to expect.
 
4. Dedicate Plenty of Time

Most employees can’t be trained in a single day. Divide up the skills you want to teach over several days so the new hire has time to digest and process each. Throw 10 tasks at them on day 1 and you might not see them come back tomorrow!
 
5. Teach By Doing

As I said, demonstrating skills to your employee is the best way for her to understand it. Walk through the documented steps slowly a few times, then ask if she has questions. Give her a notebook to take notes.
 
6. Give Her a Chance

Now that she’s comfortable with the process, get her to try it out with you close by to help. She might be nervous and fumble a few times, so be encouraging. You shouldn’t expect perfection for a while, so be okay with her stumbling at first.
 
7. Now, Step Away

After she seems adept at that skill, let her take it over…without you hovering. Chances are she’ll excel if she’s not worried about what you think. Get feedback from her at the end of the day about how it went, and ask if she has questions.
 
8. Give it Some Time

After your employee has had several days or weeks to settle into her role, she should feel more confident. Check in with her to make sure she’s doing well, and offer any support she may need.
 
9. Update Processes as Needed

Over time, that role you first hired for will likely change. Make sure to keep your documentation updated so that the next person who fills that role will be properly trained.
 
10. Provide Ongoing Training

Your new employee training isn’t the only instance you’ll need to provide training for. It’s always a good idea to retrain staff on skills they may be rusty on, or to introduce new skills or programs they might be interested in learning.

This article was originally published by ScheduleBase