Many companies view training as an expense, or even a waste of time and money. One business owner says “Why should I pay to train my people only to have them leave to go work at another company?” I like what George Jutten, CFO for Washington Group International, says about that: “Would he rather they not be trained and stay?”

In reality, companies receive a huge return on investment (ROI) for providing good training:

• The American Society for Training and Development determined that firms training more than 80% of their workers are able to attract and retain employees better than competitors of similar size and purpose that don’t invest in training.
• Research by the United States Council on Competitiveness found that a 10% increase in employee training impacts productivity even more than a 10% increase in work hours or stock options.
• Here’s an eye opener: The Emerging Workforce Study found that in organizations where training is considered poor, 41% of employees plan to leave within a year. But in companies where training is considered good, that number is only 12%.That’s a likelihood of 29% better retention just by providing good training.

Should we invest more in training to have good retention like that? Well, the Society for Human Resource Management says the average cost of replacing an employee is equal to his or her annual salary plus benefits (between $38,000 and $44,000 nationwide). So, yes, improving retention by providing good training provides a significant ROI. Unfortunately, “money saved from retaining employees” isn’t a line item in the budget, so it often gets overlooked.

SPECIAL NOTICE:
If you live in or near Southern Idaho, I’ll be giving a 90-minute presentation entitled Investing in Your Workforce While Maintaining Profitability on the morning of April 10th. This presentation is a function of the Ada County Commerce & Labor Employer’s Association.  

Location: IDACOMM — 350 S. Mitchell Street in Boise
Date & Time: Tues, Apr. 10, 7:30 am - 9:30 am
Cost: $12 — includes continental breakfast. All proceeds go to the Commerce & Labor Employer Association Scholarship Fund.
Reservations requested: Contact John Russ at Idaho Commerce & Labor — 208.332.3575 x3303

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Filed in Work, Business, Opinion, Training, Motivation, Management, Leadership