October 2011
 Blade Nzimande, Minister of Higher Education and Training, recently called upon every workplace to become a “training space” when he addressed delegates at the launch of the KwaZulu-Natal Inter-Seta Forum. At Compuscan Academy we would like to reiterate his call and again focus on the importance and advantages of work integrated learning to create an effective and skilled workforce that is dedicated to achieving company goals.
Perhaps the most important factor to remember when planning for skills development is that it needs to become an integral part of your business’ objectives and culture if you are to reap the many rewards it has to offer. One way to ensure that skills development receives the spotlight and importance it deserves within your business is to re-examine your corporate culture so it does not position it as an unnecessary expense but rather as an essential and vital asset to the company’s survival and growth. For this reason it needs to become part of corporate culture and the company’s guiding principles so every employee understands and pursues their own development and growth.
Once a focus on employee development becomes absorbed into the company culture and priorities, businesses will see the true value and advantages skills development holds for their business.
By nurturing the growth of employees and placing a focus on skills development, companies can expect to see the following benefits:
- Customer satisfaction and customer retention become core focuses
All too often customer service skills are not a priority for businesses and this usually stems from a lack of focused customer service training for staff. By ensuring your staff are properly trained in how to retain customers you will increase your profits and grow your business.
- Interpersonal relationships are improved
Training and seminars for teams and departments can often strengthen employee relationships and build a stronger team which helps to eliminate conflict.
- Increases work satisfaction and employee morale
Staff feel a sense of importance and that they are valued by their employer. They also feel that they have stable employment and the need to look for a new employer is reduced.
Educated staff are productive staff. By learning about the latest industry developments through workshops and seminars staff are able to better perform in their positions.
- Greater workforce flexibility
It is important to broaden the skills of your employees so that they can flexibly perform different functions and tasks within the business.
- Saving on outsourcing costs
Up-skilling staff rather than outsourcing not only saves the company money but also allows staff to grow their skills.
- Improved final product and service
Better educated and trained staff will lead to an improved final product and improved services.
With increased productivity, skilled staff, improved products and services it will not be long before your company sees an increase in revenue.
It is essential that companies do not underestimate the importance of up-skilling their workforce and investing in their staff – it is an investment that you will see the rewards of for years to come.
Compuscan Academy frequently hosts seminars and offers a variety of courses for industry professionals. If you would like to find out more about possible courses, workshops or seminars on offer by Compuscan Academy please contact us on 021 888 6000 or email
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