Why Talent Development is Crucial in Tough Times

Talent Development is at the foundation of highly successful organizations, leading to advanced customer engagement, increased innovative thinking, greater retention, lower costs and faster growth. During times of reduction and financial constraints, the leaner the team, the more crucial training and talent development are to the organization. This is particularly true if the business objectives are customer-facing and count on product knowledge along with sales acumen. Sounds like most business objectives, right?

When times are tough and budgets are tight, training and talent development are often seen as one of the first line items to be cut. Senior leaders and number crunchers must move away from believing training should be first on the chopping block, understanding this is an expense to help achieve company goals, not a superfluous expenditure. However, one caution here: if there is not complete buy-in at every level, primarily top down, the program will not be sustainable and the investment will be worthless.

Investing in human capital is foundational to business growth as well as customer satisfaction. Employees feel more valued when corporations spend the time and money to invest in them, leading to a positive relationship between company and worker. This translates to the customer in knowledge and confidence of the product, services and support. If an employee feels like they are being invested in, they will feel valued and thereby vested in what they do internally and externally.

For optimal outcomes, marketing, communications and training must provide consistency in their messages and presentation. Unless sales and product training objectives align with business (corporate and sales) objectives, the investment will be meaningless and ROI insignificant. It doesn’t matter how good the product or marketing is if the message is lost due to ineffective training.

Finally, the most valuable training incorporates the company’s own culture and values. Whether using outsourced or in-house resources, delivery must be applicable as well as relevant to the organization and its culture. Generic, off-the-shelf training is a short-term fix, like putting a Band-Aid on a wound. It treats a symptom temporarily, but does not heal and often masks the true organizational issues. This necessitates that prior to any training, a good evaluation and needs analysis is completed to ensure the appropriate issues are addressed and culture and values are aligned.

Carol Broadwell Dietrich is President of Training Systems International, Inc. based in Atlanta, Georgia