By CEDIA - Thu, Jan 16, 2025 - Blog
When it comes to employee retention, professional development is a key incentive to stay in a role. This is where a workforce development programme comes into play.
These programmes foster career development by giving learners specific courses to hone their skills or try new ones. They’re also essential for business continuity. In the Australia, one in eight Australian businesses have reduced training investments, potentially risking $2 billion worth of skills annually.
For better business performance and happier staff, it may be time to implement your own training programmes.
In the smart home industry, there is a significant need for upskilling to keep up with the pace of technological advances. These include areas such as:
If you’re looking to introduce new initiatives, it’s important to address your business needs. This may involve an audit of the services you’re offering compared to customer demand and changing technologies. With this information, you can tailor training to specific skill sets, such as digital transformation or technical skills in smart homes.
Your workforce development initiatives need to align with the overall strategic goals of the business. For example, you may be looking to improve:
Ideal for both existing and new employees, these learning opportunities will help you to develop your product and service offering.
A supportive working environment is essential for employee retention, and workforce training is a key factor within this.
It’s important that everybody has the same opportunities, whether they’re an entry-level candidate or more experienced. Offering equal opportunities will also impact the well-being of those from minority backgrounds.
You may be looking to enter new markets, build new products or even upskill into different industries. On the job training will help to align with the long-term goals of the business, investing in your biggest asset: the staff.
Thinking about your long-term goals and ROI, your continuous learning plan should focus on adaptability. This is especially pertinent in the smart home industry, where team members are working against evolving technology every day.
Ensure your workforce development strategies are flexible and scalable, leaving room for different technologies rather than restricting staff. You can draw on the expertise of external membership organisations such as CEDIA.
We offer certifications and memberships that help you put these learning initiatives in place. These qualifications will also help you gain credibility with new hires and customers, benchmarking your skills against the standards of an industry body.
Becoming a member of an industry body like CEDIA will ensure you’re always ahead of the curve with your development opportunities. For best results, remember to:
Every member of your organisation should have access to training sessions so that they can understand industry trends and improve their skills. CEDIA offers an in-depth range of resources from accredited learning providers to help you stay ahead.
To get the best from your workforce development program, you can draw on technology and educational resources. These include:
E-learning and digital tools help build competencies and track performance management.
Joining with educational partners and industry associations gives you access to the latest expertise to bridge those skills gaps.
Platforms like LinkedIn are a great place to access expert insights and read case studies on your industry.
To measure the effectiveness of these new skills, set organisational KPIs. These may be reaching a certain level within a certification or even seeing the skills in action, such as home installations.
Keep a record of these and maintain regular feedback loops with staff. You may wish to adapt your training programs based on feedback, as well as overall business needs.
A workforce development programme helps staff learn new or build on existing skills. It measures progress with KPIs and can align with an organisation’s overall goals.
A good workforce development plan will be accessible to everyone. It will include clear, measurable objectives and will play to an individual’s core competencies. It may make use of tech such as e-learning platforms to help with progress.
Workforce development objectives are to upskill staff and teach them new things. They can also improve employee retention and increase ROI for a business. This may involve approaching new products or markets in line with new skills learnt
A workforce development plan should be accessible, measurable and adaptable. Learning should never stop, but instead be aided by mentoring and coaching with regular feedback.
Thu, Jan 16, 2025
CEDIA Launches the 2025 Smart Home Awards with New Categories
Thu, Jan 16, 2025
How To Start A Workforce Development Programme
Tue, Jan 14, 2025
CEDIA Business Toolkit for Financial Success
Fri, Jan 3, 2025
Neuroinclusive Design for Smart Home Professionals
Thu, Jan 2, 2025
Immersive Audio with XYZ Syntax
Thu, Dec 19, 2024
What is 4D Sound?