Maximising Training Budgets in Tough Times

There is no running away from the fact that the economy has been massively affected by the pandemic this year; and many businesses are struggling as a result. We aren’t just talking about the likes of the big brand names from the high street. Businesses from all sectors are being financially impacted.

Changes in Learning

There have been lots of changes with learning and development recently, with an 80% increase in the number of businesses and governments purchasing online training courses. Giving your staff the opportunity to improve their skills has never been more important, particularly as their roles may have had to change recently.

With EU workers leaving the UK, another challenge businesses are facing is a skills shortage. When you look at the figures, it costs 38% of an employee’s annual salary to replace a member of staff. Therefore training your current staff is a great investment. Not only will you save money on recruitment costs, but training within the business means you will have more engaged employees who are motivated to improve their position within the company.

Online Training is Key

Of course when businesses are struggling financially, one of the first budgets to be cut is often training. Why spend money investing in staff when you are barely breaking even? What you need to remember is that mandatory compliance training must not be cut back. It could put employees at risk, and also lead to the business receiving large fines.

Online training is a much more budget-friendly alternative to traditional learning. Online courses are extremely effective, and tend to have higher success rates over courses carried out within a normal classroom environment. Here are some other key advantages of online training:

• Reduced costs for both training and travel
• Employees are out of the business for less time
• There is less time needed to be allocated to training
• Employees are able to revisit the learning at any stage in order to reinforce learning
• Training can fit around the employee’s job role, and even be carried out in their own time
• Using online training tools has operational, compliance and cost benefits

Forward-thinking SMEs

Many businesses are coming to understand the benefits of enrolling their employees on online learning courses. They are the perfect solution to improving the knowledge and skills of a workforce, without eating into precious time during the day. As online courses are also available at any time, staff are able to go back and revisit any topics that they had particular struggles with.

A knowledgeable and skilled workforce is going to be the main thing that sets your business apart from your competitors in the current climate. So why not enrol your team today? For more information on the training courses that Brooks & Kirk provide, please email the team at training@brooksandkirk.co.uk or call 01205 805 155.