Are you afraid of losing your best workers? Many companies try to prevent their employees from attending networking events, conferences, or other professional training opportunities because they’re afraid they’ll lose them.
I talk to CEOs frequently who say, “Oh, if we send them to this conference, they’ll meet somebody who will try to recruit them away from us.” Some are even afraid to let their employees be on LinkedIn because they’re worried about the connections they could make.
This type of approach isn’t just wrong, it’s also completely counter-intuitive. If you fear losing employees that much, you’ve already lost them.
The value of employee education and empowerment
Fear is one of the biggest things that holds organizations back. Companies are scared of educating and teaching their people new skills because they might leave and take those skills elsewhere. Many employees resist training others because they’re afraid that person will replace them.
There’s only one way for organizations to conquer that fear: empowerment.
If every organization is working on training their employees to be the best they can be, we all benefit. Trusting your employees to learn more and take on greater responsibility and ownership ties them closer to your organization. It also helps them get better at what they do, and that means a more effective organization for you.
Preventing professional growth hurts your company
Think about this for a moment: Who gets hurt the most if you prevent your team from growing professionally?
It’s you.
You can’t look five years ahead because you haven’t empowered the people who will enable you to take the next step in your business. You can’t be as effective in your day-to-day operations because your employees don’t know how to handle things outside of their immediate role. Your organization as a whole suffers when you hold someone back. And if you do lose one of your employees, you’re behind the eight ball when it comes to training a replacement.
It’s amazing what happens when employers get over this fear and start investing in their employees. It means something to employees when you invest in them, whether it’s through tuition reimbursement or paying for certifications or sending them to conferences. Sure, they’re building a portfolio that may be attractive to other employers, but if they’re learning and growing, chances are they won’t be looking anyway.
Every day employees turn down higher salary offers and even better benefits because they see the value of culture and an employer who invests in their employees. Every. Single. Day.
On the other side of the coin, companies that make their employees stagnate because they fear losing them will often lose them anyway. A lot of your people want to grow in their jobs. They want to learn more and use that knowledge to help your company grow. If you deny them that chance, you’re missing out on their potential and your company’s potential.
Listen to how your employees want to grow professionally and then connect them with training that accomplishes that goal. Create an empowering environment and you’ll find that instead of losing quality employees, you might gain more.
Need help structuring the right training programs and educational opportunities to empower your workforce? WhyHR can help. Contact us today.
