Empowering Your Workforce: 5 Ways to Invest in Education Leaders
Leadership development is essential to retain and promote valuable talent within an organization. Investing in workplace education can help cultivate the leadership potential of employees and generate gains in various areas of the company, including training and development and career advancement. In this article, we explore five powerful ways your company can support education leaders.
Equity
Workplace education can help remove barriers created by educational inequalities, such as low socioeconomic status, which is correlated with literacy gaps, lower educational achievement, higher dropout rates, and less access to resources for college and career preparation. By providing access to the same knowledge, workplace education creates more equal opportunities for success regardless of individual background.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) education can also help create a more welcoming environment for employees from diverse ethnic, racial, and gender backgrounds. With an informed perspective on equity, leaders in the organization can be mindful about their approaches to hiring, training, mentoring, and promotion.
Advancement
Encouraging employees to earn graduate degrees is an excellent way to help aspiring leaders grow in their roles. Companies can offer full or partial financial aid packages for higher education. However, in-house development such as panel discussions, informational interviews with brand executives, or informal talks where colleagues talk about their areas of expertise can also help employees develop new skills and expand their knowledge.
Companies should make educational events and opportunities transparent so that talented employees can take the initiative to grow and develop. Paying attention to the individual motivations of employees is a good way to identify who has leadership potential.
Innovation
Workplace education can help employees stay on the cutting edge by teaching them new skills through upskilling, which can happen through professional development workshops, seminars, supervised practice, and off-site experiences.
Cross-training is another way to encourage innovation among leadership, allowing employees to perform the functions of more than one job in the organization, which can boost engagement and expand their skill sets.
To make the most out of upskilling, companies should build it into their overall framework, which is a commitment of time, effort, and resources. This investment allows brands to stay relevant in today’s quickly changing marketplaces and set the company up for long-term success in the future.
Retention
Companies that commit to their employees’ skills development have a better chance of retention, in addition to improved employee morale and job satisfaction. By working to meet the needs of leaders who wish to advance their career, workplace education initiatives demonstrate respect and appreciation for employees and encourage them to continue delivering their best performance.
Conversations with each employee can identify their skills gaps, talk about their career goals, and look at ways that the company can help them get the necessary skills to reach their potential. Frequent, informal check-ins with leadership and digital self-assessments/reflections can also be part of the company’s approach to education. Once goals are established, a development plan can be designed to fit each employee.
Returns
Investing in workplace education increases a company’s financial returns. For example, Cigna saw a 129% return on investment on their tuition assistance program. Boosting workplace education initiatives can also save money through internal promotion and increased retention.
Takeaway
As we wrap up, it’s clear that workplace education can serve as a powerful tool for nurturing the leadership potential of employees while driving significant gains across various areas of a company. By supporting education leaders, organizations can create a culture of equity and diversity, promote employee advancement opportunities, foster innovation and creativity, improve employee retention rates, and ultimately achieve significant returns on their investment.
When organizations invest in the education and development of their employees, they create a strong foundation for future growth and success. Through continuous learning and upskilling, employees are empowered to take on new challenges and opportunities, and in turn, contribute to the company’s overall progress and success.
As you consider the many benefits of workplace education, keep in mind that it is an investment in your company’s future. By creating a supportive environment for education leaders and promoting ongoing learning and development opportunities for all employees, your company can set itself apart from the competition and achieve long-term success. So, don’t wait any longer, take action now and start reaping the benefits of investing in workplace education!