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Some of the world’s most successful companies can attribute their success to retaining quality employees. They’ve learned the formula for attracting and maintaining a talented and satisfied workforce requires more than offering the highest salary (not that more money doesn’t help).
A substantial 60 percent of employees surveyed by Glassdoor said benefits and perks are a major factor in considering whether to accept a job offer, while an even more impressive 79 percent said they would prefer new or additional benefits or perks over a pay increase.
One benefit that often falls toward the top of that list? Training and development opportunities. It should be no surprise, then, that 94 percent of more than 3,000 U.S. professionals surveyed by LinkedIn said they would stay with a company longer if there was an investment in their learning.
Of course, just any training presentation isn’t going to fit the bill. An effective training and development program will share common characteristics, including:
- Relevancy to the job and company
- Alignment with company objectives
- Goals and metrics to gauge program effectiveness
- Content aligned with modern learning methods
- Creative activities
- Ongoing participation
- Reinforcement of learned knowledge and skills
While any successful company training program will be customized to the business and industry, each will accomplish two underlying goals: They teach employees how to innovate, and they train workers to manage change effectively.
These skills can be taught through a variety of training programs, although the following five career development courses can benefit nearly any employee, including:
1. Effective communication
2. Project management
3. Leadership
4. Time management
5. Diversity
While plenty of companies are only starting to develop more complete training and development programs, a few already have found the right formula and implemented successful courses. These companies serve a variety of industries, but the best company training programs share common elements of variety, opportunity and accessibility.
Other businesses can learn some great lessons from some of the best company training programs, including:
Marriott International Inc.
Marriott is such a massive company— the international conglomerate employs more than 200,000 employees across more than 4,400 properties in 85 countries and territories— that there are countless opportunities for career advancement.
The company answers these opportunities by providing several career development programs to prepare workers for a variety of career paths within the organization. Courses are available both virtually and in person, and they cover important topics like leadership, management and work-life balance. Marriott offers both internships for undergraduate students, as well as post-graduate programs for those who want to launch a career in the hospitality industry.
Dollar General Corporation
Named to Training Magazine’s Top 100 Hall of Fame in 2021, Dollar General Corporation employs workers at more than 17,000 stores in 46 states. It prides itself in providing career development opportunities to all its employees, whether they work in a store, a distribution center, a support center or the company’s international sourcing offices.
Dollar General’s award-winning training programs not only provide a foundation of retail and supply chain skills that set workers from any background on a satisfying career path in the industry, but they also offer more advanced professional development and leadership training for associates who hope to further advance their careers.
Amazon
Amazon places a focus on training and development from the start. Before Amazon employees begin their work with the company, they must complete an intensive, month-long new-hire training and development program, ensuring that every worker starts from the best possible position.
But Amazon doesn’t stop promoting professional development after its more than 245,000 employees are on the job. The online retailer prepays 95 percent of tuition costs— up to $12,000 toward a certificate or associate’s degree— for employees to participate in further training courses after completing one year of employment.
After vowing to invest $700 million to retrain 100,000 employees in 2019, Amazon provides nontechnical workers with opportunities to learn technical skills, and it even offers its own Virtual Contact Center that specifically trains employees to work from home successfully.
AT&T
The global telecommunications provider supports its employees’ professional development through multiple endeavors. AT&T offers a robust tuition assistance program to promote affordable higher education within its workforce, and it provides a variety of employee training programs so workers can advance their skills and careers.
Through AT&T University, employees can access professional development opportunities in subjects like leadership and management, and thanks to the company’s partnership with Udacity, workers can participate in online, self-paced courses for non-degree programs in valuable subjects like mobile development and data analysis.
To top it all off, AT&T worked with Udacity and Georgia Tech to develop the first online Master of Science in Computer Science degree for both employees and anyone hoping to advance in a technical career.
