How do innovative tech companies train their employees?
Companies with high employee engagement reap a number of valuable benefits: productivity, innovation, employee retention and loyalty. One key way that companies can drive employee engagement and differentiate themselves in a competitive job market is through their Learning & Development (L&D) programs.
Leading tech companies today understand this and are creating new learning initiatives to drive employee engagement and job satisfaction. Here are some examples of learning and development programs in the workplace:
Pixar: Pixar University offers required training as well as optional classes for different disciplines. Pixar President Ed Catmull says, “Pixar University helps reinforce the mindset that we’re all learning and it’s fun to learn together” according to Harvard Business Review. They support their directors by empowering them to make decisions and take care not to undermine their authority. Directors take development into their own hands by asking for help from a “creative brain trust” of filmmakers, a pillar of their peer-based process.
Salesforce: Salesforce customizes Learning & Development to the individual employee to increase productivity and engagement. Employees and managers design one-on-one learning journeys to meet each individual employee’s unique personal development needs and goals.
Etsy: People are empowered to learn from others at all different levels within the company. At “Etsy School” employees both teach and learn in classes on a wide range of topics like tap dancing or how to navigate a difficult conversation. The Etsy Learning and Development team helps people find a focus for their career development.
OverDrive: Employees are provided with a Professional Growth Planner at OverDrive. This guide showcases opportunities available for learning and development and helps people decide what is best for them. Employees and managers are encouraged to work together and track progress throughout the year.
How can you launch L&D initiatives?
Focus on mentorships and coaching
Train new managers to lead, manage and give frequent feedback. Employees are more engaged and productive when their bosses are good people managers.
Regularly track employee engagement and job satisfaction. Measure results and solicit feedback. Design and test new L&D initiatives. Strive to constantly improve these metrics.
Adapted from Medium and CultureAmp