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According to the Office of National Statistics, productivity in the UK workplace remains below the long-term pre-2008 trend. Training is an effective way to boost your workers’ output. Not only does it upskill employees to perform better, it can also reduce staff turnover and improve engagement. Here we look at some of the major factors that can affect your company’s productivity, and suggest some specific workplace training courses that could increase the effectiveness of your workforce.
Change management training
Organisational change, although inevitable in every workplace, can cause employees a great deal of stress. A study by McKinsey and Company found that 70% of change management initiatives fail to make their intended impact. A 2012 survey explored the impact of organisational change on the stress levels of New Zealand public health workers. It found that the major contributors to stress levels were a lack of consultation and support, greater demands, fewer resources and the reactions of colleagues.
This highlights the need for a well-managed transition process, in which training can play a major role. Courses such as Change Management can help leaders to support their teams through the transition, manage their own responses to change and ensure communication is effective.
Coaching skills training
Your managers are a major asset when it comes to the productivity of your workforce. They can foster employee engagement and retention, and boost the effectiveness of your training and development strategy. So equipping them with coaching skills could have wide-ranging productivity benefits for your organisation.
A team that is coached to collaborate, learn, take on new tasks and own their personal performance will inevitably be a more productive one. When confidence, motivation and engagement are high, managers can delegate more tasks to their employees, leaving them time to focus on strategy and planning. Courses such as Coaching Skills and Principles of Coaching are an excellent starting point.
Conflict resolution training
A 2014 study found that 24% of people have experienced conflict at work that distracted or prevented them from doing their job over the past 12 months. Over a third of these conflicts continued for more than one month. Effects included missing deadlines, loss of confidence, making mistakes, taking time off or leaving the organisation. This highlights the potential productivity loss that can result from conflict.
Two thirds of the respondents who had experienced conflict had asked their managers for help, but only half of them received satisfactory support. Managers who are poorly equipped to manage conflicts within their teams may end up experiencing stress or even escalating the conflict further.
Training your managers to appropriately handle disagreements before they start to impact productivity could pay off. Workplace training courses such as Managing Team Conflict and Conflict Resolution give managers the skills to identify when and how to intervene appropriately. Training your team members could also help them to self-manage without the need for manager intervention. Courses such as Constructive Conversations could help prevent a difficult discussion escalating into a conflict.
Workplace Training Courses - Knights Agency
Effective communication training
A 2018 study by the Economist Intelligence Unit found that the top five effects of poor organisational communication are:
Added stress
Delay or failure to complete a project
Low morale
Missed performance goal
Obstacles to innovation
All of these factors feed into productivity, highlighting the importance of effective communication. Improving communication within your organisation requires a holistic approach. This may include reviewing your IT systems, updating company policies, setting up lines of accountability and offering training to your leaders. Workplace training courses such as Effective Communication are a good first step towards culture change.
Workplace training courses from a specialist provider
Knight’s Agency provides a range of specialist workplace training courses. Whether you have a clear idea of what you need, or require a little help to develop a strategy, our experts can help. We will work with you to design a programme to fit your business objectives. So whether you want to give your productivity a boost, or address a specific skills gap, get in touchvia the form below, or call 0207 112 8412.
