You’ve gone through the motions. You’ve met your compliance training requirements. Should you stop there? Great managers are always looking for new and meaningful ways to supplement training with relevant issues. From going “green” to securing sensitive information, new, important issues are arising every day as the workplace evolves.
Supplemental training can align employees with company values, enrich personal and professional development, and help employees adapt to the global business environment. Here are five continuing education areas to consider implementing in your training program:
1. Sustainability
Everywhere you turn, people are becoming more aware of the environment, and sustainable practices are becoming prevalent in many company cultures. What does this mean for your business? What are some ways to be more “green” and sustainable? Including sustainability in your training program is a great way to promote “green” conscious behavior in your employees and preserve the environment. Chances are, your employees will appreciate the proactive gesture.
Courses to consider:
2. Cross-cultural Awareness
With the increasing globalization and interconnectedness of the business world, you and your employees will spend at least some time interacting with an organization or individual from a different country. While it may seem as if business is business regardless of location, a training brush-up on how to interact with other cultures can go a long way in nurturing and sustaining cross-cultural business connections. Cross-cultural awareness training is quickly becoming a must for businesses.
Courses to consider:
- Avoiding the 7 Deadly Sins of Global Leadership Development—A “Design Thinking” Approach
- Adapting to Change in a Global Business Environment
- Going Global with HR Systems
3. Professional Development
Personal and professional development training for your employees is the gift that keeps on giving. Employees that are happy, motivated, and inspired are generally more productive and innovative in their jobs. Sometimes all it takes is a little encouragement and positive reinforcement to enrich your employees’ work experience. Providing personal and professional development training empowers your employees to be proactive in their careers, focused in their efforts, and driven to institute change and improvement in all facets of life.
Courses to consider:
Taking Charge of Your Life
Becoming a Force for Positive Change
Achieve Your Goals Amid Day-to-Day Demands
4. Ethics
While large companies often have published and monitored ethical compliance standards to adhere to, there is significant gray-area surrounding what is required of small- to medium-sized enterprises. Implementing ethics training not only instills positive, legal values into your employees but it can also help reduce your company’s accountability if a lawsuit is brought against an employee.
Courses to consider:
The Impact of Ethics in the Workplace
Business Ethics Advanced
The Law: Compliance Basics
5. Online Security Awareness
With the prominence of the Internet in the business world today, security breaches and information leaks are a constant threat. Even if you have a security strategy and IT management in place, it is important for employees to understand the implications of the unsecured use of company and personal resources online. The best security policies and controls are essentially useless if employees don’t follow them or are “tricked” into violating them.
Courses to consider:
- Security Awareness Briefing
- Information Security Awareness Training for Organizations
- Social Engineering (Information Security) Awareness Training
Training should be viewed as an investment in your employees, not merely a requirement to be filled. By providing your employees with a wealth of relevant resources, you can enrich their work experience and engage them in new ways to foster and grow your business.
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