Invest in Your Workers so They Invest in You

Small business owners put a lot of effort and time into figuring out how to keep customers happy, which they should.

However, they must also think about investing in their workers to keep them satisfied as well.

Without quality workers who care about their job and the organization, no business can last for long or achieve the level of success desired.

Investing in Your Workers

You may not be sure how you can invest in your employees, especially if you are a small business owner and don't have a lot of cash in reserve. You can use creative solutions to help you and your staff.

• Pair an entry-level employee with a more experienced person in the company to provide in-house training.

• Establish mentoring relationships for ongoing support.

• Create in-house training with experienced personnel.

• Send staff to outside seminars.

• Pair up with other businesses in the area to create a learning seminar.

• Find online classes and provide ongoing access to staff.

These are all low-cost options to help your employees become more knowledgeable about their jobs and other positions within the company.

If you have staff that are interested in furthering their education in a formal classroom or to obtain a degree, consider assisting with their expenses as you can afford. It may be to pay for books or a portion of the tuition or you may offer a performance-based reimbursement.

For example, if they maintain a grade A average, you would pay 40% of their tuition. If it drops to a grade B average, reimbursement would be at 30%.

In addition, you can set other requirements such as the type of degree you will contribute towards or the amount of time they must remain employed with the company to qualify for the assistance.

Invest in Your Company

The idea behind helping your staff to obtain a degree or further their education is two-fold:

• Employees that feel appreciated and receive these benefits often are happier in their jobs and will continue with the same company.

• Employees that receive education assistance are better trained to promote within the company, thereby reducing the costs of hiring and training new staff.

You also end up with employees that are as dedicated to the company as you are and that will stay with you and invest themselves in helping the organization grow and be successful.

Know What Works

As the article “How to Invest in Your Career” says, you need to have a plan.

To find out what would work for your employees, you need to ask them. Find out what their future goals are and where they see themselves in five or 10 years.

While you can't promise to fulfill every dream, it can steer you in the right direction to provide educational opportunities that will benefit them and your company.

It pays to spend money to invest in your employees as you can afford to because in the end, you will see a return on your investment.

Your staff will be more knowledgeable and dedicated and invest themselves in your business.

Everyone wins when you make your staff a priority.

About the author

Joyce Morse is an author who writes on a variety of topics, including marketing and technology.

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