How to Nurture Talent in the Workplace

There are many responsibilities that an employer will take on when they hire an employee, but perhaps one aspect than can often get overlooked is the nurturing of talent. It’s important to remember, how you train and nurture an employee will be your legacy to them not only whilst they are in the job role, but as they go on to pursue other aspects of life too. No matter the industry the skills we learn in a job role are imperative to our success at work and can also help to motivate us to accomplish our dreams.

All businesses should have a well-structured training program in place which focuses on not only improving an employee’s current skill set but also boosts their morale too. However, training employees is only part way there to fully understanding how to nurture talent and in order for talent to succeed within your business and industry, employees need to be fully supported through a cohesive and comprehensive scheme which nurtures their existing talents and improves upon weaknesses.

Nurturing talent is essential to help your business develop and with the UK ranking career progression within the organisation as 5^th most important in a recent survey it’s an area that shouldn’t be neglected it you wish to hold on to talent. Whether you have a plan in place to nurture talent already or want to update your current scheme, these tops tips to nurture talent will provide a helpful guide to aid your training program.

Use Natural Talent

We all have a talent that we excel at more than other skills and whether that’s on show at work or not, we all have a skill that can be harnessed to help us throughout our working life. Employers should take time to assess employees and understand their current skillset and use its strengths to fit into the wider workplace.

Everyone is different and a diverse workforce will help to make your business a stronger place when combined with people with different expertise. Once natural talents have been assessed a training program can be started to nurture skills which are lacking.

Training

One of the best ways to nurture talent in the workplace is through training. A comprehensive training strategy will not only enhance the overall quality of your staff but is also an attractive employment benefit for many prospective employees.

When putting together a training program it is essential to assess what you wish to achieve from the session. Whether you are looking to improve communication skills, increase productivity rates or train employees on new software, your end goal will ultimately define the type of training scheme you introduce.

Review Sessions

Many businesses will have review sessions for employees already in place, however, it’s important to stick to these all year round. Plan in employee reviews as often as your business requires, this could be weekly, monthly, quarterly or annually depending on the type of business and industry.

Completing regular reviews will allow you to assess an employee’s workload and identify areas of strength and weakness. Set clear goals and use time management tools to help employees plan their daily schedules and workloads.

Recognise Achievement

Recognising achievement and success will help to improve employee wellbeing and rewarding employees for both individual and team successes, not matter how small or big will nurture talent to feel more confident in their abilities.

If tough tasks have been set initiate a reward to help motivate employees and set team activities to get teams working as one not against each other. We all enjoy positive feedback so if a goal has been accomplished or succeeded it’s essential to celebrate and recognize achievement.

Flexible Working

The recent changes in employment law means that employees now have the right to request flexible working conditions once they have passed 26 weeks’ continuous service. The new flexible working law has opened up new working conditions to the country, where previously it was only available for those who have children up until the age of 17.

Flexible working will help to show that you value your employees dedication and give them confidence that you trust them to complete tasks in the time you set. Creating a better work life balance for your employees can help to result in a happier and ultimately more productive workforce. It also enables working outside of the traditional 9-5 and could help to attract a wider range of employees to your business.

A good nurturing program will not only help to enhance productivity within your business but also improve and sustain employee loyalty, which will result in a better trained more enthusiastic workforce overall.