RISING STARS THE CASE FOR FORMAL EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT Gordon G. Goertz Jr. Walden University EIDT Training and Development Dr. Judith Pochran June 22, 2014

THE NEED FOR A FORMAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM IN TODAY’S MARKETPLACE: Attracting and retaining talent is a major challenge for companies (Noe, 2013) The more responsive we become to our customers’ needs, the more critical it is for our employees to develop new skills to meet those needs (Noe, 2013) Employees are the company’s most important asset, and development of that asset is crucial to remaining competitive (sixsigmaonline, n.d.)

THE BENEFITS OF A FORMAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM LOYALTY: Employee development communicates caring for employees, and caring for employees breeds loyalty among employees (Lipman, 2013) EFFICIENCY: “The better qualified and capable the employees are, the greater the efficiency and productivity of the company” (sixsigmaonline, n.d.) CONSISTENCY: A structured development program ensures that the employee experience will be consistent across the enterprise (Frost, n.d.)

THREE PROPOSED TYPES OF FORMAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM JOB ROTATION: (Noe, 2013) Employees get exposed to skills in different areas of the department or company Employees gain a greater perspective of and appreciation for the company’s overall position and goals The company gets a more well-rounded, more skilled employee MENTORING: (Noe, 2013) A productive senior employee helps a less-experienced employee grow in various job functions Mentor develops interpersonal skills and experiences increased self-esteem Mentee gains important skill development and exposure to senior management

SUMMARY Formal employee development is a key factor in companies’ performance, stability, and growth. It communicates a positive message to employees, declaring that the company cares about the employee as an individual as well as seeing the employee as part of the whole. In her 2010 article, Unleashing Positivity in the Workplace, Ann Pace notes several examples of the benefits of positivity. “Those employees,” Pace said, “who view their work as a calling or career and completely adopt the organization’s goals tend to produce more positively deviant (excelling above the norm) performance.” As we continue to develop our employees, fitting them with the skills needed not only to perform their current duties, but also to prepare them for their futures, I believe we can also expect to see outstanding results.

RESOURCES Frost, S. (n.d.). The Importance of Training & Development in the Workplace | Chron.com. Retrieved from development-workplace html Lipman, R. (2013, January 29). Why Employee Development Is Important, Neglected And Can Cost You Talent - Forbes. Retrieved from planning-is-important-neglected-and-can-cost-you-young-talent/ Noe, R. A. (2013). Employee training and development (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Irwin/McGraw-Hill. Pace, A. (2010). Unleashing Positivity in the Workplace. Training and Development, 64(1), Retrieved from Academic Research Complete Database Stolovitch, H. D., Keeps, E. J., & Rosenberg, M. J. (2011). Telling ain't training: Updated, expanded, and enhanced. Alexandria, Va: ASTD Press. Why Employee Development Is Important. (n.d.). Retrieved from employee-development-is-important.html