As your business evolves and grows, your employees need to keep pace with new developments. Evaluating whether your business needs training or not is the first step. Once you have identified gaps in the skills your employeesneed and those they currently have, you will be in a better position to decide what type of training is needed and who in your organization needs it. Training can provide tremendous advantages for your business. You can improve customer service and employee productivity, motivate your staff and keep your operation current. Remember to analyze your needs at the outset and choose the right type of training for your requirements.

How does employee training benefit your company? what difference does it make? can it really make you more competitive? Yes, it can. For one, an employee training program improves your ability to adapt to changes in the market place. Because your staff is learning and working efficiently you can shift to new ideas more quickly. Training also ensures you have quality people on hand when you expand. Because employees know what to do, they can grow your business. Besides that, training builds a motivated and committed team thats loyal to your company. It also creates a pool of qualified replacements for your employees who leave. Ongoing training helps you fill voids with good people. Lastly, training is just fair to your customers, whom you depend on for your livelihood. Skilled employees will impress customers to come back. Together, these reasons boost your competitive edge, as your provide training for your employees.

Its tempting to put off staff training indefinitely, waiting until there is more time or more money. But for your to succeed, your employees's skill sets must be complete and up-to-date. Employee development is one of the most important investments you can make in your business. When you do take on a training effort, you will want to be sure your are spending your money wisely. Its therefore best to create an overall training strategy to steer your plans for staff development. Here are some guidelines to help make your training efforts successful. 

Analyze your needs Take the time to carefully analyze your needs when designing your training plan. This will help you choose the right type of training for your requirements. 

Identify skill gaps You can do this by looking at a written job description (make sure you have one) and comparing the skills the position requires with your employees' current abilities. Understanding where there may be gaps will help you identify the types of training you need. 

Prioritize Assign the training you would like to provide into categories. Is it mandatory or nice-to-have? if it's absolutely required, a training effort becomes imperative. If it reflects an ideal situation that isn't immediately feasible you will know to plan for it in the longer term. 

Plan and deliver the training Once you have assessed and prioritized the need for training, the next step is to secure what type of training you will use and how you will offer it. There are several factors to consider: 

Types of training available

Delivery options One-on-one vs group sessions, e-learning vs in-person instruction, on-site or off-site. These questions will be answered by a blend of factors: what is available, what best suits your needs and what you can afford. Though nowadays, off-site training or know as outbound training is more popular than on-site training as to avoid being bored or caught in routine as well as to gain new spirit being in new place. Training development combined with fun activities most of the times are more exciting and more meaningful for the employees. 

taken from about.com guide Susan M. Heathfield