Employees – Our Biggest Asset
We all acknowledge that our employees are our biggest asset.
I would like to add that employees are the only asset of an organization that appreciate in value. Particularly, in a learning organization.
So in a turbulent business environment, why is it that we first think of job cuts? Currently, in the auto industry? Retail? Food and beverage? Etc, etc, etc.
The problem is that we account for employees as a cost and not an asset!
Strangely, our equipment depreciate in value….and we account for them as an asset!
Education & Training
Education prepares you for tomorrow’s responsibilities. This is how/why people appreciate in value. The reason people stay in an organization.
Education with action leads to Learning.
Education without action is easily forgotten. A clear Cost Of Poor Quality (COPQ).
Training improves your skills for today’s responsibilities.
The problem is that we measure Number of Man-hours of Training per Employee! This measure includes Education. We are driven by this measure.
The by-product of this approach is that we train and educate the idle people in our departments. Is that a COPQ?
Strategic Goal
Is Training the subject of your Strategic Goal? If yes, that is a problem. A key COPQ.
Training should be the means to achieve a Strategic Goal. Training just-in-time for action.
With a just-in-time approach to Training the ROI (Return on Individuals) is guaranteed to be significant.
Random Thoughts:
- We don’t train municipal workers in order to create jobs. How else can we seed a pot holes epidemic in Mumbai?
- Military campuses have great roads.
- We don’t train municipal supervisors in order to create jobs. How else can we engage a committee to collect Mumbai garbage?
- Military campuses have great housekeeping.
