Training is one of the most important aspects in any business as it provides the continued ability to both improve and operate at a high level of success. Done properly it builds a foundation of ideas, values, and goals that embody the organizational culture. Bill Reynolds of CompEraser has provided a fantastic piece on the importance of this role for all managers on an ongoing basis:

All managers face the task of training their employees, in the broadest sense of the term. In addition to knowing how to select training for subordinates, you must know how to perform the role of trainer. Managers are called on to help new hires, for example. Even if the personnel department provides general orientation training, it is the duty of the unit manager to see that the new employee learns to perform the new job correctly.

Too many managers take this task too lightly. Ineffective managers typically hand new employees a manual and tell them to read it. This hardly suffices as on-the-job training. Another on-the-job training error is to tell the new hire to watch a seasoned employee to learn how the job is done. There is no guarantee that the experienced employee is doing the job correctly or can teach someone else how to do the job.

In the meantime, the new hire feels like a pest and is reluctant to ask too many questions. Some managers, like drill sergeants, dictate job procedures and command new hires to perform these correctly without asking too many questions. Rather than adopting these procedures, you must work closely with new employees to see that they develop the right work skills and attitudes.

You should also train in the event of employee performance problems, when an employee’s job is expanded or changed, or when you want to develop a subordinate for a new project or promotion. In essence, whenever you provide feedback, or coach, you are training.

In addition to directly training employees, you must provide support to subordinates who return to the job after attending a training seminar. It is your job to help them transfer what they have learned from the training program to the work situation. This may mean letting them try a new approach or test a new idea. It may mean removing attitudinal or structural barriers so that employees can incorporate training concepts into the daily work routine.

Check out the HRSentry resources for more tips on training as well as a series of desktop training programs ranging from workplace safety to sexual harassment.