Training Your People Without Draining Your Profits
A classic CFO/CEO exchange:
CFO: “What happens if we invest in developing our people and they leave us?”
CEO: “What happens if we don’t and they stay?
Many businesses of all sizes find themselves in this conundrum and this can be especially challenging for small businesses with limited resources to invest in training and development of their people.
A business can focus on short-term profitability by minimizing training expense or they can create professional development programs to increase the competency and efficiency of their people and their business for the long run.
CareerSource Florida can make this decision easier with the Incumbent Worker Training (IWT) Program. The Incumbent Worker Training Program, funded by the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), reimburses existing, for-profit businesses 50% of employer-driven training.
The next question that typically arises is the notorious WIIFM (what’s in it for me?). IWT is a scenario where everyone wins.
Employers win with:
- Increased Competitiveness
- Skilled Workforce
- Increased Productivity
- Increased Profits
- Company Growth
- Reduced Turnover
Employees win with:
- Advancement Opportunities
- Increased Job Opportunities
- Industry Recognized Credentials
- Job Retention
- Transportable/Transferrable Skills
The State of Florida wins with:
- A better trained workforce that helps drive economic growth
One success story involves a chain of auto service and tire centers in Central Florida that wasn’t able to find ASE Certified mechanics. The business requires an ASE Certified mechanic be on duty at each of their locations. I assisted the business in partnering with the local vocational school to design a certification program, and with CareerSource Polk to assist with a training grant to offset a portion of the training costs. This partnership allowed the business to certify employees who performed tire installation and oil changes. Over a one year period those employees received their ASE Certification and a nice bump in pay. The business was then able to backfill the oil/tire change positions.
How can your business connect with this valuable resource? Contact the Business Services Unit at your local CareerSource office.
The Incumbent Worker Training Program allows businesses to stretch their existing training budgets without sacrificing short-term profitability.
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