Develop Your Workforce in 2015

2015 is going to be a big year for the Philippines. By the end of the year, we and all our ASEAN neighbors will be able to trade goods and services freely, which means increased competition, higher standards, and a freer flow of employees. In order to keep your workforce cohesive and up to the rapidly rising ASEAN standard, employers must develop their top talent and nurture their employees’ professional development.

Everything starts with a good hire

First things first; get the right people. Evaluate your employees and make sure you have the right people in the right position. It’s not too late to do this for your entire company! The integration is set to happen at the end of 2015, so start evaluating employees now. Find out which of your employees see a future with your company and let go of the employees who don’t. Avoid becoming a “passing” job where employees just wait for a better offer. Every employee you have at the end of 2015 should enjoy their jobs and believe in your company.

Getting your workforce in the best shape possible will take a lot of time, energy and resources. You’ll need to invest in advertising, interviewing, orientations, on-boarding, and the adjustment period in which an employee gets to know his or her job. It will be worth it. Your human capital will be prepared for the integration and you won’t (hopefully!) lose dozens of employees to other ASEAN companies.

Provide training and development

Once you have people who fit your company culture and have the right attitude to do their jobs, it’s time to train them. There are very few jobs in which you can hire someone and he or she automatically knows how to do the job seamlessly. You’ve spent a lot of time getting the right people working in your company, now it’s time to coach, mentor and train them.

It’s much easier, and usually more cost effective, to hire someone with the right attitude and train them for a position than to find the perfect fit. Helping your employees grow and showing an investment in their development will also help them understand they are valued by the company and remain loyal, even when presented with other job offers.

Give them the right resources

Every company works differently. The same can be said of each department, each team, and each individual. Because different employees will have their own unique productivity practices, be flexible enough to accommodate them with what they need. Provide meeting rooms, efficient hardware and software (no laptops from 1998), individual work rooms where employees can think out loud, adequate parking space, and whatever else they need so they can focus on their jobs.

The right resources also means allowing your employees to work during their most productive hours of the day. This may mean offering different work schedules, or even setting up a virtual work space where team members can interact online from wherever they are.

How else do you think companies should be developing their workforce in 2015? Share your thoughts in the comments below!