I currently work in a sales posititon at a jewlery store, I started with them in late November. When I started there it was a very busy season because of all the holidays, so I barely recieved any training. This company is all about numbers and reaching goals, which is understandable because in order to be successful you need to have goals established.
During the holiday season reaching my goal was not an issue, we were so busy we barely had time to even breath! I did learn a lot about the product while going through the madness of the holidays, but I still was not 100% on everything. After the holidays were over the traffic became slow and sales were down. At this point reaching my goal was a large obstacle and I started to get very stressed out because I have a high expectation of myself in the workplace, which I was not reaching, and my manager was getting on me for not reaching my goals.
After many approaches and talks with my boss we finally came to the conclusion that she did not give me the proper training, which was getting in the way of me reaching my highest potential. We were so busy during the holidays, she forgot to have me do several training modules that help enhance product knowledge. Thankfully, my manager realized that it was not all my fault that I was not meeting the companies expectations. The company also put together a training class for new employees which helped me learn more about the product and the company.
It is hard to adjust to a new job, especially when you are not properly trained. I am now doing well with the company and reaching my goals weekly, which drives me to do more! Having the right manager and support means everything.
What are some ways companies can ensure their employees recieve the proper training? Have you ever been in a situation like this?
I have had similar experiences at places I have worked with, and in many cases it is not due to a lack of training procedures, but rather my manager would become to busy to go specifics with me. Personally I believe that HR or someone within your department should be held responsible for training new employees,so that way it takes a little stress off of upper management and your productivity will increase.
No doubt, training is one of the most important modern strategies of firms to be productive and competitive. Modern advances in technology and globalization are driving the business world so that their employees are “cool” of new knowledge and new technological schemes.
Several years ago, most employers did not share his workers studied while working. Many of these entrepreneurs were tough with employees who attended the universities to end their careers. There are cases in which students attended his classes in secret, to avoid retaliation from their employers.
Fortunately, today is the opposite. There is a business class with a different mindset. The new managers know that the more skilled workers are, the greater the productivity and competitiveness. For this reason, businesses considered a valuable investment to provide training to employees, either directly through training in specific areas of business, or through formal training in colleges and universities. Long live the education and training!
This is definitely a common case in a lot of work places. I have had plenty of jobs where I have had poor training or lack or training. For example, my last internship the training was basically just learning about the company but when it came to doing actual tasks one of the managers would say “figure it out yourself”- well my thoughts were that it was an internship and his job was to teach me how to properly do what I am supposed to do in order to prepare for the work world. However, on a high note the other manager was one who didn’t necessarily teach training but would walk me through projects and tell me this is good or this is how you do it next time. The company I am working for now is all about training. They have an orientation program that goes a week long to help new employees learn the ins and outs. I think this is one of the best ways to train new employees and get them adjusted to the company. It’s uncomfortable and awkward when you feel like you don’t know what you are doing.
This is a very important issue that if it goes unnoticed for a while, it is a huge issue for the company. Last quarter in management 300 my team did a project on HR and training, and while doing our research we came across the issue that if people aren’t trained properly in the begining then the whole project could be delayed, causing further issues for the company.
I agree with you 100% that it is hard to adjust on the job when you do not have the proper training. Where I currently work, we do have a formal training program however in my opinion it is very outdated and is more for show than anything else. The training I went though consisted of reading a computer screen for 8 hours a day for several days. I learned much more being on the job and actually doing things, the “hand’s on” approach. I feel companies just rush you through the training because training costs money, instead of being on the job site generating revenue you are costing them money!
I think it is important to have good training program. I think it is hard to ensure all the new employees recieve the proper training because different people have different working skill, background and education level. However, I would suggest to give a test to employees every year or 2 years. It is because it can ensure the employees touch the basic level. Also, I would suggest that the currently employees should have ongoing training too. Since employee is the most important property for a company, so the company need to improve the employees. So that, the employees could have better performance and quantity of work.
I worked seasonally at Macy’s and also recieved very little training. They showed a video of how we should treat customers but I just learned everything else from other employees. I think during busy seasons they are less worried about training and more worried about being able to handle the amount of customers that they will have.
This is a very interesting post since I was in the same position not too long ago. I started working somewhere in the food service industry mid-August 2012 and I believe I received minimal formal training. I can say for the most part, I had to learn the restaurant’s procedures (i.e. handling food, closing the restaurant, etc) on a hands on basis by learning from my mistakes and obeying orders. Fortunately, all of the customers I dealt with were forgiving with me if I messed up their order, since they understood I was in training. The non-hands on (formal) training I received were by reading the company books and to be honest I didn’t find that method too helpful. For example, the books might name some certain equipment to use for certain recipes, yet when it came time to making the recipe, I would have a hard time remembering how to use the equipment. But several weeks have now passed and I can confidently say I’m not as “green” as I was when I first started.
Proper training is very important in all organizations because it provides employees with knowledge of organizations and skills that they need to perform their jobs well. I agree with you that training is a key to success, and it is difficult for employees to adjust to their new jobs without having enough knowledge about the company. As you explained earlier that after the manager found out that you were not trained properly, the company started to provide a training class for new employees, which helped you learned more about the product and the company. Therefore, you are able to reach your goal and become more motivated to do your job well. Companies can ensure that their employees receive proper training by measuring from productivity and efficiency of employees. This is because well-trained employees are more productive and efficient.