Career Development is Critical to the Survival of your Business

November is National Career Development Month. A month that seeks to remind employers to encourage and empower employees to strive toward their career goals. Putting your people first isn-t just for the good of their development however, it is vital for the growth and sustainability of your business and future talent opportunities also-RIP Jobs for LifeThe job for life is dead. Kaput. It simply does not exist anymore. Even remaining within the same industry for life is no longer a given. In fact,-more than a fifth (21%)-of UK working adults say they do not expect to be working in the same industry by 2030.This surely puts us in a quandary. If our people are going-to leave us, what-s the-sense in developing them? The truth is, we must make peace with our talent only ever being--on loan- to us.-But if we are smart, we can ensure that when they leave, they become ambassadors and champions of the organisation. If we are-really-smart, they may even become part of the-ever-increasing--boomerang--gang. Returning to us with a deeper knowledge and understanding of business.Following the forced global work-from-home movement that the pandemic created, and the Great Resignation that ensued, employers are beginning to recognise that their people hold a lot of power. They can demand greater flexibility of their working environment than ever before. Or they can leave in an instant, taking their knowledge and experience with them. With the 2022-cost of living crisis-in full swing, we need to give employees good reason to stay.Law of AttractionRetention is one of the biggest problems facing organisations and it poses a very real threat to their individual survival. To thrive, we must change the narrative and look beyond short-term financial rewards. Not least because-80%-of candidates who accept a counteroffer from their current employer still leave within 6 months.No wonder so many industries are experiencing a talent crisis. It makes sense then to ensure you are an attractive option not only for incoming talent, but for existing talent too. Industry trends and in-demand skills continue to evolve at pace, with a reported-50% of all employees needing to be reskilled by 2025.-To neglect the training and development of your people is to risk the future success of the company.Additionally, figures show that those organisations that nourish and develop the skills of their employees retain talent for longer-than those that don-t. A whopping-94%-of Americans surveyed-said they-d stay at a company longer if their employer invested in their careers.Positive Employer BrandingA report by Korn Ferry found that-69%-of the world-s most-revered companies value learning over experience when it comes to hiring. But talent is scarce and July 2021 saw the-highest ever-amount of US employers with unfilled positions.Could your L&D program be the panacea? It may well go some way to helping solve the issue. A welcome side-effect of focussing on internal mobility and upskilling your current people means you become an attractive employer to those choosing to move organisations too.Not only does your organisation becomes a highly desirable place to work but providing a strong training and development program offers multiple other business benefits too. A positive space to learn and develop provides an environment where innovative thinking can thrive. Employee engagement rates, retention rates and productivity all increase too. In short, your employer branding is given a huge boost.Flexibility is KeyPeople now demand greater flexibility and autonomy over their own lives than ever before. It stands to reason that flexible career development is a vital component of what they are looking for in their employer of choice too.By using a flexible approach to the learning and development of your people you offer greater choice, and in turn, attract a more diverse pool of talent too. A flexible approach also means that-learning and development doesn-t have to be a drain on your-departmental or overall budget.There are now many ways to encourage career development, from mentors to peer-to-peer learning to department-to-department learning; book allowances to online platforms that-provide a sustainable method for the continual upskilling of your teams. Online platforms can also provide a community-and -hive mind- experience, encouraging creativity that-s brought back into the office.Finally, it-s important to remember that-a strong career development program will invariably attract a high calibre of external talent. When you are ready to hire outside of the organisation be sure that your Talent Acquisition teams are well prepared by including them in all learning endeavours so they can offer the very best experience to your candidates, continuing to build on that great employer brand.