This blog looks at the definition of employee development, its approaches, its types and the best practices that can help organizations create development programs for impactful employees.
What is employee development?
The backbone of each successful organization is employees, “human assets” who play an important role in the contribution of goals and objectives. To promote growth and adaptability in the appropriate business environment, it is imperative to improve individual performance by equipping them with the necessary tools to succeed in their current roles and prepare them for future responsibilities. This requires the need to adopt employee development programs in organizations. Employee development is the process of empowering employees to progress in their careers by improving their existing capacities while acquiring new skills.
It includes various methods and approaches that contribute to personal and professional development promoting a continuous development culture. According to LinkedIn's apprenticeship report in 2018, “94% of employees would remain in a company if it investigated their career development”. In addition to increased retention and reduced turnover, employee development contributes to improving performance and innovation, cultivates a stronger culture in the workplace and improves employee work satisfaction, ultimately benefiting organizational success.
Employee development approaches
To implement employee development in an organization, there are mainly four approaches that can be taken into account. These include varied strategies to develop the skills, skills and knowledge of employees. They are:
Employee development approaches
Formal training
The formal training refers to structured and organized training programs contributing to the professional growth of employees. It includes physical and elearning courses that offer knowledge and expertise in specific areas leading to certifications or licenses. This implies employment linked to employment or to improve the skills conducted by different methods to enrich the participants. A research project commissioned by the Middlesex University for Apprenticeship in Labor has revealed that “74% of employees believe that they do not reach their full potential due to the lack of training”. (Source: Edstellar). This requires organizations to adopt formal training practices to achieve the development of employees.
Assessments
To prepare for the reduction and reskulling of employees, it is essential to carry out regular assessments. This may include employee performance journals, comments, an analysis of employee strengths and weaknesses and surveys for employees. When you carry out evaluations, make sure that the mode is standardized with appropriate tools and resources to avoid any form of biases leading to the dissatisfaction of employees. In addition, it is crucial to determine that employees are not unduly overwhelmed by the stress of regular assessments.
Professional experience
A precious approach contributing to the development of employees is professional experience, which implies daily practical learning which is carried out in control of its role and programs such as employment rotation, special projects allowance, brainstorming exercises, case studies, role playing andEmployee training. Professional experience can improve employee development by increasing their confidence leading to personal and professional growth.
Interpersonal relations
Maintaining a solid interpersonal relationship with colleagues and management promotes the development of employees. Collaboration within the team and networking contribute not only to the completion of tasks, but also establish a relationship between employees. In addition, strategies such as mentorship, coaching and job observation improve interpersonal relationships by promoting the career and personal development of employees.
Types of employee development programs
Employee development programs are designed to grow and improve individuals and groups. Different types of employee development programs are aimed at various aspects of improving skills, performance and overall career progression of individuals. Some of them are:
Career development
This type of employee development program aims to help employees progress in their careers by acquiring new skills and knowledge. Offer the right resources and appropriate advice to improve the career growth of an employee within the company encourages individuals to prepare for their future roles.
Skills development
Skills development is a crucial field for leadership and employees. Programs that contribute to improving general skills and specific regional skills for individuals are subject to skills development programs. These programs identify skills gaps and offer the right solutions to repair these shortcomings.
Performance development
The aspects of yield development are generally under the development of employee development evaluation. It improves the productivity of employees by setting clear objectives, offering comments and following progress thanks to performance reviews and Performance improvement plans.
Interfunctional development
Employees improve their collaboration by communicating within the teams. However, to collect more information on the functions of organizations, it is crucial to interact and be exposed to different departments. This may include employment rotation programs, inter-development projects, internal mobility, multi-scintillating training and interministic mentoring.
All of these employee development programs play an essential role in creating a dynamic workforce significantly contributing to organizational progress.
Best practices for the efficiency of employee development
Understanding the merits of employee development to the organization, it is crucial to carry out certain best practices that guarantee the efficiency of the program. Four essential practices that guarantee individual growth are:
Promote a learning atmosphere
Most organizations focus on the growth of businesses but lack the proper implementation of the necessary training on the development of employees. For effective development of career objectives and the agility of employee skills, it is essential to promote an atmosphere of learning that meets the needs of participants. Learning amplifies the feeling of connection and goal of people in their workplaces that “8 out of 10 people say that learning adds a goal to their work”. (Source: LinkedIn Workplace apprenticeship report, 2025).
Personalize learning and development
For the holistic development of employees, mental health and mindfulness to career progression and the realization of personalized learning experiences. This guarantees that the training responds enough to needs, pain points and areas of improvement of employees to offer the right solutions to progress. In addition, personalization encourages flexibility to employees avoiding the chances of relaxing by training and evaluation.
Overcome the biases that hinder development
Persistent biases in workplaces, whether between leadership to employees or between employees, hinder the development process. With a large majority of employees reporting that they are undergoing biases in their workplace in one form or another, it is essential to address and avoid it. Certain strategies to overcome biases include the implementation of clear criteria and software for evaluation, increasing awareness of unconscious biases at all levels and to the promotion of a culture of inclusiveness.
Encourage continuous motivation
Motivation is a key factor that leads to personality development. In an organization providing extrinsic motivation in the form of recognition for achievements, the supply of fruitful comments contributes to the continuous development of employees. “69% of employees would work harder if they thought their efforts are better appreciated.” (Source: Jumper). The continuous motivation of leadership by rewards, recognitions or the celebration of milestones encourages the development of employees.
Conclusion
In a word, employee development is essential to promote productive workforce. To improve the skills and skills of employees, organizations can adopt structured approaches such as formal training, assessments, professional experience and the promotion of interpersonal relationships. Offering various development programs such as career development, skills development, performance development and interfunctional development is essential for the holistic development of employees.
In addition, to ensure the effectiveness of employee development, organizations can implement best practices such as promoting an atmosphere of learning, personalization of learning and development, on prejudices and encouraging continuous motivation. For individual growth and organizational success, it is recommended that organizations highlight the relevance of employee development and adopt them.
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Best employees' development practices
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Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
What is employee development?
Employee development is the process of empowering employees to progress in their careers by improving their existing capacities while acquiring new skills. It includes various methods and approaches that contribute to personal and professional development promoting a continuous development culture.
What are the four approaches to employee development?
To improve the skills and skills of employees, organizations can adopt four approaches, in particular formal training, assessments, professional experience and promotion of interpersonal relationships.
What are the best practices for the efficiency of employee development?
To guarantee the effectiveness of employee development, organizations can implement best practices such as promoting an atmosphere of learning, personalization of learning and development, on prejudices and encourage continuous motivation.
What are the advantages of employee development?
In addition to increased retention and reduced turnover, employee development contributes to improving performance and innovation, cultivates a stronger culture in the workplace and improves employee work satisfaction, ultimately benefiting organizational success.
At Learnopoly, Finn has championed a mission to deliver unbiased, in-depth reviews of online courses that empower learners to make well-informed decisions. With over a decade of experience in financial services, he has honed his expertise in strategic partnerships and business development, cultivating both a sharp analytical perspective and a collaborative spirit. A lifelong learner, Finn’s commitment to creating a trusted guide for online education was ignited by a frustrating encounter with biased course reviews.