The Importance of Employee Development Programs and Benefits of 360 Feedback

EchoSpan's employee development program tools are beneficial to employees at all levels, whether they are individual contributors, mid-level managers or senior leaders. With the speed and pressure of everyday business, it can feel overwhelming to create and manage these programs, but there are a number of reasons to prioritize employee development. At EchoSpan, we provide you with the framework and flexibility to manage these programs seamlessly, and we offer a proven platform that makes it easy for your employees to participate. 

Why should organizations focus on developing their employees?

• Employee Development Programs can help your organization attract and retain great workers. Employee turnover is costly for organizations and hiring the right team members can also be challenging. 360 feedback and development planning programs are often seen as a benefit that builds employee loyalty. When employees feel seen and valued, they are more inclined to remain with the organization as they continue to develop and enhance their skill sets.

• Employee Development programs groom your employees for promotion from within. 360 feedback programs with EchoSpan can assist with the refinement of defined skill sets and help organizations identify high performers who may be eligible for promotion. There are a number of use cases beyond leadership development, though.

• Employees are more engaged at work. When employees are focused on developing their talents, they are less likely to become bored in their roles. EchoSpan's development planning module takes the feedback collected during the 360 process and helps employees craft custom plans with action guides and reading suggestions to help them craft their objectives.

• It saves the company money associated with turnover while boosting the earning power of the employees you retain. An employee who is trained well, confident in their abilities and actively engaged will work harder to further their professional and organizational goals. Increased proficiency and efficiency can also lead to increased sales and personal performance which ultimately benefits the overall organization.

• It helps you stay focused on future needs and opportunities for organizational growth. Employee development is an ongoing activity and the areas of focus will evolve over time. Things to consider include employee and leadership needs, customer needs, industry changes as well as changes to the way we all collaborate and work together in an ever-changing professional environment.

An effective employee development program will drive you to consider the future path of your business as you consider what criteria to assess and which developmental and learning resources to associate with the criteria you select. Keeping this in the forefront where relevant employee development is concerned means you'll be planning ahead for the continued success of your business as a whole.

EchoSpan can offer assistance with developing and implementing these types of programs leveraging our ready-to-use project templates as well as our comprehensive competency library. You can also load custom questions and leverage our reading suggestion and action guide resources to help your employees craft ongoing improvement objectives for success. We work with organizational HR professionals as well as independent coaches and consultants who administer these types of programs with their clients. For more details on EchoSpan's platform as well as our support resources to help you implement a successful program, reach out to us at contact@echospan.com.