Executive Director’s Message

TRACY SCHIEFFERLE

OGIA Executive Director tracy@ogia.org

“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and only cease at death,” Albert Einstein. Learning, as they say, is a never-ending process and is crucial for growth. As a working professional, continuous learning paves the way toward success – personally and as a business. Learning is a continuous process that doesn’t end with a degree or when you settle down with a good job. You will always find something new to learn every day and it can come in various forms. We learn every day from on-job training, educational conferences, networking, online sessions, and even watching Tik-Tok (well, occasionally). 54% of employees have said that it is essential for them to get training and develop new skills throughout their work life to keep up with the changes in the workplace. the feedback constructive, simple, and informative. Work with them on their problems and help them learn with the right approach. It is always about learning from mistakes and acquiring new things in the process. And feedback is the strongest foundation of a learning system. Arrange Opportunities. The industry is constantly changing and evolving with time. Arrange field trips to see how other companies work, invest in employees (and your business) by sending them to training and educational opportunities to interact with other professionals – it helps cement the value AND the skills. Encourage them to further expand knowledge by continued education or certification. Once your employees get the exposure and that practical experience then they are more likely to implement it in their work. It becomes a learning experience for everyone which elevates their work style as it adds an extra layer of knowledge making them more efficient and productive.

70% of employees have expressed how development opportunities and job-related training influenced their decision to stay at their job.

Create a Culture of Continuous Learning where your employees are provided with the opportunity to make learning a part of their work. It is about developing skills, and knowledge, and acquiring abilities that make them more proficient in their job. It is a process of constant learning throughout their job life. Value Ongoing Learning personally and as an employer. Walk the talk by providing access to learning opportunities and encouraging continued learning. You can do this by voicing your recognition of employees’ improvements and efforts in learning new skills and provide words of motivation. Set Learning Goals. Anything without a goal will lose credibility, and people will drift away from it. Set learning goals and push everyone to achieve them in their desired time frame. Keep it transparent and make employees accountable for what they do. Acknowledge employees after successfully achieving a skill. Reward and recognize their efforts. This will keep the enthusiasm, and more employees will be eager to join the continuous learning cycle. Feedback Is Important. A program without no feedback is going to backfire and employees will move away from it. When employees see feedback then they will be able to see the bigger picture. It creates reliability and a belief that the system will help them elevate their work performance with proper feedback. Keep Benefits of Continuous Learning:

Helps Focus on Goals. Brainstorming sessions to plan out future goals is vital. But what is more essential is to figure out how these future goals are going to impact everyone. Form developmental goals to channel and influence your objectives and targets. Retaining Becomes Easier. Every employer wants to avoid a situation where their employees decide to leave. It may be due to a lack of compensation or poor relationship at work. But most of your employees leave due to lack of career growth. Statistics have revealed that 74% of employees felt they weren’t achieving their full potential due to a lack of development opportunities. That is a huge number but when you provide a good learning and training program your employees are likely to fulfill their expected potential and feel more inclined towards the company resulting in loyalty from the employees and reducing employee attrition. Skill Improvement For Employees. Research has shown that 40% of employees who don’t receive the necessary job training will leave their positions within the first year. However, when continuous learning is practiced it helps your employees to adapt to new skill sets. It also increases the ability of your current workforce to boost their skills in different areas. Increase in Engagement. Employers want their employees to stay engaged in their jobs and become proficient in what they do. It may become too monotonous for every employee to stick to one job all the time. The learning curve dips and employees become disengaged. However, when there is a culture of continuous learning, engagement is the result you get. Spark New Ideas. With industry changes happening at a constant rate, it has become necessary to keep up with them. Acquiring new skills will unveil new opportunities and help you find innovative solutions to problems. This could earn you more money. To be able to prepare yourself well for the coming future continuous learning is vital. But continuous learning cannot be instilled in just a day. It takes time for everyone to get used to it. Create a culture of continued learning. Many companies have developed training programs, but many stop there. Keep up the culture of learning. Dedicate some time and money to ongoing skill development and it will come back to you.

• Implement dedicated times for actively learning new skills • Listen to podcasts, watch webinars and online content • Share industry publications • Invite speakers from within and outside your business to share knowledge and expertise • Encourage your employees to become a member of OGIA and initiate networking • Attend training courses and events like midwestGREEN

OGIA offers numerous ongoing learning opportunities throughout the year. midwestGREEN alone offers 75+ educational sessions and Ohio’s largest industry networking opportunity. Inspire a learning culture and invest in your employees, yourself, and your business and plan to attend. I hope to see you there. Always have a curious mind. Keep the momentum going. Keep learning and keep reflecting. Keep yourself, your business, and the industry growing.