Training and development

Training means giving employees the knowledge and skills they need to carry out their job. Development is related but not the same: it improves an employee's skills and future potential beyond the requirements of their current job.

A leisure centre trains a new lifeguard to follow the pool's rescue procedure, because the job cannot be done safely without it. The same lifeguard could be developed by learning to plan rotas and handle complaints, ready to become duty manager one day. Training closes a gap the job has now; development builds capability for a later role.

Training and development compared

Ways businesses train and develop employees

Businesses use a mix of formal training, informal training, self-learning, ongoing training, target setting and performance reviews. They differ in how planned they are, who leads them, what they cost and how closely they stay tied to the current job.

A course run by an outside expert is planned and consistent, so it costs more, but it can be worth it where mistakes are dangerous. A colleague showing a new starter how to lock up at closing time is unplanned, free and fixed to today's task. Self-learning lets an employee study on their own, while ongoing training keeps everyone's skills current as technology and rules change. Target setting gives an employee a goal; a performance review then checks progress against it, so together they show where training or development is needed next.

Choosing a mixture

No single method suits every situation, so a business picks a blend that fits the role, the employee and its budget. A small bakery might train a Saturday assistant informally on their first shift, pay for its manager to attend a course on new allergen rules, and set the assistant a target for serving customers, which shows what to teach them next. That blend keeps costs down while making sure the skills the business relies on are there.