The long-term impact of this project will be determined by various factors: purpose, strategy, leadership, talent, culture, systems, and processes.
Talent is about attracting, developing, and retaining people. This post focusses on the training and development aspect of talent, and the approach we'll be taking to support employee growth.
Definitions
Training
A structured process that helps employees learn specific skills, improve their performance, and apply new knowledge to their work.
Development
Long-term personal growth through continuous learning, skill building, and expanding capabilities.
Cost
Paid or free.
Format
Online or in-person.
Delivery style
On-demand (pre-recorded, self-paced) or live (instructor-led).
Knowledge-based learning
Lectures, seminars, presentations, tutorials, and case studies.
Practice-based learning
Hands-on practice, exercises, activities, workshops, learning labs, coding clinics, bootcamps, hackathons, project-based learning, and on-the-job training (OJT).
People-based learning
Coaching, mentoring, peer learning, collaborative learning, and observational learning.
Self-directed learning
Reading, online courses, video learning, audio learning, research, exploration, practice, and projects.
Reflective learning
Logs, reviews, self-assessments, and feedback reviews.
Workshop
Active participation, practice, and application of skills.
Bootcamp
An intensive structured training program designed to develop specific skills or knowledge quickly through focussed learning, hands-on practice, and practical application.
Learning lab
A facilitated in-person session where participants continue their online training, practice what they have learned, and receive guidance and feedback.
Content format
Text, images, audio, and video.
Provider
In-house (developed and delivered by us) or third-party (provided by an external training provider).
Alignment
Ensuring training supports business objectives and builds the capabilities the organisation needs.
Training categories
We can organise training based on the subject, purpose, or type of knowledge and skills being developed. Example categories:
- Technical
- Role-specific
- Product & service
- Compliance and regulatory
- Health, safety & wellbeing
- Leadership and management
- Organisational & corporate
- Cybersecurity
- Onboarding
- Professional development
- Quality and process
- Trainer training
Professional development
The ongoing process of developing the knowledge, skills, capabilities, and behaviours needed to improve performance in a current role and support future career growth. Developed through experience, training, feedback, coaching, mentoring, reflection, relationships, practice, and other learning opportunities.
Professional skills
Cognitive skills, emotional intelligence, interpersonal skills, adaptability and resilience, planning and organisation, communication and presentation, feedback and conflict management, accountability and ownership, and leadership and people development.
In-house training
We will provide training across these categories to varying degrees, ranging from practical handbooks and resources to comprehensive online and in-person training.
Third-party training
We will maintain a list of approved third-party training providers. Staff can use their training allowance to access training from these providers.
Skills assessment
Employees and managers assess current skills and capabilities, helping to identify strengths, gaps, and opportunities for development. For each skill, we track time invested (organisation and personal time), current skill rating, and the activities undertaken to develop the skill.
Performance reviews
Structured discussions between an employee and their manager to review performance, progress, strengths, development needs, goals, and future priorities.
We conduct regular check-ins during the trial period, then formal performance reviews at 3, 6, and 12 months, and annually thereafter based on the employee's joining date.
Upskilling
Upskilling means developing existing skills to a higher level. In-house training is made available to all employees, alongside other opportunities to skill up through peers, mentors, on-the-job training, online courses, and self-directed learning.
Reskilling
Reskilling means developing new skills for a different role through formal training, online learning, mentoring, guided practice, and then on-the-job training.
Cross-training
Employees can develop their skills beyond their primary role.
Job rotation
Employees can first develop the skills needed for another role and, where practical and capacity allows, may spend some time working in that role.
Recency
Refers to how recently skill, knowledge, or experience was acquired, practised, or used. The goal is for staff to keep skills fresh. For full-stack roles, this means regularly doing work across the entire stack.
Low recency means more ramp-up time. Keeping previous work, along with useful notes, helps refresh your memory and get you back up to speed quickly.
Staying current
A lot of technology changes slowly. Periodically checking for new features, perhaps once or twice a year, is enough.
Diminishing returns
There are diminishing returns on skill development. As you continue developing a skill, each additional investment of time and effort tends to produce a smaller improvement than the previous one.
In many cases, there comes a point where developing other skills provides more value to the organisation than further developing the same skill.
Learning culture
We encourage learning whenever there is capacity for it. Outside mandatory training programs and learning on the job, no fixed time is set aside specifically for learning. Staff can also choose to learn in their own time.
Knowledge sharing
Staff are also encouraged to share their knowledge through the intranet, the organisation's website, their own websites, and other channels.
In-person training
We can deliver in-person training for both staff and non-staff in our own offices, coworking spaces, classrooms, or partner venues. Participants bring their own hardware, or we can provide a limited number of devices, such as laptops.
In-person training is very useful for beginners, difficult topics, project-based learning, intensive programs, community building, mentorship, rapid feedback and support, peer learning, and other situations where direct interaction adds value.
Live online training
A portion of training can be delivered live online, providing real-time instruction, demonstrations, Q&A, project reviews, guest speakers, and other interactive activities.
Cost
Free for staff. Free, discounted, or full-price for other groups.
Online training
All our online training is made freely available to staff, for example through the intranet. For non-staff, we may offer a mixture of paid training – through our for-profit training company – and free training.
Interns
Our non-staff training programs can provide a valuable source of potential interns.
Ongoing improvement
Training programs are continuously improved based on feedback, experience, and changes in the subject matter.
LMS
We'll use our Learning Management System (LMS) to manage and deliver our training and development programs. The LMS forms part of our platform's 'Talent' functionality.
Value of training
Training provides significant value to both the organisation and its staff. For the organisation, training supports staff attraction and retention, improves product quality, productivity, and efficiency, and strengthens organisational culture, capability, and workforce coverage.
It also builds resilience and adaptability, enabling the organisation to respond to change, scale effectively, and have a greater impact across the industry.
For staff, training enables faster, more effective learning and skill development, builds capability, and supports career development.