The value of training

Quasar's Michael Shane has outlined his view that merely concentrating on compliance/ regulatory training in these challenging economic times is a false economy. Shane, whose company has developed the Quasar ‘Anytime’ range of online video learning materials providing practical, on-going advice and guidance for those using Microsoft Office 2007 and 2010, explained: “When you talk to businesses about ‘training’ these days, they often say that, because economic times are hard, they’re only budgeting for mandatory training.

“Yet, if they don’t train their staff to be more productive and reduce inefficiencies – and they continue to employ those people – their work-based inefficiencies will proliferate! And, in the current economic climate especially, inefficient businesses are the ones that are most likely to go under.”

In Shane’s opinion, the Quasar Anytime online learning videos enable organisations – especially small businesses and budding entrepreneurs - to maintain these so called ‘non-essential’ training programmes, keep their skills current and buck the economic trend. He said: “Using Anytime, you can get more information from your business by getting the best out of your standard Microsoft Office software, for example, via exploiting the numerous functions and options in Excel. If you’re not sure what tools exist in the Office suite of products that enable you to get the business information you need, you can go to the Anytime library of online videos and browse the titles available.

“In these harsh economic times, individuals and businesses need to do whatever it takes to survive and you’ll be surprised just how much products like Excel and the Microsoft Office suite can help,” he continued. “The thing is that people think they know how to use this software – but they don’t - and they regard this type of training as non-essential. This means that, while most, if not all businesses, have these tools available, they remain unexploited.”

According to Government figures, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) account for some 99.9 per cent of all UK enterprises; some 59.1 per cent of private sector employment and 48.6 per cent of private sector turnover. Shane said: “These businesses are the backbone of the UK’s economy and, increasingly, the people working in these businesses need computer literacy skills in order to survive in today’s world. Anytime offers access to a learning method which is designed to help people develop and hone these skills and improve their work efficiency.”

Comment: Of course, any business help is worthwhile and it’s a bonus if that help is inexpensive – as Anytime promises to be. However, the key points from these comments by Michael Shane are that:
• cutting back on training is a false economy because inefficient workers who are less knowledgeable and skilled than they should be will ensure that an organisation is uncompetitive, regardless of the prevailing economic conditions
• there’s a great deal of important business information already extant but overlooked because those who could make good use of that information don’t have the skills to find and analyse it in the (Excel) software they’re studying

Both of these points ably illustrate the value of training.