Recommendation of the Training Programmes in Post-COVID Scenario - which should become mandatory for all employees when they join?

The Importance of Training Programs During the Pandemic

As an HR professional, do you agree that companies and employees who give little importance to training programs are really suffering in this pandemic? Those companies and employees who are continuously learning are finding new ways to do business, or at least are less worried about the future.

Mandatory Training Programs for New Employees

What is the one training program you recommend should become mandatory for all employees when they join your company? Please comment here.

Dear Shivani, Replies to your queries are given below:

As an HR, do you agree that companies and employees who gave little importance to training programs are really suffering in this pandemic?

Reply: - The companies are suffering because of the demand slump. India's GDP fell for seven quarters even before the COVID pandemic. Even before the pandemic, the Indian economy was sick anyway. The COVID pandemic has pushed it to the ICU!

The decline in business has nothing to do with the poor quality of the training or no training. Irrespective of the quality of training, there are examples of corporate decline. A classic example is Jet Airways or even Kingfisher. Both were known for good employee practices. Nokia lost to Apple, not because of their poor training practices.

Those companies and employees who were continuously learning are finding new ways to do business, or at least less worried about the future.

Reply: - In this VUCA world, to say that "companies and employees who were continuously learning are finding new ways to do business" is an overstatement. Yes, continuous improvement is important. It reduces the cost of the product or services. However, a company needs to have a path-breaking creative product. Though India calls itself an IT-giant, none of the Indian companies is at par with Google or Microsoft or Dell or IBM. Please note that the electric bulb was invented but was not created by doing continuous improvement of the candle!

What is the one training program you recommend, which should become mandatory for all employees when they join your company?

Reply: - Today, in the COVID scenario, there is a slump in the market. The slump is going to remain for the next couple of quarters. Against this backdrop, no company will have the elbow room to raise the price of their product or service. The only option that one will have is to reduce the cost of backend operations. Therefore, a training program that reduces the direct cost of operations is recommended most.

Thanks,

Dinesh Divekar

I fully agree with my professional friend's views. To add my own thoughts: Many employees have been laid off and are now likely to resume their jobs. Many have been working from home for the past few months.

The importance of the learning curve

There is something called a learning curve in every worker, which tends to decline over time due to several factors. Prolonged stay at home, physical disconnect, lack of daily interaction with co-workers, discontinuity in working style and environment, and lack of opportunities for continuing education all contribute to this decline. Some might even have forgotten what their office and colleagues look like!

The necessity of continuous learning

Learning is a continuous, lifelong process. To stay agile, active, and updated, reskilling, relearning, and upskilling are essential. Yes, in the absence of profitability, expenses on the training budget may seem significant to some bosses or HR or Finance Heads, but this expense should be considered an investment for the future. Ultimately, this investment leads to higher productivity, profitability, and ROI.

Best wishes

In the present day, it is not possible to conceive of any organization that does not provide training. To state that training is given lesser importance is a subjective opinion depending on the eye of the beholder. The pandemic situation is unprecedented, and no organization was prepared for it. Before we could realize the enormity of it, it was already ongoing and sweeping everything and everyone in its way. So, nobody could really train their people for it. Indeed, an athlete who regularly practices his craft is better prepared than an off-and-on practitioner. Therefore, any organization that gives adequate importance to regular training of its employees will have some advantages over others, as it will have the resources to deal with the situation.

The future is worrisome for all

Particularly for those in the manufacturing, tourism, transport, F&B industry, etc. With the Covid situation showing no signs of reducing, the sectors of the economy where group work is involved are still keeping their fingers crossed. Those whose nature of work allows them the flexibility of remote work are in a better position to cope with the situation.

As Diwakar Sir has rightly pointed out, cost-cutting and increasing productivity are going to be the main focus areas in the post-Covid situation.

As per my view, in fact, COVID-19 will bring new opportunities for training and trainers. If you see globally, every country and every field is nowadays learning new techniques. For example:

1. How to handle a pandemic
2. How to survive in business
3. How to teach online
4. How to learn online
5. How to administer the curb
6. How to prevent the disease
7. Organizing webinars
8. Learning new travel guidelines, etc.

All these indicate that after the pandemic is over, a new era for learning and training will begin. However, it is obvious that cost-cutting initiatives at all levels are expected to be implemented in a sustainable manner.

As rightly pointed out, the pandemic COVID-19 is bringing a new chapter for Training & Development among employees and employers, including:

1) Financial management (both for employer and employee at the grassroots level)
2) Importance of cleanliness and hygiene
3) How to curb unnecessary and unwanted expenditure (both for employer and employees at the grassroots level) or cost-cutting
4) How to optimize resources
5) Importance of physical exercise, yoga, breathing exercises
6) Good personal traits, etiquette, code of conduct, etc.
7) Achieving the ability to lead a happy and healthy life commensurate with the monthly income - to name a few areas.

The above areas are very important management subjects where experts can share their experience during this COVID-19 time. Now, a lot of webinars are organized by many management associations of repute like NIPM, CII, etc., where the target audience can view the program at any place of their convenience.

Dear All,

Post-COVID Scenario

In the post-COVID scenario, the accountability of the HR fraternity will be high to bring back the skill/competence set and their level of engagement. Therefore, the focus on the quality of product/service, lead time/delivery time, and cost of product/service will play an effective role in enhancing the bottom line of our businesses. This will be achieved by training all human resources irrespective of their levels. Based on my experience and exposure, I suggest some training programs as follows, since some employees are working from home or not working on the shop floor and bearing economic and emotional losses:

Suggested Training Programs

1. Soft skill development programs - Employee morale, Positive Thinking, Role of an Employee in Productivity Improvement, and way of life after COVID-19.

2. Skill set/Competence

3. Cost Reduction Management (CRM)

4. Employee's Role in Nation Building

Thank you.

Training of what?

If the establishment is engaged in healthcare or related services or supplies, then training is already in progress on a day-to-day basis. Other establishments have no such bindings or obligations, but they have to make their employees aware of preventive measures and care, which can be displayed at major visible places on the office floor through awareness posters. Employers have to ensure the safety of their employees, provide enough ventilation, and maintain proper workplace sanitation instead of holding crowded training programs.

Hi Shivani and other colleagues, all the views expressed here in the post revolved mostly around the pandemic, lockdown, phases of unlocking, training, health, hygiene, and related sectors. But I wish to highlight a few things that we may have lost sight of.

Work-from-home alternatives

Many establishments found alternatives to manage the situation by implementing WFH wherever possible.

Sectors worst hit by the pandemic

The worst-hit sectors during the pandemic are the production industry, education, hospitality, transportation, entertainment, unorganized workforce, and so on.

Trading recovery

Trading is gradually picking up in the recent unlocking phases.

Economic activity and GDP decline

The lull in economic activity cannot be attributed entirely to the pandemic but has been stretched over a long period, as pointed out by Mr. Dinesh. This is indicated by the gradual fall in GDP from over 9% to now down to -24%.

Pandemic duration and future outlook

The pandemic is not expected to last long based on the WHO's predictions that vaccinations will be widely used by mid-2021. Hopefully, the world will return to normalcy through either herd immunity, vaccinations, or the use of drugs by 2021.

Therefore, there may not be an urgent requirement for an intensive training regimen in the short term, as by the time such programs are ready, normalcy in all sectors around the world could be restored. What may be required is how to cope with job losses, closed businesses, management of personal and corporate finances, and a focus on exploring new avenues that emphasize the adaptability of the workforce and their psychology towards changed business opportunities for the near future, say 2021-22. Much will depend on how sectors gear up in conjunction with the future strategies of central and state governments in addressing "Economic sustainability."

Impact of Crisis on Training and Development

Training and development of employees have been impacted due to this crisis. However, many companies are adapting digital solutions for training programs, such as online courses and webinars.