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What is People Management, and Why is it So Important?

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What is People Management, and Why is it So Important?

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People management skills are more important than having good employees for several reasons. The company will experience poor communication, low productivity, employee resignation, and little progress without good people management skills. A manager with good people management skills has the ability to encourage communication and collaboration, manage conflicts, and ensure that all employees understand their roles as things change over time.

There are several strategies to help improve people management skills for an organization:

Nurture a learning culture

Practice constant feedback

Consider the value of laissez-faire leadership

It is also important to communicate with remote employees as much as possible and offer resources because there are barriers to working remotely.

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What Is People Management, and Why Is It So Important?

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Learn what people management is, the importance of it for your organisation and come away with tips and tricks to get it right in this breakdown.

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What is Microlearning? A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

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What is Microlearning? A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

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Microlearning is when learning content is put together in chunks to make learning quick, convenient, and effective. Microlearning is known for being fast and straightforward. It is mobile-friendly and offers a variety of learning content such as videos, audio podcasts, presentations, games, scenarios, assessments, text-based job aids, and short online lessons.

Microlearning is great because it is customizable and available on demand. However, it does not fit every learning need. It is not suitable for broad learning content because it typically focuses on one problem or question at a time.

Three basic principles of microlearning:

1. Less is more

2. Deliver in small segments

3. Stimulate and engage the learner

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What is Microlearning? A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

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An expert guide to what microlearning is, best practices for business, and real examples of microlearning modules.

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The Importance of Mentoring in the Workplace

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The Importance of Mentoring in the Workplace

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Mentorship in the workplace is a relationship between colleagues where an experienced employee takes a new employee under their wing. It promotes growth and learning.

A mentorship is beneficial for both the mentor and mentee. The Mentors will gain better communication skills, increased job satisfaction, loyalty to work, and feelings of fulfillment. The mentees will experience improved self-confidence, self-awareness, job satisfaction, aspiration, and promotion opportunities.

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Organisations are always looking for ways to nurture and retain their best people. Fortunately for them, most employees are similarly looking for ways to get fulfilment and satisfaction out of their work, making this a key area for businesses to cultivate.

This is where mentoring in the workplace comes in. In this article, we run through how mentoring can help you to retain and develop your people by creating a better working culture in which employees can learn and grow.

What is mentoring in the workplace?

Mentoring in the workplace is an established partnership between colleagues for the purposes of learning and growth. There are several different types of mentoring, the most common is 1:1 or traditional mentorship.

Mentoring at work can traditionally be seen as senior and more experienced employees giving advice and support to younger employees earlier on in their careers.

This dynamic is known as 'informal mentoring', as it often comes about from the mentor taking a liking to the mentee and taking them 'under their wing', rather than a formalised mentorship.

There is a lot to be said for informal mentoring, and many successful people refer to these kinds of relationships as helping them get to where they are today, such as Yves Saint Laurent and his formative mentoring from Christian Dior.

However, the issue with informal mentoring is that it's often exclusive and elitist, with people choosing to mentor individuals they see themselves in (not doing anything for diversity in the process).

These kinds of relationships also rely on sheer luck a lot of the time. How many successful entrepreneurs have you heard say they were "in the right place at the right time" when they met a crucial person that took a chance on them?

As a result of these biases, mentoring in the workplace needs to be established as a formal mentoring programme in order to give employees equal opportunities to develop.

When should I establish a formal mentoring programme?

There will likely be informal mentoring happening in your organisation already. The key question is, when do you formalise your programme?

A formal programme is when an organisation intentionally sets up a mentoring programme in which they actively match mentors and mentees and support the relationships to develop long-term.

Mentoring programmes can be run using spreadsheets and manual matching or through mentoring software, such as Guider. Mentoring software removes the headache, using AI to make mentor matches and providing integrated tools to manage the relationship effectively.

It's helpful to consider the following questions when deciding when to set up a formal mentoring programme:

How many people are currently accessing some type of mentoring in your organisation?

What is the potential reach of a formal mentoring programme?

How does mentoring align with your learning and development goals?

By establishing a formal mentoring programme you are opening up mentoring across your organisation and removing bias from the process. You are also actively encouraging the growth and development of all of your employees.

Benefits of business mentoring

The benefits of mentoring in your business are wide-ranging. From leadership mentoring to supporting diversity and inclusion initiatives, there are many ways that mentoring can support your business.

Mentoring in the workplace will also impact your people's personal development, can positively support mental health and improve employee retention.

Here are the key points to get started:

Benefits to the mentee

Finding a mentor at work can help you build a host of essential skills. Those with mentors at work will benefit from an increase in:

Self-confidence

Self-awareness

Job satisfaction

Aspiration

Likelihood of promotion

Loyalty to their company

Fulfilment at work

89% of those who have been mentored will also go on to mentor others, and so contribute to this cycle of learning and development within an organisation.

Benefits to the mentor

There are also many positive benefits for those doing the mentoring. Studies have shown an increase in:

Self-confidence

Communication skills

Job satisfaction

Loyalty to their company

Fulfilment at work

Harvard Business Review conducted a study researching the positive effects mentoring can have on the mentors themselves and found that people who served as mentors experienced lower levels of anxiety and described their job as more meaningful than those who did not mentor. Leadership mentoring is also a key way to develop your leadership skills.

Benefits to your organisation

The positive outcomes of mentoring stretch far beyond personal development for the people involved in the mentorships. Mentoring in the workplace has huge benefits for the organisations themselves, increasing:

Employee engagement

Employee satisfaction

Employee loyalty

All of these contribute to employee retention!
It can also improve:

Diversity in leadership

Knowledge sharing

On-boarding ease

Strong company culture

Not to mention reducing learning costs as you are sourcing experts from within your organisation to foster the development of others.

Another benefit for organisations offering mentoring in the workplace is recruitment opportunities. Studies have shown that 79% of millennials see mentoring as crucial to their career success. Given that by 2025, this demographic will comprise more than 75% of the workforce, it ought to be a top priority for businesses of all sizes.

You can read more on the Benefits of Mentoring here

Mentoring in the workplace: key statistics

Above we mention some key statistics for implementing a mentoring programme in your business. Yet, this is only a fraction of the data out there that shows the efficacy of mentoring in the workplace.
Tell me more...

84% of Fortune 500 companies have mentoring programmes.

94% of employees said they would stay at a company longer if they were offered opportunities to learn and grow.

67% of businesses reported an increase in productivity due to mentoring.

55% of businesses felt that mentoring had a positive impact on their profits.

Mentoring programmes boosted minority representation at the management level from 9% to 24%.

Top reasons for millennials wanting to quit their jobs are 'Not enough opportunities to advance' at 35% and 'Lack of learning and development opportunities' at 28%.

71% of people with a mentor say their company provides them with good opportunities to advance in their career, compared with 47% of those without a mentor.

More than 4 in 10 workers who don't have a mentor say they've considered quitting their job in the past three months.

87% of mentors and mentees feel empowered by their mentoring relationships and have developed greater confidence.

As shown in the numerous studies on the positive effects of mentoring in the workplace, it's one of the simplest things organisations can do to keep their employees engaged, productive and motivated. This is true across the different types of mentoring too.

We've written a more detailed guide to Mentoring Statistics if you want to explore even more research!‍

How to implement business mentoring

Implementing mentoring in the workplace is not only about what your business can gain, but, as we've shown, the opportunity cost of not investing in mentoring can be huge.

Now we've established how important mentoring in the workplace is, you're probably itching to find out how you can implement an effective mentoring programme within your organisation.

Luckily we've put a full step-by-step guide together

Read: How To Start A Mentoring Programme

So, there we have it-everything you need to know about mentoring at work. As you can see, mentoring is not just a nice to have but an essential part of your learning and development toolkit.

By implementing a formal mentoring programme you can benefit from a whole host of lasting changes. The question isn't "why is mentoring important", but rather "why don't we already do it!"
Want to learn more about how Guider's mentoring platform can help your business thrive? Book a call with our experts today.

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Why Everyone Needs Workplace Mentoring | Guider AI

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Organisations are always looking for ways to nurture and retain their best people. Fortunately for them, most employees are similarly looking for ways to get fulfilment and satisfaction out of their work, making this a key area for businesses to cultivate.

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What Supervisor Support Impacts Training Transfer the Most?

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What Supervisor Support Impacts Training Transfer the Most?

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A study was conducted to discover what types of supervisor support are the most effective in training. There are three types of supervisor support:

1. Direct or Behavioral Assistance

2. Guidance

3. Emotional Support

The study results showed that each type of supervisor support is highly correlated with each other. This shows that supervisor support is crucial to maximizing training transfer.

However, the article further explains that they need to explore how the three together enhance training transfer.

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For decades the research has shown and the professional Learning and Development community have intuitively known that supervisor engagement makes a difference to training transfer. Or to be more specific, if a training participant's supervisor is actively engaged and supportive before and after a learning initiative, then the transfer of learning to on-job performance (training transfer) is likely to significantly increase.
However, what has been less clear is EXACTLY what a training participant supervisor should be doing to make the BIGGEST difference. What are key types of support that supervisors should provide trainees? We (the professional L&D community) have become used to and comfortable talking in catch-all terms like 'supervisor support' that - when you get right down to it - are not terribly illuminating for us as instructional designers or helpful to those participant supervisors who are relying on us for guidance. By studying more closely the full spectrum of ways in which a supervisor might support a training participant, it should be possible to find more nuanced ways for supervisors to support their trainees and thereby increase the degree of training transfer and business impact from our training initiatives.

The new study

This was the premise for a recent study Promote International conducted in collaboration with a team of leading researchers; Brian Blume (University of Michigan-Flint), J. Kevin Ford (Michigan State University), and Jason Huang (Michigan State University). Directly after the training intervention, training participants were asked to complete a survey asking them about their motivation to transfer the training. A second (delayed) survey administered a few weeks later assessed the trainee's perceptions of their training transfer and level & type of support they received from their supervisor. A third survey was administered to participant supervisors asking them about the type & level of support they gave their trainee, as well as their rating of the trainee's transfer of training. The study gathered 394 survey responses from training participants and 38 supervisors across 4 different companies and nearly 50 training programs.

Different types of supervisor support

Before we get to the findings let's take a closer look at the types of supervisor support the study considered. In order to assess what kind of supervisor support had the most influence on training transfer the surveys included specific items that captured three types of support that a supervisor can provide a trainee;

1. Direct or Behavioral Assistance - Instrumental and appraisal. Requires behaviour from supervisor (beyond verbal interaction) or deeper investment/involvement in two-way communication/ interaction to effectively set goals and give feedback.

2. Guidance - Information, explanation, advice, guidance; but more of a general nature (e.g., verbal exchange) than getting deeper into goal-setting and giving specific feedback related to transfer attempts or behaviours, which would require more 'hands-on' actions related to the training.

3. Emotional Support - encouragement; affective expression; empathy

The results - so far

So, what have we learned so far? Results showed some backing for thinking about supervisor support in terms of the three types conceptualized above. However, perhaps more interesting was the fact that results showed that the three types were highly correlated. This suggests that trainees could not or did not differentiate much between these three types of support, and/or that supervisors who were rated high in providing one type of support were also very likely to be rated high in providing the other types of support (or vice versa, those supervisors that trainees rated as low-to-moderate on one of the support dimensions, also were rated low-moderate on the other support dimensions).

In addition, a regression analysis of the data indicated that trainees' overall level of supervisor support had a larger impact on their training transfer than their reported motivation to transfer. This indicates that supervisor support is a key to training transfer and suggests that all three types of supervisor support can be important to facilitate transfer.

The findings of the study are still somewhat tentative due to limited supervisor responses. However, we have learned enough from this first phase to further explore how these three types of support might be combined and optimized to maximize training transfer.

Learn more in our upcoming webinar

If you would like to know more about the study, please join us for the upcoming webinar " How Manager Engagement Effects Training Transfer ". We will share the specific supervisor support items covered in the study as well as a useful checklist job aid.

If you would like to receive the full report of the study findings or would be interested in joining the next phase of the study, please contact us: promote@promoteint.com.

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What supervisor support impacts training transfer the most? | Promote International

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Research has already shown that supervisor support makes a difference to training transfer but what should a manager be doing - exactly?

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Understanding the Science Behind Learning Retention

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Understanding the Science Behind Learning Retention

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Statistically, people forget an average of 50% of the information presented. They forget an average of 70% of new information within 24 hours. They also forget up to 90% of learned information within a week. The less time a person spends not using what was learned, the more they will lose what they learned.

Repetition and exposure to the learned material are the cure for forgetfulness. It also can lead to "overlearning," where a person is exposed to what they learned so many times that they will remember it years later.

Cognitive Load Theory covers three types of cognitive loads: intrinsic, extraneous, and germane. Cognitive Load Theory was designed to identify and become aware of the limitations of the memory's capacity to develop instructional design strategies that will accommodate the limitations.

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The Science Behind Learning

The "Baby Shark" tune!

Ebbinghaus also discovered a concept called "overlearning." Essentially, if you practice something more than is required to learn it, the information is stored much more strongly, and the effects of the forgetting curve for this information is a much shallower slope; for example, if you have kids, the fact that you could sing "Baby Shark" in your sleep may be a product of overlearning. You were not exposed to it just once, twice, or three times - you probably have heard that song far more than was required to learn it, and I would venture to guess that if asked 10 years from now, you would still be able to recall it.

In short, you need to be exposed to the learned information a few times, and ask your brain to retrieve the information to move it from short-term memory to long term memory. Long term memory is where we need it to be so that a learner can access the learned information in the flow of work.

DIKW Pyramid

The DIKW Pyramid is a widely accepted model in knowledge management. The pyramid shows how Data (components), Information (processed data into something that is meaningful), and Knowledge (a skill or larger piece of information within a system) are connected to Wisdom, where we add context, judgment, and the ability to see more broadly than the other layers.

In the first cell, we can see bits of uncategorized things, which aren't very useful. They have no context, and no larger meaning (e.g., random letters). The next cell indicates adding a bit of time and context to the data, and we see that we're able to categorize the data to some extent and it becomes meaningful (e.g., words). Again, as we add context and awareness, we start to see paths and the interconnectivity of the components - and we now have knowledge (e.g., sentences, paragraphs, or a book). For your learners, this would be the ability to pass a test, indicating that they've gained the knowledge you were imparting. They understand the data, and how it fits together. Very often though, that's not good enough for our learners, and we need them to be able to be more strategic to take on the learning in a more holistic manner and do something differently than they did before. For that, we need to add insight and behavior change. In this model, the next level is insight. In this stage, our learners have that "ah-ha" moment and understand what the data should mean to them in their larger schema. They understand how what they have learned could apply more broadly to other areas or draw conclusions about the learned material that was not given to them directly.

The last cell shows behavior change. We see that insight gained is leading to the learner doing something different because of the new information. As learning professionals, this is where we are hoping all our learning leads - a new or adjusted behavior.

The way we move up the pyramid (or across the cells) is by increasing exposure to the content and adding context. We can make connections between new information more easily when we can scaffold it to existing information.

It would be remiss to not discuss cognitive load when we are thinking about learning retention. Cognitive load theory came from the understanding that working memory has limited capacity, and therefore when asking a learner to take on new information, we need to be aware of the limitations and work with them instead of against them.

Cognitive load types can be broken down into 3 basic types:

Applying Theory to Practical Application

We have covered a lot of the science behind learning retention. Let's discuss what we can do practically to increase learning retention. For that, let's divide this section into 2 major topics: Designing Content With Retention in Mind and Post Learning Event Retention Strategies. Note that this is not an exhaustive list.

Designing Content With Retention in Mind

Post Learning Event Retention Strategies

Make sure that your retrieval practice matches the need.

Hence, if you want your learners to remember specific pieces of information, short-answer tasks/retrieval practice is the best. In application, it would be asking the learners to produce a particular response that your'e looking to "engrain." Mandatory tests with a high pass percentage, verbalizing key topics, completion of worksheets, and other such methodologies can be used for targeted retrieval.

If you're trying to help a learner understand a concept or how the pieces of information fit together, holistic or free-recall tasks are better. These involve asking open-ended questions and longer form recalls. Teach-backs are a good example of holistic/free-recall tasks. Asking learners to teach back what they have learned enables them to explain concepts in own words and understanding. It provides an important opportunity for the trainer to identify gaps and pain points. Interestingly, while these longer free-recall retrievals are harder, most learners tend to be more engaged and motivated to perform well on these types of retrieval tasks

Use spaced learning concepts (interval retrieval) to hack the forgetting curve.

By combining the principles of personalization of training with spaced retrieval, specific reinforcement of concepts can be provided to each individual learner. This helps us ensure the reinforcement stage of the training is also kept relevant and, in some ways, "unique" for each learner. Spaced retrieval can be achieved by providing bite-sized pieces of materials in the form of videos or job aids on key topics to refresh the learner's memory. Another good example is the use of gamified quizzes with a built-in feature that allows learners to "look up" the correct answer. This ensures that learners revisit the material and in the process of finding the correct answer may also feel inclined to read up any other information that they may have forgotten.

Build on the knowledge the learners have been given.

Workshops (whether face to face or virtual) can help strengthen the connection to the knowledge the learners have been given. Learning is never one-and-done. There is always more to know, and by asking learners to build off of the learning (once it is demonstrated as mastered), you are ensuring that the learning continues to be accessed and thus more deeply engrained. Workshops can facilitate peer discussion and further learning through social learning and reinforcement. They provide an opportunity to teach complex topics and build off of previous learning.

Create opportunities to gain practical experience.

Ensure learners have what they need as they need it.

About Future Ready Healthcare

Future Ready Healthcare is an independent platform for inspiring conversations and thought-provoking content to build capabilities and culture for the future. Through avenues like industry councils, thought leadership papers, and Indegene Digital Summit, healthcare leaders explore topics of common interest on the platform. They bring diverse perspectives and share personal stories to provoke and inform their strategy and operations. Indegene is proud to orchestrate these conversations that drive the future of healthcare. To learn more, please visit www.futurereadyhealthcare.com

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Understanding the Science Behind Learning Retention | Reports | What We Think | Indegene

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The Science Behind Learning The "Baby Shark" tune! Ebbinghaus also discovered a concept called "overlearning." Essentially, if you practice something more than is required to learn it, the information is stored much more strongly, and the effects of the forgetting curve for this information is a much shallower slope; for example, if you have kids, the fact that you could sing "Baby Shark" in your sleep may be a product of overlearning.

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Study Shows Quizzes Improve Academic Performance

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Study Shows Quizzes Improve Academic Performance

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A psychology professor teamed up with a psychology graduate student to research the effect that frequent quizzing has on students' academic performance. It was found that there is a strong correlation between frequent quizzing and academic success, along with immediate feedback from instructors. This shows the importance that quizzes have, regardless of how small they may seem.

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Study shows quizzes improve academic performance - LAS News

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Frequent quizzes may bolster students’ ability to succeed in the classroom.

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6 Strategies to Improve Learning Retention in Corporate Training

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6 Strategies to Improve Learning Retention in Corporate Training

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The main goal in corporate training is to transform learned materials from course content to long-term knowledge to be applied at jobs. Some strategies that can help ensure that learned materials from course content transfer to long-term memory:

Create engaging content

Incorporate blended learning

Assessments

Ensure that the training course is worth the employees' time

Gamification

Group collaborations/discussions

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5 min reading time

When planning corporate training, there's a lot of metrics to consider. But one of the most important, and often overlooked, is learning retention. The ultimate aim of delivering training is to instill knowledge that your audience can put into action, so if it's quickly forgotten, then it's not going to meet your learning objectives.

The truth is that the human brain forgets things very quickly - just look at the Ebbinghaus forgetting curve. Only a small portion of what we learn is stored in our long-term memory; so how do we ensure that learners retain the most important elements of their training?

The trick is to use a mix of training methods, and your LMS's features, to keep your learners' motivation levels high and ensure that course content transforms from information to long-term knowledge.

6 tactics to improve learning retention

1. Create engaging content

Your learners relate to different types of content in different ways; some like to watch a video, some prefer to listen to audio recordings, while others like to take lots of notes. So, with this in mind, how do we make learning more sticky?

Many educational psychologists believe that the key to making training more understandable and memorable is to provide a variety of content. Therefore, when creating a training session, keep it engaging by incorporating different types of content.

For example, you might start the session by showing a short, relevant video, then explain a concept that relates to it verbally, and then ask your learners to note down their own thoughts on the topic. You might also provide a list with additional reading or great podcasts on the topic so learners have the opportunity to go and find out more.

If you're delivering training through an LMS, make sure you're using a solution that enables you to mix and match content formats. Also, if you're short on resources, don't be afraid to take advantage of content creators outside of your organization. Add YouTube videos, reading materials, podcasts and more resources from trusted resources, or repurpose the content you already have.

2. Incorporating blended learning

Blended learning offers the best of both worlds. It's training that's delivered in part through an LMS and in part through face-to-face training, webinars, ILTs or other forms of live participation-based sessions. Blended learning works because it combines the convenience and measurability of an LMS with the personal touch that can really help training hit home. It's also an extension of the previous point as you're creating a more dynamic learning experience.

With blended learning, you can run in-person or webinar sessions on significant topics. Then you can create an online course in the LMS that reiterates the learnings from this session so that your learners can cover the material as many times as they want until they feel they truly understand it. And if you recorded the in-person or webinar session you can feature this in your online course. This repetition of information increases the likelihood that your audience will retain what is being taught.

To top it off, the live element then allows learners the opportunity to interact directly with a subject matter expert, asking them questions and offering their own views in Q&A sessions. It humanizes the training experience, allows colleagues to build relationships with each other, and further instills the knowledge the learner has gained.

3. Assessments

Regular assessments are one of the most effective ways to demonstrate retention. They reiterate critical points and refresh your learners' memories.

For example, when new data protection regulations known as GDPR came into effect last year, many companies invested significant time and energy into ensuring their employees understood the new laws. But how many would pass the test again a year later?

For some types of training, ongoing or annual assessments are a necessary step to ensure important information isn't forgotten over time. From multiple choice to true or false, you can easily create a follow-up assessment for your learners in your LMS to help clarify and reiterate learning.

4. "What's in it for me?"

No matter your audience - employees, partners, or customers - learners want to know that when they take time out of their day to train that it's worth their time. It's up to you to reinforce the value of the training for your learners to keep motivation high and help them understand why they need to retain the information in the long-term.

Ask yourself: What is the main thing your learners will walk away with from this training? Are they mastering an important new piece of software? Is it a skill that they can put to use straight away? Will their participation in the training make them a more attractive candidate for promotion? And tell your learners this.

When learners can see the benefits and practical application of their training, they are more likely to pay close attention and retain what they've learned.

5. Gamify to motivate

Since motivation to learn is one of the biggest contributors to learning retention, it's important to make completing learning as motivating as possible. Gamification is a great way to achieve this.

Within your LMS, you can incorporate gamified elements to your training programs. This means letting learners collect points for different achievements that are reflected on a leaderboard, earn badges, and level up when they've completed a certain amount of courses or learned a new skill.

6. Get people in groups

Facilitating group discussions is a powerful way to get learners engaged and reiterate essential points. When managing corporate learning, you've got lots of options for group learning:

Create a forum in your LMS where your learners can ask questions, offer each other support, generate ideas, express their opinions, and exchange views. Lively discussions on training topics will be memorable to many, and help to reinforce the points you've made.

Group projects are another great way to encourage learner engagement. When your learners are relying on each other to complete different parts of the project, it brings a new and more personal level of accountability into play. Encourage your learners to be a part of the learning community, and to be open to all kinds of ideas - your learning environment should be safe space where learners can share their thoughts.

Social Learning Theory suggests we model ourselves on the behavior of others - we watch how they learn and attempt to replicate it. It's more of a challenge to incorporate this into an eLearning environment, but by incorporating group discussion and projects, you give learners the opportunity to learn from each other. Deciding on a corporate learning theory can also play a crucial part in long term success.

How do you ensure that learning retention is high when you deliver training? What tips work best for you?

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6 Strategies to Improve Learning Retention in Corporate Training

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When planning corporate training, there's a lot of metrics to consider. But one of the most important, and often overlooked, is learning retention. The

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Spaced Learning: A Neuroscience-Based Approach to Maximize Learning Outcome

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Spaced Learning: A Neuroscience-Based Approach to Maximize Learning Outcome

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Spaced learning is when learning material is divided into smaller contents, and learners repeatedly complete each piece of content over an extended period until they have mastered it. The complexity and topic of the content determine the amount of repetitions and the space between repetitions.

Everyone has a forgetting curve. However, everyone's forgetting curve is different, so it is important to adjust accordingly.

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Foster Knowledge Retention With Spaced Learning

For a long time, educationists researched methods to increase the retention of learning to maximize learning outcomes. One of the key findings of researchers in this respect is known as the spacing effect. A German psychologist and researcher in quantitative memory, Hermann Ebbinghaus, was the first to demonstrate the spacing effect. According to him, one can maximize learning retention by repeating instructions at regular intervals. Educationists call it the spacing effect as instructions are given to learners at regular intervals.

How Is Spaced Learning Designed?

Let's find out how one can design spaced learning. In spaced learning, the learning material is divided into smaller modules. Learners take the modules at a certain point in time.

Learners then take the modules again after a defined period, say one week. Learners then again take the modules, but this time after a longer time, say two weeks. Learners then take the modules again after a defined time, say three weeks.

This is repeated until learners attain mastery of the concept. The number of repetitions and spacing between repetitions is determined by learning designers based on various factors, such as complexity, learner profile, mastery level required, etc.

Why Is Spaced Learning Effective?

To understand why spaced learning is effective in ensuring retention, we need to understand how human memory works. Whatever we learn gets stored in the short-term working memory.

The learning is retained only when it is transferred to long-term memory. However, human memory is not permanent, unlike computer memory. So, as human beings, we tend to forget things we haven't recalled for a long time. This is known as the forgetting curve.

The forgetting curve is nothing but how much we forget over time when our brain does not repeat the same activity. For example, say one learns five words of a new language today. If the person does not use the words in any way for say next two weeks, they will be able to remember only two out of five words. Spaced learning takes into account this forgetting curve and repeats the learning module before learners completely forget the learning. This reinforcement makes the brain work hard to remember the learning of the first instance. The more the brain works, the better it becomes.

This way, the memory is also transferred to long-term memory. As learners keep repeating, the brain keeps getting more and more efficient in remembering the learning. In layman's terms, we call this "practice makes a man perfect."

How To Incorporate Spaced Learning Design In eLearning Design

Spaced learning design is essentially a content design and delivery strategy that takes into account the spaced learning concept. Here are some of the essentials of spaced eLearning design:

Short and frequent modules: plan shorter modules instead of a single longer module

Frequent review modules: create review modules to be taken by learners at a defined but extended period; assess the retention and progress of learners

All new modules to start with a recap of older modules

Relate new concepts with older concepts

Create a summary and checklist as reinforcements

Advantage Of eLearning In Designing And Delivering Spaced Learning

Every individual has a different forgetting curve. Thus, one should personalize the frequency of instruction to meet the optimum speed and learning requirements. Since eLearning modules are self-paced and can be delivered anytime through learning management systems, individual needs can be catered to effectively. This is not possible in traditional classroom-based delivery.

Challenges And Drawbacks

Spaced learning needs a long-term and dedicated commitment toward the learning program. Many learners find it hard to commit to a longer duration for learning something. Moreover, there are situations when learners need to apply their learning within a short period. Spaced learning design is not recommendable in such scenarios.

And, most importantly, spaced learning design demands deep knowledge and skill from learning designers to define the effective frequency and load. If the frequency is too high or too low, learning will be rendered ineffective.

Conclusion

Spaced learning design is one of the best learning design methodologies to maximize the retention of knowledge. If designed correctly, it can ensure long-term learning and mastery of concepts.

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Spaced Learning: A Neuroscience-Based Approach To Maximize Learning Outcome

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Human memory is not permanent! Find out how our brain works and how to foster your knowledge retention with spaced learning!

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The Spaced Learning Effect: The Key to Knowledge Retention 

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The Spaced Learning Effect: The Key to Knowledge Retention 

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There are three phases of spaced learning design:

1. Present- lecture

2. Recall- quizzes and assignments

3. Understand- application

Spaced learning is beneficial for many reasons. It helps improve memory, reduces mental exhaustion, and allows employees to apply what they learned on the job during breaks.

The article covers how to use the spaced learning method and how to apply it in a corporate training program, which include:

Meet with business leaders

Identify the learning timeframe

Combine spaced learning with microlearning

Repeat content in different formats

Conduct a debriefing session

Track results with quizzes

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The Whatfix Blog | Drive Digital Adoption

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The Spaced Learning Effect: The Key to Knowledge Retention (2024)

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Spaced learning is based on the concept that learning is enhanced when knowledge is repeated after certain intervals.

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Spaced learning allows learners to forget what they learned temporarily and revisit it after a time period. Temporarily forgetting learned content leads to long-term retention. When a learner crams, the learned content transfers to the short-term memory, causing the learner to forget what was learned.

The steps of using spaced learning include:

1. Planning

2. Study and review

3. Recalling

4. Continue to recall

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What is Spaced Practice?

Spaced practice is one of the most effective study strategies, in which learners review the learning material over an extended time. This provides time for their minds to make connections between different concepts and ideas so the learners can build upon learning and easily recall the knowledge in future. How does spaced practice work?

The main purpose of the spaced repetitions is to give a chance to the learner to (nearly) forget the previous learning before revisiting the same material. It may sound like a bad idea, but forgetting something to remember leads to long-term retention of learning.

After having to almost forget something, a human brain works even harder to recall the same information. Spaced learning and effective retrieval practiceoffer a workout to the learners' brains each time they revisit the material.

When a person crams in frequent study sessions, all the knowledge is saved in his short-term memory (which he quickly forgets). The use of gaps between study sessionsis an effective learning strategy that, allows the material to store in the pupil's long-term memory instead.

This is the main reason for spaced retrieval practice to work. Ultimately, the learners won't need to work harder to recall the information leading to the intense period of learning -they will be able to recollect the information quickly from their long-term learning.

In the first few learning sessions, the learner's mind would be working hard to recall the information. As he revisits the information, it will become easier to recall and build upon.

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What are the steps of using spaced practice?

Spaced repetition can practiced in the following four steps:

1. Planning: Plan the regular intervals of study sessions;

2. Study and review: The information must be studied and reviewed for the first time.

3. Recalling: Recall the learned material at the first spacing interval.

4. Continue to recall: The learning material must be recalled at adequate spacing intervals.

Cognitive science has seen a resurgence in recent years as curriculum content in schools has placed larger demands on memory. If your colleagues are interested in building robust knowledge as the basis for memory consolidation that you might be interested in learning about our graphic organisers and building block methodologies. Educators need to consider careful curriculum design when thinking about the retention of knowledge. Many of the schools we work with are thinking about the encoding process more carefully. As Daniel Willingham points out, memory is understanding in disguise.

Curriculum subjects are full of complex ideas and students now have to embrace the science of learning in order to remember the important information. The Education Endowment Foundation now hosts hundreds of studies in this field and our own repository of landmark research will prove a good starting point for any educator interested in effective study skills.

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What are the best ways to plan a spaced repetition schedule?

In secondary school classroom practices, establishing a spaced repetition learning schedule will help students better remember what they have learned. This will prepare children to build upon the knowledge being learned so they have a solid foundation for formal assessment and future classes.

1. Planning frequent and short review sessions: Rather than trying to learn everything at once, short and regular study sessions are better for giving learners a chance to remember what they have understood and made new connections. These study sessions with spaced retrieval practice must be used throughout the year, not only at the study time for an upcoming test.

2. Review for a longer duration: Rather than cramming the whole day in one or two study sessions, take out a little time to review the material each day. A learner may divide the learning material into smaller topics and complete each topic in a couple of weeks. He must switch between topics, with a longer gap between practice sessions, focusing on a specific topic.

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For instance, if a learner starts to read a new unit in Science, a study session must be devoted to it. Then, the next day the same topic of Science must be reviewed again. Later on, he must wait for 3 days and review the Science topic once again. The pattern may change for each learner, but this is how a typical retrieval-based and spaced practice schedule might look:

Day 1: First session of study;

Day 2: Review & Revisit;

After 3 days: Review & Revisit;

After 1 week: Review & Revisit;

After 2 weeks: Review & Revisit.

It is recommended to review older material first and frequently receive assessment feedback from the teachers.

When a learner reads something from the most recent class, he must review and read the important information from the older class to keep it fresh in mind. With retrieval-based and spaced practice, it is better for the learning process to forget a little. Study becomes more effective when a child starts to study, nearly forget, and study again. The main purpose is to refresh what was learned in the last few training sessions. The harder a child's mind is challenged to remember past material, the better he would be able to recall in the future.

1. Mix old information with new material: As a learner revisits previous material, he would be learning new information. It is a chance for a child to mix old and new concepts. While a child is reviewing and revisiting old material, he must be encouraged to think about how it connects with other topics of long-term learning.

2. Preparing summary and checklist: In each spaced retrieval practice study session, a summary or checklist must be created. Whenever the child revisits the learning material, these checklists and summaries will jog his memory. By doing so, a child will be able to incorporate old information into the new one he has learned. It will also allow the child to keep on track with the increase in learning.

3. Practice to Master Study Skills: One cannot deny the benefits from retrieval practice and spaced repetition. As a child makes a habit of using retrieval-based and spaced practice, he would be able to create a strong foundation for performing better on tests or in class.

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What is Leitner System?

The Leitner system is one of the retrieval based educational practices involving a basic flashcard to perform spaced repetition. In the 1970s, a German Science journalist, Sebastian Leitner proposed 'The Leitner System for classrooms with flashcards involving the act of reviewing flashcards from a Leitner Box in extended intervals. For example:

Level 1: cards every day;

Level 2: cards every 2 days;

Level 3: cards every 4 days;

Level 4: cards every 8 days, and so on.

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According to an independent study, providing students with retrieval opportunities through flashcard apps improve recall and retention. Flashcards are considered to be ideal for practising the foreign language vocabulary, retrieval of facts, terms, and concepts. For some topics, like foreign languages learning, some specialized flashcards apps will help learners through digital flashcards (e.g. Quizlet, Memrise ). Regular retrieval practice and spaced repetition are two of the most effective study techniques students may use but, manually planning retrieval-based and spaced practicecan be very overwhelming. Flashcard apps and software provide an effective learning method and an ideal opportunity for the learners to recognise the sweet spot of optimal learning. Whenever a student's forgetfulness increases to a certain level, these flashcard apps pop up and bring their mind back on track.

There is no doubt in the effectiveness of retrieval practice and spaced learning. Clearly, the spaced regular retrieval practice is much better than cramming the learning material in just one study session. Learning and memory go hand in hand, and the main objective of every learner is to transfer the classroom material of learning into his long-term memory which leads to an increase In memory recall. When a learner can absorb the information better, he can build a deeper understanding and use these learned concepts in meaningful ways.

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Spaced practice is one of the most effective study strategies , in which learners review the learning material over an extended time. This provides time for their minds to make connections between different concepts and ideas so the learners can build upon learning and easily recall the knowledge in future.

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Drive Employee Skill Development with Mentoring

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Drive Employee Skill Development with Mentoring

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Skill development and mentoring go together in several ways. It is a great way to foster innovation and collaboration to hone employee skills. Mentorship provides an opportunity for mentees to practice new skills with mentors' advice and guidance.

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A fast-changing world requires a labor force with a wide range of skills, just as it requires businesses to adapt to changing demands and technological advancements. Skill development is something that businesses continually need to invest in to stay relevant and thrive in the long term. Without it, they risk facing labor shortages that prevent them from completing vital business operations. This can cost them money and people.

In this article, learn how you can incorporate skill development as part of your company's employee development programming.

What is Skill Development?

Benefits of Skill Development

Examples of Skills That Can Be Developed

Every company will have different skill needs; their skill development plan should reflect that. There are, however, some common strategies that will benefit most employees and companies. Most companies will benefit from developing leadership skills among their employees.

Becoming a manager - Many individual contributors become managers by being good at their jobs, but with little to no experience managing people, facilitating difficult conversations or delegating work.

Upskilling to keep pace with a changing industry - For industries like manufacturing and energy and utilities, developing skills in better integrating digital technology and automation into day-to-day responsibilities can be a huge part of remaining a productive and competent worker.

Leadership capabilities - In order to build a robust pipeline of leaders, organizations need to develop the right competencies and skills within their high-potential employees. Things like empathy, delegation and leadership presence can be cultivated in employees through learning and practice.

The Bond Between Mentoring and Skill Development

How Mentoring Can Aid in Skill Development

Role of a Mentor in Skill Development

Tips for Effective Mentoring for Skill Development

Set clear goals and expectations

Any mentoring relationship should start with expectation settings, no matter the format. For example, in one-on-one mentoring relationships, the mentor and mentees should discuss expectations around time commitments, degree of support, and what specific skills the mentor can realistically help the mentee with. For group mentoring and issue-based mentoring circles, the participants should be clear about the goals and objectives for every session and be practical about what they can learn and accomplish together.

Provide regular feedback and constructive criticism

Any new skill takes a little bit of time to learn, and if an employee is putting a new skill to practice, they probably won't get it right the first time. That's where regular feedback and constructive criticism from mentors come in. Without it, it can be difficult for the mentee to identify what they're doing right, and what they need to work on.

Encourage self-reflection and self-evaluation

Empower experimentation and innovation

Not everyone learns the same way, and any skill development policies should reflect that. While it can be helpful to provide structure and guidelines, companies should leave room for experimentation and innovation. An effective learning environment should allow employees to try new things in a low-stakes environment.

Build trust and maintain confidentiality

Lastly, people develop and learn best in an environment of trust. Any mentor-mentee relationship should be based on trust and honesty and with the expectation that they can maintain confidentiality.

Challenges in Mentoring for Skill Development

Some companies may be reluctant to introduce a mentoring program because of potential challenges. Here are the potential issues that companies can face in implementing a mentorship program for skill development:

Incentivizing senior employees to be mentors

Becoming a mentor is an additional time commitment that many senior employees may be hesitant to make, especially if there aren't any incentives for them to do so. While mentoring should always be voluntary, companies must be creative about cultivating an environment where senior employees want to be mentors, such as incorporating it into an employee's performance review or making it part of an (optional) leadership development program.

Matching mentees with suitable mentors

A mentor/mentee relationship only works if both parties align in their goals and expectations. But matching the right participants can be long and arduous, particularly in a large company. However, there are multiple ways to streamline the process through company-wide surveys and technological tools.

Designing a program that works for all employees

No one-size-fits-all program will suit every employee, so companies may face the challenge of creating a framework that doesn't serve everyone's purposes and goals. However, they can make a framework that allows mentors and mentees to amend and adopt as they see fit, provided they have an accurate understanding of their employees' goals and aspirations.

Getting support and buy-in from senior leaders

Plenty of research backs up the benefits of mentoring and skill development, but the rewards aren't immediate and often take time to materialize. As a result, getting buy-in and support from senior leaders can be challenging. To combat this, companies must continuously track the ROI of any mentoring or skill development initiative.

Managing a mentorship program

A mentorship program can also take a great deal of time to manage. Without the right resources and support, it can be an overwhelming endeavor for a person to take on, particularly if they're doing so on top of their day jobs. An approach that provides a system and accountability allows the program manager to take a more hands-off approach.

Easily Develop Your Employees' Skill with Mentoring Software

Having talented employees with a wide range of skills is an asset to any company, especially in a competitive labor market. Take the first step to ensure that your company is in a position to attract and retain these employees for many years to come.

Anisa Purbasari is a freelance journalist, content creator, editor, and writer. She writes and edits stories about all things related to the intersection of work and life-whether that's productivity, personal finance, careers, leadership, psychology, or workplace culture. Her work has been published in a range of publications including Fast Company, Business Insider, and BBC.

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Drive Employee Skill Development with Mentoring | Chronus

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The workforce is continually changing, which is why skill development is more important than ever. Learn about skill development with mentoring from Chronus!

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Examples of Microlearning in Corporate Training that Boost Learner Engagement and Performance

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Examples of Microlearning in Corporate Training that Boost Learner Engagement and Performance

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In the corporate world, direct application in learning happens in two ways: moment of need learning and learning in the flow of work. People also learn in natural settings in the workplace more so than in formal settings. Some examples include social interactions, collaborations, and group projects at the workplace.

For microlearning to be successful, one must consider the audience's learning styles and needs. L&D teams must be mindful of how they put together learning materials that best accommodate the learners so they can apply them on the job.

Examples of microlearning in corporate training include:

1. Creating an on-demand learning solution for training trainers

2. Empowering leaders with just-in-time learning solutions

3. Driving a company culture program through an immersive learning experience

4. Enhancing mentoring programs for leaders through microlearning

5. Empowering new joiners with a compact learning nugget

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5 Examples Of Microlearning In Corporate Training That Boost Learner Engagement And Performance

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Want to achieve maximum learner engagement? Discover 5 examples of microlearning in corporate training and overcome this challenge.

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There are some pros to microlearning. Microlearning delivers learning content quickly. It creates shorter modules that can be completed in under five minutes. It is affordable because it only requires a few resources. It is flexible and more engaging because it is mobile-friendly and delivers various learning content. This helps boost learning retention because it is accessible anytime, anywhere.

However, there are some cons to microlearning. Microlearning is great for delivering simple information, not complex concepts. It is also not suitable for in-depth training because microlearning is designed for small learning content that is quick and straightforward.

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It's no more the classroom way when it comes to learning these days. eLearning has become popular. And along with it, a lot of other forms of education are also gaining ground. Among these, microlearning is carving out a niche for itself fast. It is a form of short-term learning that is being embraced by educational institutions as well as corporate organizations across the globe.

According to MarketingProfs, the new millennials cannot think more than 140 characters at a stretch. They have the attention span of a hyperactive weasel. So, the next time you teach something to a millennial kid, be assured that she will be paying uninterrupted attention only the maximum length of a tweet. So, one of the major aims of planning the ways to impart education these days is by short-term methods. This is what is driving the popularity of microlearning with every passing day.

Pros of Implementing Microlearning

Microlearning surely has some amazing advantages. Here's a quick look at some of them.

Drives Innovation
This is driven by the fact that microlearning itself needs innovation. To learn more about this, it is important to have some basic knowledge about this form of learning.

How does microlearning work?

It is one of the most innovative ways of imparting education. You have to think of ways to make education fun and interesting for the students. For example, you can think of a few things, like:

Holding quizzes on a weekly basis

Allowing the use of gadgets in the classroom

Encouraging special interests

Conducting group discussions

All these are really innovative ways of imparting education and have hardly been practiced in the classroom earlier.

Easy to remember
This is actually one of the primary reasons why this concept of microlearning has been implemented. This form of learning makes it easy for the students to remember what they have learned. The whole syllabus has to be divided into smaller sections. Thus, the students can learn these sections separately. This is sure to help them remember the things more easily than they would have done if the classes were longer.

Classes can be Attended Almost from Anywhere
Microlearning can be offered through a wide range of platforms. Classes can be conducted online. Some of these platforms, which can be used for the classes, include social media, the online forums, and so on. So, even if you are staying at home, you can attend the classes that have been designed in a microlearning format.

Media Makes the Process Interesting
Microlearning needs to be imparted fast. It saves time. But that's not all. To perform that, different types of media, such as video, PowerPoint presentations, audio clips, and others need to be used as well. This makes the learning process more interesting.
Cons as Well
Microlearning has its own share of disadvantages as well.

Let's have a look at some of them.
Difficult to Cover a Wide Range of Subjects at One Go
Microlearning has to be completed within a short time. So, it's never possible to complete a topic at one go. You might not be able to discuss a topic in complete detail in a single class. For example, if you are planning to teach a topic, which is likely to take up a bit of time, you might not be able to complete it in a single class. You will have to take two or even three classes to make the students know the details of the whole topic.
No Need of Focusing Dedicatedly Does it require a lot of concentration and dedication for small sessions of studies?
Not at all.

When you already know that the sessions are going to end within a short time, you will hardly pay any attention to it. The commitment will not be too much dedicated. So, the process of imparting education, which was designed because of shorter attention span of the learners won't help to increase it in any manner.
Casual Ambiance Might Hinder Learning New Things
The concept of classroom is driven by the fact that students learning new topics need a formal ambiance. This is not available when you are going for microlearning. It is somewhat a casual ambiance, which might help you revise what you had learned earlier. So, students might find it difficult to learn new things in a class that embraces microlearning.

Microlearning is a new concept in the world of education. It has a number of pros as well as cons. The pros, however, outweigh the cons by a certain extent. Hence, microlearning is being embraced by institutions as well as corporate bodies to impart training and education to students.

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It's no more the classroom way when it comes to learning these days. eLearning has become popular. And along with it, a lot of other forms of education are also gaining ground. Among these, microlearning is carving out a niche for itself fast.

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People Management: A Full Guide Including 10 Top Skills

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People Management: A Full Guide Including 10 Top Skills

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Team managers work closely with HR professionals to meet the company's needs and goals. People management involves managing and supporting employees daily through leading, training, developing, and motivating them to achieve goals. The responsibilities include people-related tasks such as recruitment, onboarding, training and development, performance management, employee engagement, and compensation and benefits.

People management offers:

Clarity- what employees need to do, how to do it, and why.

Context- communication is crucial to understanding the reasoning behind why employees are slacking and finding a solution rather than resorting to firing them.

Consistency

Courage

Commitment

Team managers are crucial to the team as they are the glue that helps keep everything together and running smoothly. They know each employee on a personal yet professional level.

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Human Resources should be the experts on the people side of the business - the people management. But, managing people isn't something that's limited to the HR department only. In today's article, we zoom in on people management; we give a definition, look at the so-called 5 c's, and we list ten of the most important people management skills for 2021 and beyond. Let's get started!
Contents
What is people management?
The 5 c's of people management
Why good people management matters
10 most important people management skills
Wrapping up
FAQ
What is people management?

People management is the process of overseeing the training, development, motivation, and day to day management of employees. Typically, managers are responsible for the people management in their departments, but depending on the business structure, there may be other departments that help.

For instance, if you have a chief of staff, that person focuses on the people management side of things while department heads concentrate on the work product. There is, of course, an overlap between these functions, and for good people management to occur, both the project and the people side must function correctly.

The Human Resources department often serves as a sort of subject matter expert in the realm of people management. They can serve as a resource to managers and the people who look out for the employees as a whole. This is why you'll often find learning and development as key functions for the HR department. They work to build succession plans and create job descriptions to facilitate the success of the people. Compensation also plays a crucial role when it comes to the management of people.

The 5 C's of people management

People management can be summarized in five categories - all beginning with the letter C. By looking at these ideas, you can learn the central constructs of people management.

1. Clarity. A key part of management is giving people instructions. Clarity makes it possible for employees to precisely understand what they need to do and how to do it. This does not mean micromanagement, where a manager unnecessarily spells out every step and hovers while the employee completes them. This is giving clear, concise information so that the employee knows what the manager expects. It gives everyone a sense of security, knowing what they need to do.

2. Context. An oft-cited phrase is "what you do for one; you do for all." While this makes sense in terms of fairness, it denies the very real context necessary for good people management. What else is going on?
For instance, an employee may struggle with punctuality. A supervisor with weak people management skills would simply note each absence and then fire the employee when they reached the limit allowed by policy. A leader focused on people management would approach the employee and see what was going on. It could be a case of the employee merely getting up too late in the morning, or the employee could have a serious issue that the manager can either help resolve or find a solution for. For instance, if an employee commutes by public transportation and the bus connections changed, tardiness is out of the employee's control. It is probably worth it to adjust the employee's official schedule by 15 minutes.
Context is also critical when conducting an investigation, for instance as a part of a grievance procedure. Nothing happens in a vacuum, and a fair investigation looks both at the context of the situation and the content.

3. Consistency. Parenting books talk about setting schedules for your children and following through with consequences. People management is the same way - just with bigger kids.
When you explain that the priorities are A, B, and C, and then ask why no one has completed C yet, employees lose trust in their managers. When you tell employees that if they complete all their certifications, they'll receive a 2 percent pay bump, and then that doesn't happen, you affect their engagement. Why should they work hard to reach goals when the manager isn't consistent?

4. Courage. Typically, people managers earn more than individual contributors, and courage is one of those reasons. It can be challenging to sit down with an employee and tell the employee he needs to change. It can feel awkward and uncomfortable to let someone know their behavior is inappropriate. Of course, there are those times when you have to have a hygiene discussion with an employee. Every people manager fears those conversations.
You also need to decide who to promote, who to rate "fails to meet expectations," and sometimes terminate an employee for poor performance. While it may seem kind to ignore employees' faults and failings, a manager has a responsibility towards the company and the other employees. Ignoring an employee who bullies and harasses other employees may be the easy way out, but it's not good management. It destroys the department morale and can eventually damage the company. The courage to do what is right is critical.

5. Commitment. Good management doesn't happen overnight. It takes hard work and patience. You have to plan and prepare for the future and correct things when they go wrong. When you decide to undertake a new project (or your boss assigns one) or hire a new employee, the finished project or the fully trained employee doesn't appear overnight. You need a commitment to the process and the people. Otherwise, there will not be effective people management.

Why good people management matters

People don't leave companies; they leave managers. How true this is depends on who asks the survey question, but without a doubt, managers play a vital roll in turnover. And it's not just the direct managers - but everyone involved in managing people.

A Human Resources department that doesn't provide guidance and direction, doesn't provide training, and doesn't advocate for the employees will also make for a poor environment.

People want good leaders for their management. They want clarity, context, consistency, courage, and commitment from their leaders. Without this, you won't have employee buy-in or engagement. You can indeed find people who will come to work and do the assigned jobs, but your turnover will be high, and your productivity will be low.

If you're concerned about the cost of training, developing employees, or helping everyone set annual performance goals, remember that the cost of recruiting, hiring, and training new employees will (massively) exceed this cost.

Good managers make for good companies. Solid employee support will pay off.

10 Top people management skills for 2021 and beyond

In addition to the five C's of people management, these skills are necessary for good people managers too:

1. Managing by performance. In March of 2020, everyone who could work at home began to work at home. It's unlikely that everyone will be back in the office by January 2021. This means managers must know how to judge an employee's work not by their face time, but by the employee's results. This may be a switch for some managers.

2. Planning. It may seem difficult to plan in this rapidly changing landscape (we recently wrote an article about how HR can prepare for 2021), but people management requires managers to plan for multiple contingencies. This will continue to be important in 2021.

3. Mentoring. Most employees want to progress in their careers and will appreciate a manager who takes the time to mentor them and helps them to succeed.

4. Problem-solving. In 2020, companies had to learn how to telecommute, rearrange factory floors, work with masks, and comply with ever-changing government health regulations. This is a critical people management skill going forward. These rapid changes won't end. Even in more subdued times, problem-solving is a crucial skill in people management. Not only do you have to solve problems with projects, but you need to work together with employees to come to solutions.

5. Communication. This skill is always at the top of people management. Letting employees know essential information quickly and clearly can be the difference between a supportive team and a rebellion.

6. Feedback-Giving. Good people management requires managers to give feedback - positive and negative. If a manager allows an employee to make the same mistake repeatedly, it can damage the company brand or turn other employees against you. If a manager ignores employees' successes, employees will grow bitter. Good people managers need to provide feedback in an accurate, kind, and timely way.

7. Feedback - Receiving. Feedback can come from their superiors, customers, or direct reports. All this information needs to be processed, and the manager determines what they should or should not change. It can be challenging to sort out the competing voices, and do the right thing sometimes means challenging a department head. This can require courage, but ultimately using feedback in the proper way results in better people management.

8. Creativity. You don't need to paint or play the piano to be creative. Creativity comes in the form of problem-solving, solution finding, new product development, and feedback facilitating. Again, as we head into the second year of a global pandemic, good people managers will continue to find creative solutions to the situations at hand.

9. Understanding stakeholders. There is a balance between employees and projects and between management and clients. Employees need a manager's guidance on how to value each stakeholder. Sometimes the stakeholders in a project may not be clear - and this can result in a manager placing the wrong emphasis on project completion. This can put an employee at risk, which is bad people management.

10. Emotional intelligence. Everyone is in a state of prolonged stress and crisis, which is not likely to go away soon. A people manager with emotional intelligence looks for when people are at their limits and looks for ways to fix it. Someone with good emotional intelligence also knows their own limitations and looks for their own failings to correct it. Emptional intelligence is a key to effective collaboration in the workplace and will continue to be a critical skill as we head into 2021.

Wrapping up

Good people management is crucial for the engagement, retention, and development of your employees. As Human Resources should be the expert on the people side of the business, they play an important role in providing guidance, direction, and training to those who are busy managing people on a daily basis and, by extension, the success of the business.

FAQ

What is people management?

People management is the process of overseeing the training, development, motivation, and day to day management of employees. Typically, managers are responsible for the people management in their departments.

What are the 5 c's of people management?

People management can be summarized in 5 categories, all beginning with a c: clarity, context, consistency, courage and commitment.

What are the most important people management skills?

Skills that are necessary for good people management include: managing by performance, planning, mentoring, problem-solving, communication, feedback giving & receiving, creativity, understanding stakeholders, and emotional intelligence.

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People Management: A Full Guide Including 10 Top Skills - AIHR

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Human Resources should be the experts on the people side of the business - the people management. But, managing people isn't something that's limited to the HR department only. In today's article, we zoom in on people management; we give a definition, look at the so-called 5 c's, and we list ten of the most important people management skills for 2021 and beyond.

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The Importance of a Mentor During New Employee Onboarding

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The Importance of a Mentor During New Employee Onboarding

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Research shows that employees who work at a job without mentorship will leave the job within five years due to feeling unprepared and lacking support. Having a mentor helps keep new employees satisfied, reducing the chance of turnover. This will save the company money and time. Mentors develop relationships with employees to help them become more involved with the team and introduce them to new skills. Mentors help integrate new employees into the team by offering advice and introducing them to the team. They tell new employees the structure of things and offer advice when a challenge arises. Patience is important as a mentor because new employees take time to adjust to the new environment while learning new skills and meeting new people. They will ask many questions and are prone to mistakes, which is okay. Mistakes are growth opportunities.

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The Importance of a Mentor During New Employee Onboarding - Huron

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Establishing mentorship programs for new employees helps increase job satisfaction and develops them into quality contributors within your organization.