Is training an investment or a cost?

report
  • Publication
  • October 30, 2023

Training is often viewed as a cost rather than an investment, leading to overlooked workforce development. Tailored training programmes, addressing soft skills and technical knowledge, prove crucial. Regulatory training should go beyond reciting legal text, enabling implementation. PwC offers customised training solutions, aligning compliance with efficiency improvements.

Many a time, training is seen as a regulatory obligation which continues to add to the ever-increasing compliance costs of a firm.  This can very easily distract the focus from the importance of investing in one’s workforce. Recalling Henry Ford’s words of wisdom, “The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave is not training them and having them stay”.

Today’s ever-evolving legal landscape and entities investing more and more in technology in their attempts to keep ahead of the competition, provide unprecedented challenges to capture the real training needs of an organisation and design the right training plan.  

Inevitably, changes to external factors are in turn generating a series of internal changes which tend to be either overlooked or underestimated. Too soon, this will result in an increased operational risk, and very likely, a demotivated workforce.

When investing in a new control, besides the cost, the effectiveness of that control is an important aspect that is given due consideration in the decision-making process. Putting together a training programme for your workforce should not be any different.  With the variety of training options available nowadays which indeed offer a great degree of flexibility, one must keep in mind the real value derived out of the training imparted.

Providing generic training for the sake of getting it out of the way is unlikely to provide employees with the right level of knowledge and skills required.  Over time, this will lead to an under-skilled workforce, giving rise to more frequent errors that can potentially lead to financial losses. Staff morale will start dropping and potentially a sense of fear will be instilled which will prevent creativity and passion from growing.

Tailored training programmes

Considering this broader picture, tailored training programmes become the investment every organisation should consider. In determining training needs, one should not be limited to merely legal and regulatory changes. Too often focus is placed on technical training at the expense of soft skills that could effectively help an individual work more efficiently and diligently. Due consideration should also be given to other aspects such as:

  • New systems introduced or changes made to existing ones;

  • Changes to internal procedures, that very often are communicated via e-mails or re-circulation of updated documents, with the content very likely to be overlooked or misunderstood; and

  • The workforce composition and the set of skills that each individual should possess.

renewable energy

Contact us

Mark Lautier

Mark Lautier

Partner, PwC Malta

Tel: +356 2564 6744