
An employee whose company invests in their professional development will feel empowered and eager to make the most of those opportunities, which in turn makes the company more attractive to clients and prospective partners and customers. In other words, everyone wins.
So what alternative skill sets or ad hoc roles will benefit both your employees and the company as a whole? One-off workshops and taster courses might be advantageous, but for longer-term results, consider these five continuing professional development or holistic growth opportunities.1. Brand ambassador or social media manager
Your business may have a presence on social media channels such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook, but are you making the most of it? If someone on your team has a natural flair with words, a keen understanding of how to grab the attention of audiences on social channels and a comprehensive understanding of the business’s objectives, they could help raise the business’s profile while honing their skills in these valuable areas. It’s crucial, though, that the person projecting your business’s message takes great care to avoid controversy and knows who to work with if a problem arises.2. Health and safety
3. Risk or crisis management
These two specialities could be seen as a natural progression from a health and safety qualification, but very much depend on the nature and size of your business. Smaller businesses may not have someone tasked with averting and managing internal or external fallout from, say, a major technology breakdown. Likewise, environmental or natural disasters might pose a crisis: is there a key employee to direct your business’s response in the case of a flood, for instance? Both risk management and crisis management are vast areas for organisations of any size to consider, and require careful consideration before the creation of audits, plans or the appointment of specific employees to head up the process.4. Charity coordinator
5. Social secretary
Look at the world’s most successful companies, with the most sought-after jobs: yes, Apple and Google come to mind for their workplace-as-playground settings, but companies in other industries – from financial services provider Edward Jones to clothing retailers White Stuff – boast of employees who feel valued and proud of jobs they love. For smaller businesses, some contributing ‘happiness factors,’ such as in-house health clubs and free cafeterias, will be out of the question, but even one enthusiastic employee can make work more fun for the entire organisation. That might mean installing bean bags and table tennis, or regular lunch outings and drinks nights, or encouraging employees to form sports teams, book groups or pursue other interests outside of the office. It’s all about creating a friendly, healthy, sociable cohesion and it doesn’t have to mean large-scale investment. Sabelline Chicot is a a writer and editor working in digital publishing, where she covers small business, online security and health & safety matters. Image sourceShare this story