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Staff development is one key area that many employers are becoming reluctant to embrace yet it is not just meant at educating the individual worker but also the whole company.It is no secret that a knowledgeable and educated workforce is highly productive and easy to work with in terms of implementing and pushing the company or national goals.

Government seems to be the only employer that openly offers its workers chance to pursue advancement courses as long as they are linked to their jobs but some individuals in the same Government who are in leadership positions continue to frustrate efforts of juniors for no apparent reason.

Some just do so out of cruelty and jealousy.

In Government there are schemes where workers who decide to pursue studies on full time basis will be allowed to go but are bonded for the same years they would have been away.

This is done to ensure that the worker uses the knowledge he or she will have acquired for the betterment of the Government and also at least impart the knowledge to his or her colleagues who would not have had a chance.

Coming to private sector, there doesn’t seem to be a clear cut policy on staff development.

The scheme, if ever it exists, is just known by a few workers who mostly decide to keep the information to themselves.
The human resources officers and managers who will be fully aware of such programmes seem to decide to keep mum.

To the private companies that allow their workers to go for further educational training seem not to be fully committed.
Study leave is the major challenge that workers continue to face.

The majority of the workers end up taking study days from their annual leave days simply because the study leave days are only meant for exams.
At the end of the year one will realise that the worker never goes on annual leave as his or her days will all be chewed up while going to school whose knowledge he or she acquires will benefit the company mostly and rarely the individual.

It would make a lot of sense for workers who would have been allowed to further their education with various universities or colleges to be granted study days on company time in return for bonding upon completion of the programme.

Many might mistakenly assume that while away from work and attending lectures, the worker might be resting and not being productive but let us not forget at university there are academic assignments, presentations tests which keep the worker highly busy and stressed up more than what he or she does while at work.

In addition the worker will be away from his or her home and family thereby straining him or her more on the financial aspect and emotionally.

Granting of permission to further education should also see the company paying for the worker’s educational fees all in return for bonding for varying months or years which he or she would have been away.

This if properly administered will also act as a worker retention scheme.

There is also a tendency of Government and private sector of just prioritising mostly the higher ranks or top managers when it comes to furthering education.
It would also be prudent to allow juniors some education to match the standards of the educated and developed superior.

There is also need for companies and Government to regularly conduct in-house training programmes for its staff to constantly update them on the ever changing technological advancement and specialised way of conducting business in a now competitive global village.

This however, might involve hiring out experts in the field from abroad, while some companies might think this is an unnecessary expense but research has proved otherwise.

One might realise that many workers might no longer be doing work according to the book and involved in cutting of corners.
The in-house training sessions also help as an incentive for the workers as they will feel highly valued by their employer.

There is nothing that motivates humanity like noticing that his or her contribution is valued and appreciated.

There is however, a bad mentality that seems to be entrenched in many of the company or Government human resource departments that once they educate the worker he or she will start looking for greener pastures elsewhere and leave them.

One thing they fail to note is that mobility in terms of jobs has always been there and it is a sign of development.
There only need to be mechanisms to make sure that all parties benefit equally without one exploiting the other.

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