Employees and candidates both demand it. And in a tight talent market? 

You’d be foolish to discount it. 

The reality is – L&D can’t be dismissed or avoided.  
Here are five important reasons why you need to invest in L&D. 

L&D benefit #1 – Talent Attraction 

At the heart of it, a robust learning program demonstrates your commitment to investing in your employees and their long-term success. It’s little wonder then, that candidates consider an employer’s learning and development opportunities as very important when evaluating a job. 

A Gallup and Amazon study found that 48% of American workers would switch jobs if offered skills training opportunities. And for younger workers aged 18 to 24, upskilling was deemed the third most important benefit when evaluating a new job. 

In a tight talent market like this one, L&D can be your competitive edge. 

L&D benefit #2 – Employee Engagement 

When knowledge is endless, personal growth is continuous. We develop an insatiable appetite to keep learning and growing (and sharing our knowledge). Scientific studies have even proven that learning improves our happiness and sense of thriving, in that it helps us feel more self-determined, confident, resilient, and open to new experiences and perspectives. This idea of thriving and growing positively influences the way employees show up in the workplace, with 71% of workers who recently upskilled saying it had a positive impact on their job satisfaction. 

L&D benefit #3 – Employee Performance 

It’s a bit of an obvious point to make, but employees who are highly trained and kept up to date on industry trends and emerging skills are going to be more productive, higher-performing employees! Most people want to perform at the best of their ability, so give them the L&D opportunities they need to enable continuous skills development (for the betterment of your workplace). 

L&D benefit #4 – Workplace Culture 

One of the worst things you can do for your company culture is provide a workplace that allows your people to feel stagnant and bored. A robust L&D program can cultivate a continuous learning culture within your organisation that improves employee morale and brand reputation. 

L&D benefit #5 – Employee Retention 

With the skills shortage now established and widespread, retaining the employees we have has never been more critical. Learning and development has become an important retention strategy. Companies that rated highly on employee training saw 53% lower attrition, while employees at companies that offer internal mobility stay almost two times longer. 

Safe to say, the learning and development function has a powerful role to play in attracting, engaging, and retaining high-performing talent in your organisation.