Last week I discussed how important the GyrusAim Individual Development Plan (IDP) is for employees to manage their development. Today I discuss
Another tool included in GyrusAim that further enables workforce development: Gap Analysis.
The GyrusAim Gap Analysis screen compares obtained skills to required skills for jobs, certifications, and organizations. This concept enables the potential for powerful development planning because not only can an employee compare their skills to their current company requirements, but they can also compare them to other potential jobs, certifications, and organizations. Additionally, employees can sign up for instructor-led classes, or even take eLearning directly from the Gap Analysis page which streamlines the entire process of locating and taking training.
Gap Analysis has many practical benefits that improve employee competency and the ease by which managers maximize employee development, thus strengthening the company’s overall training program. Specific benefits are:
- Succession planning – Succession planning is the identification and development of potential successors in a company. The key is to create a match between the company’s future needs and the aspirations of individual employees. The Gap Analysis function augments succession planning by identifying if employees have obtained those skills necessary for advancement into such positions.
- Career path planning – Career planning is an activity that is best executed on a regular basis because employees, jobs, certifications, and organizations are dynamic and require periodic reassessment. Gap Analysis should be included in this reassessment because it simplifies career path planning by linking lesser skilled positions to more highly skilled positions making identification of required skills obvious.
- Cross-training – Cross-training is useful for managers because it provides flexibility in managing the workforce to meet the company’s goals. It helps employees because it educates them with new skills increasing their value to the company, and it combats boredom by introducing new concepts and challenges. Gap Analysis benefits both managers and employees because it streamlines and reduces the complexity of the above processes.
- Skill deficiency recognition – Recognizing employees deficient in job related skills can be difficult, especially in large organizations. Not recognizing such skills can lead to safety, product quality, and other critical problems. The GyrusAim Gap Analysis function helps eliminate these issues by identifying areas where employees need additional training to fulfill current job, organization, and certification requirements.
Companies must periodically review their workforce development programs, and for the above reasons GyrusAim’s Gap Analysis should be included as part of this process to provide essential data with which informed decisions can be made.