Although the individual training budget increased last year, it also increasingly remains on the shelf. This is the conclusion of research commissioned by learning platform StudyTube. At almost 40 percent of the organizations, at least half of the budget that is available is not used.
A recognizable image, says Jannes van der Velde of employers’ association AWVN. ‘It’s not like everything stays put, but it’s not always well spent either.’
According to the study, the individual training budget has increased by an average of 25 percent in a year, from 800 euros in 2021 to 1,000 euros in 2022. In almost 40 percent of the organizations, half or more of the money remained unused. That was 31 percent in 2020 and 29 percent in 2021.
Striking and sinful
According to Studytube, it is estimated to be hundreds of millions of euros. Remarkable and a shame, says director Homam Karimi. ‘You cannot be satisfied if so much money and development potential is left unsaid. Learning and development helps to deploy employees more flexibly and sustainably. And in this tight labor market you want to offer talent growth opportunities. That’s how you keep people on board.’
According to Van der Velde, however, this can be viewed from two sides. ‘We see that there are many developments when it comes to learning and lifelong learning. But it is also a cultural issue. The real question is how to keep people motivated to continue learning throughout their careers. A very difficult question.’
Cold feet
However, according to the researchers, ignorance among HR professionals also plays a role. They cannot be blamed for that, thinks Van der Velde. ‘A culture change sometimes takes a very long time and those professionals are busy with many things at the same time. But that is one of the keys to making people aware that there is training money.’
In addition, there may be cold feet among the employees. Often because when learning, people have an image of the school desks of the past. Linking a reward to an additional learning process is a solution, but according to Van der Velde perspective is a better way. We all know that today’s jobs are not tomorrow’s jobs. It’s not at all difficult to explain to people that they have to keep developing in order to keep working.’
