How to Approach Your Manager to Ask for More IT Training

In an increasingly internet-dependent world, skills in IT are essential for workers across industries. Technology is constantly evolving, and people need to be able to adapt in order to remain competitive. Workforce education is extremely important and mutually beneficial for business leaders and employees alike. However, it can be difficult to approach your manager to ask them to invest in training. Read on for our advice on how to request IT training in a way that demonstrates the value and importance of a workforce that is optimized with the most comprehensive and up-to-date skills possible.

Assess Your IT Training Goals

Before approaching your manager, it is critical that you know why you want more training. What do you hope to be able to accomplish? How will the skills you want to develop build ultimately help build a stronger team? You will want to be able to answer any questions that come up, so you should consider your goals and motivations and how IT training will help you accomplish them.

Do Your Research

Your manager will want to know exactly how much a development opportunity will cost. Before approaching them, make sure you have evaluated the following factors:

• Cost of the training
• How long the training will take to complete
• The specific IT program or programs you want to learn
• How many employees would participate in the course or courses
• How the training can be used to serve the business
• Whether there is an established process for requesting funding for job-related activities
• Whether there are tax credits or deductions available

Have a Plan

Being fully prepared with a plan that illustrates the way IT training can be incorporated into your schedule without interrupting existing responsibilities is important. Your manager is more likely to consider your request if they understand that training will not distract workers or interfere with your team’s responsibilities. Think about when you will be able to complete your training. Try to plan around your existing work schedule. You can even offer to make yourself available via email or Slack during your training in case your manager needs to reach you.

Having something tangible for them to look at that details the benefits of IT training can help your manager make their decision, such as a PowerPoint or a spreadsheet. Writing stimulates cells in the brain called the Reticular Activating System, which plays a major role in consciousness and alertness. The more you write down, the more you will understand your own ideas and therefore be able to communicate them effectively. Showing that you have fully considered your proposition can only help your case.

Make a Vision Statement

A vision statement provides a way for others – in this case, your manager – to understand your purpose and intention. Your statement should be concise and should convey what you intend to achieve. In creating a vision statement, you will want to consider your overall objectives in pursuing IT education. What kind of person, worker, and/or job candidate do you hope to become? Be specific and descriptive in your statement. Include details about all of the skills you can sharpen through an IT training program and how you want to use those skills to advance the company into the future. Your vision statement should evolve as your skillset grows, so you should add whatever details you need to convey your goals to your managers.

Present the Options

There are many different types of IT training you can pursue that will broaden your toolbelt of useful and marketable skills. Consider all of your options and select the most relevant IT education courses to your field. Be ready to present details about each of them to your manager and explain exactly how the skills they would afford could benefit the workforce and the company. Consider specific problems that your company has encountered and establish a way that investing in IT training could potentially work to remedy them. If you have examples of IT training improving other businesses, Connect your personal goals to outcomes that will directly improve and accelerate the business.

Beneficial IT Training Programs for Workforces

Some common types of IT training that have helped businesses develop successful workforces include

• Microsoft – One of the leading vendors of software, hardware, and cloud services worldwide, Microsoft products are integral to the operations of most industries. Windows, Office, Outlook, Skype, and Azure are just a few common titles that are easy to learn and help businesses manage their operations efficiently.
• Python – Used to create functional websites, mobile apps, automate system administration, and much more, Python is a multi-use coding language. Learning Python can outfit any worker with a variety of extremely useful skills that can help modernize and develop a competitive company.
• Cloud computing – Cloud computing is the delivery of services, such as data storage, networking, and software, through the internet. More and more businesses are becoming reliant on the cloud for the streamlined, more efficient communication and digital operation it affords.
• Oracle – Oracle is a relational database management system designed for grid computing and data warehousing. It is particularly useful for organizations that utilize large amounts of data or focus on database development and administration.
• Web development – Website development is an extremely useful skill for any person to have. The need for functional, professional websites exists in virtually every industry and is a basic building block of computer literacy.

Explain the Benefits

One of the most important factors to a manager of any business in determining whether to invest in workforce training is, of course, benefits to the business. It is important to emphasize the many ways IT training can help accelerate operations for the company.

Stronger Workforce

Investing in a workforce and developing their skills offers individual employees the opportunity to better themselves. It also demonstrates trust and respect for the workers who benefit. This can encourage loyalty to the business, employee satisfaction, and overall motivation. Optimizing employees and outfitting them with the most up-to-date skills will make them stronger, more competitive workers that can benefit the business in a multitude of ways. The more educated and enfranchised employees are, the more willing they will be to perform to the highest standard on behalf of the organization. Beyond this, IT skills are incredibly important for workers across industries, especially as commerce and communication becomes more and more internet-based. IT education builds well-rounded, capable employees that are able to perform at the highest level in a digital environment.

Return on Investment (ROI)

IT education return on investment is a measurable increase in skills, annual revenue, and/or the number of trained employees. The stronger and more educated the individual workers are, the better the business can perform. You can encourage your employer to use analytics tools to track the performance of the business post-training. IT training ROI can be measured in the following ways:

• Engagement
• Feedback
• Assessment
• Application
• Business impact

Contact Us

If you are interested in IT training for yourself or your workforce, contact Skill Developers today. We can help you achieve your goals through comprehensive classes delivered via virtual labs by industry-leading professionals.

Why is IT Training so critical to an organization?  It…

• Evolves skills and knowledge
• Improves IT and computer skills with updated and innovative technology (and security)
• Increases productivity and performance… and revenue.
• Reduces wastage time and money
• Promotes uniformity of work processes
• Boosts morale, confidence, and collaboration
• Improves customer valuation and satisfaction
• Reduced employee turnover/churn
• Satisfies the recommendations of performance appraisals
• Prepares employees for higher responsibilities
• Shows employees they are valued
• Tests the efficiency of a new systems, tools, teammates, and processes