How to Effectively Track Employee Training

The world of work is rapidly changing, and along with it, the skills employees need to accomplish that work. Employers estimate that 44% of workers’ skills will be disrupted in the next five years, and six in 10 employees will need retraining by 2027. Naturally, there’s also a rising demand for employee training and development and renewed attention being paid to these initiatives by company leaders. And on top of creating new skills-based learning experiences, you still need to ensure employees complete mandatory training modules.

You need an effective method for tracking employee training and communicating its results to meet this demand and maintain an agile workforce. Luckily, modern learning management systems (LMS) can handle everything from mandatory employee training programs to personalized learning paths. 

Keep reading for more on the value of retaining employee training records. We’ll also take a look at some metrics and tools that help you prove training effectiveness. 

Why Should You Track Employee Training?

While it’s great to have employee training processes in place, it’s just as important to have a process for tracking them. We’re not just talking about course completion rates. Without a clear view of who has been trained, what they’ve been trained on, and to what extent, you’re risking inefficiencies and missed opportunities. 

Effectively monitoring employee training gives your company the ability to:

• Measure Progress and Skill Gaps: Identify areas where employees need further development and which skills they’re lacking. That gives you the understanding you need to deploy targeted training efforts.
• Boost Productivity: When your employees are well-trained, they can perform tasks more confidently and efficiently and produce higher-quality results.
• Enhance Training Compliance: Some training is mandatory, and tracking features help ensure compliance with those regulatory requirements. Tracking training completion, along with the training sessions themselves, reduces potential risks and liabilities to the business. 
• Improve Employee Retention: According to recent research from LinkedIn, providing learning opportunities is the number one retention strategy — which is a priority for 90% of businesses. Investing in training shows employees they’re valued by the organization, fostering loyalty and employee engagement. 

Tracking also creates quantitative data that you can analyze to refine training programs and develop new ones. With data, you can better align your programs with business goals to make them more effective. 

Types of Employee Training Tracking

Now that we’ve talked about the value of tracking employee training, the importance of an employee training tracker is readily apparent. Let’s take a look at the most common methods for businesses today.

Manual Tracking Methods

It’s becoming less common by the day, but many businesses are still manually tracking their training processes. This method involves using spreadsheets, attendance logs, and written feedback. It may seem cost-effective, but manual tracking is more time-consuming and prone to errors than tracking with software — and ultimately, that could incur high costs for your company.

Automated Tracking with Software

Employee training software like an LMS automates training tracking and streamlines the entire process. These tools track employee progress, completion rates, and even certifications effortlessly. LMS can also integrate with your other HR software — if it’s not built right into your talent management system. That gives you complete connectivity and a centralized location for managing your employees and their growth. 

Hybrid Tracking Approaches

A hybrid system blends manual oversight and automation. For example, managers may use an LMS to track employees’ training progress automatically. Meanwhile, they might conduct personal assessments manually to gauge skills acquisition. This helps ensure your employees are actually learning from your training programs. 

Key Employee Training Metrics to Measure

Our employee training and development guide explains how to start your training program and foster a culture of continuous learning. Now, let’s look at some of the metrics you can use to measure if your programs are having the intended results.

Completion Rates

This metric, obviously, tells you how many employees complete their assigned training programs. If you’re seeing low completion rates, that might indicate issues like overly complex course material or scheduling conflicts. 

Knowledge Retention

Completing courses doesn’t mean much if employees don’t remember what they learned. Tests, quizzes, and follow-up assessments gauge how well your people are retaining the material. You can also ask managers to conduct basic evaluations during one-on-ones with their direct reports or assign projects aimed at improving skills retention.

If scores are high and evaluations are strong, that’s indicative of training content and strategies that are working. If scores are low, then you know it’s time to explore different training methods.

Skills Application

So your employees finished their courses and scored well on their tests. The next test of your training program? Tracking how well your employees apply what they learn to their daily tasks. You can measure this with performance reviews (more often than just once a year) or by tracking changes in productivity that are tied to specific training modules. 

Employee Feedback and Ratings

When it comes to your workforce initiatives, who better to tell you if they’re working than the employees themselves? Get their feedback to help identify gaps in training, double down on the strategies they’re responding to best, and guide future improvements to your program.

Customer Satisfaction

In customer-facing roles, training ideally leads to measurable improvements in customer experience. Track changes in customer feedback or satisfaction scores to see if training is having an impact. 

Time-to-Productivity or Time-to-Competency

Measure how long it takes for new hires or existing employees to reach full productivity after training. A shorter time-to-productivity tells you your onboarding and upskilling efforts are effective.

Employee Performance Improvements

Compare pre- and post-training performance metrics to see if training courses are having a noticeable impact. Metrics like improved sales numbers, productivity rates, or product quality are tangible signs that your training program is a success. 

Tracking these metrics tells you if your current training strategy is both meeting immediate needs and driving long-term success. Employee training and development are an investment in the future — both for your business and your employees — and tracking their impact is the key to maximizing their value. 

Surge Ahead With Employee Training Tracking Software 

If you’re serious about investing in employee growth, there’s no time to waste on manual tracking. You need employee training tracking software like ClearCompany Learning.

Implementing the right tools doesn’t just simplify workflows — it delivers real-time insights that inspire action. With ClearCompany Learning, you can streamline processes, ensure compliance, and build a culture of continuous learning. 

Future-proof your business, enhance the employee experience, and achieve business goals when you deliver and track employee training programs. 

With ClearCompany Learning, you’re not just tracking progress — you’re driving real results. Find out how you can turn great hires into high-performing employees with an LMS as part of your Talent Management System when you sign up for a demo today.