When you start any new job, it is likely that you will be given training on the skills that are required for your role. There is no doubt that this kind of training is invaluable, but practical skills and processes are not the only part that matters.
Soft skills, like teamwork, communication and customer service, are just as crucial and are rarely confined to a particular role.
That is why, at Stefanini, we are proud to offer a broad learning and development programme for our people.
The role of Learning and Development
Here at Stefanini, we often welcome people at a junior level but with the desire to develop themselves internally, following a career path that we help them to plan. These career paths are customised to suit the division of the company that they belong to, whether that be the Service Delivery Centre, the Application Development Centre or Field Services. All these sectors have different needs in terms of training.
Our T&D team helps the business align its internal capabilities with the objectives that management teams set for their employees. My role as a Learning and Development Coordinator is to propose programmes or partners that can help us develop specific capabilities, whether they are technical skills or leadership competencies. In order to keep our employees updated to the latest technologies, we are constantly searching for new training providers.
My role also involves developing internal training content that we can deliver either in-class or in virtual sessions for our employees throughout the region. These training sessions are mainly focused on soft skills and personal development.
Everyone needs to start somewhere
When a new recruit joins us at Stefanini, the most important thing is to make sure that they are trained in all of the capabilities that they will need to carry out their role. We run the onboarding process, which includes induction sessions and training for soft skills and technical skills. Soft skills make a remarkable difference, not only for the business and the customer experience, but also for developing our employees as individuals.
Once you understand the importance of soft skills in the workplace, you are better equipped to embrace a customer service mindset. The way in which you interact with a customer really says something about you as a provider. Therefore, it is important for us to develop skills like emotional intelligence, combining soft skills with technical skills. We want to satisfy our customers, not only with the results we deliver, but also with the experience we give them.
Development goes beyond initial training
It is not only during onboarding that our employees need training, though. At Stefanini, we aim to be a partner for our clients, rather than just a provider. To do this, we need to adapt constantly to changes our customers make within their organisation, and we are able to offer training and certifications that meet a wide range of customer needs.
Our people also have the opportunity to develop their language skills, as we offer global services in more than 35 languages. All of these kind of “additional” training opportunities contribute massively to the personal development of our people.
Young minds need to find their niche
While following one chosen career path can be incredibly valuable from a development point of view, we also think it is important to give our people variety within their role. At Stefanini, we often encourage and support new staff in trying different roles, to determine where their skills and interests lie. For example, we organise apprenticeships, which are especially popular with younger recruits who are not yet set on a certain career path and help to ensure that they are passionate about a role before they take it on permanently.
We want our people to grow at Stefanini, whether it is to help them strive for a promotion within the next few years or to equip them with the skills and knowledge required to look even further ahead. It is important for our employees to be able to develop themselves from both a technical and personal point of view, and we are dedicated to providing the training that they need.