Who is Responsible for the Financial Side of Purchasing Training?

Getting an advanced training and education comes with many benefits. The employee and the employer benefit in different ways. The trained employee will be an asset to the company and his services will bring about positive changes and progress in the organization. For instance, procurement training for the employees will result in better implementation of strategic procurement policies of the company. When employers require the employee to undergo certain training and ongoing education it is not unusual for the employer to take on the financial responsibilities for the purpose of receiving training including the travel expense, travel time, and training expense. Even in the case where an employer does not have an official policy or budget for training the company managers may be willing to invest in additional training for your position. Don’t be hesitant or embarrassed about bringing this to the attention of your immediate supervisors and express your desire to pursue procurement training that would help your company. Progressive companies want their employees to become better and beat the competition in the market. Convince the employer Some employers may need a bit more convincing than some others to cover the training cost for its employees. There may be the concern about paying for the additional training and then as a result of the additional qualifications loosing you to another higher paid position. There is a lot that an employee can do to assure the employer that his education would be beneficial to the company. They want to attract and keep quality employees. You can’t guarantee you won’t ever be in the market for a new job, but the fact that your employer would be willing to invest in YOU as an employee is very valuable. You know your managers so take the time to think about what is really important to them. Build your case for education professionally. Help them see how important the training is to your company and remind them that the employees are the company’s greatest asset and cannot be ignored. Remove the Fears Depending on the timing and format of the training, you will want to ensure your manager that pursing these education courses will not hamper your performance and if necessary, you will work nights and weekends for either your job or your training, for the short term, to make sure you don’t fall behind in either. Show that you are serious and your level of commitment is what it needs to be. You will have to use your judgment about whether it is important to address the fear of your abandoning the company upon completion of the additional education and training. Be up front that while you cannot guarantee you will never consider employment elsewhere, you are very happy where you are and appreciative of the company’s belief and investment in you as an employee. And even if a change should occur at some point in the future, the value your company receives until that point will far outweigh the cost of the training. Prepare beforehand Before approaching the employer to pay for continued education or to work out a reimbursement schedule be sure you research other precedents for education reimbursement either within your company, your industry or even your competition. This will enable you to be ready to make your case and handle any objections the managers may have. If you prepare ahead of time and anticipate the questions or concerns you will be in a much better position to have your request granted. The answers must convince the employer that it will be to the benefit of the company. But the bottom line is that you are responsible for you and if your company does not see the importance or simply does not have room in the current budget don’t view it as a door slamming shut. Try again when the new budget is created or consider financing it yourself knowing that you may  not get reimbursed from the company directly, but indirectly through raises or a better job within the same or a different company will give yourself a good return on your investment.