Neglecting IT training can have "astronomical" costs

Failing to invest in IT training is likely to cost a business far more in the long term than they save in the short term, according to Oracle Senior Marketing Manager Kate Farrow.

In a blog post, Farrow urged companies to consider the total costs to their company of not training IT consultants.

These include lost productivity costs. Farrow cited a study from the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) finding that an increase in training per employee of US$680 ($990) resulted in a 6% higher return, while an investment of US$1500 per employee led to a 24% increase in profits.

But they also include harder-to-quantify costs such as the increased security risk posed by failing to adequately train employees. IBM last year estimated that the global average cost of a data breach has risen to US$3.86 million, with more serious breaches potentially costing hundreds of millions.

“How much will a data breach cost your company? Considering the resulting loss of business, customer compensation, legal fees and regulatory fines, it may take some time to calculate the fully loaded amounts,” Farrow said.

“However, with the right security and cloud training in advance, it’s much less likely you’ll ever need to find out.”

Other difficult-to-calculate factors include the cost of missed business opportunities stemming from having IT departments inadequately trained to support business innovation and recruitment costs associated with having staff being more likely to seek employment at a company that does offer training and development opportunities.

“The recruitment costs to replace IT employees are frequently more than a quarter of annual salaries but they go far beyond this,” Farrow said.

“For example, there is the impact on morale to the remaining staff, the costs of onboarding and also the loss of productivity while the new incumbent gets up to speed — which is likely to require additional training in any event.”

All these factors collectively mean that the total costs of neglecting IT training can be “astronomical”, with losses accruing every day, Farrow warned.

“Stop paying the vastly higher price — offer your IT employees high-quality training today.”

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Worapong Saleewong