In the corporate learning industry, there’s a lot of talk about who is responsible for employee development.If you’ve read any of my posts, I’m pretty sure that you can tell I think each individual is responsible for his or her development.The resources offered in one’s work environment (managers, classes, mentors, etc.) are simply tools to help you achieve your goals.With that in mind, I’d like to challenge whoever is reading this to think about the Return on You (ROY).
I was first introduced to ROY about eight years ago when I read Fred Nickols’ article “Forget the ROI of Training: What’s the Return on You (ROY)?”ROY started me thinking about how I approach work.Is work just a job where I’m entitled to certain things, or is work my contract with my employer about what we will provide to one another?Your answer to this question, I think, determines your approach to work and your satisfaction with what you do.
So, what is ROY?ROY is defined as “the return on your company’s investment in you.”Simply put, ROY is the benefit you provide your company after subtracting your wages and benefits.What is your economic value to your company?Are you a good investment for your company?Do you provide a net worth, or are you an expense?Kind of scary to think about, isn’t it?
In my last post, I questioned who your CEO was.I’ll give you a hint, your CEO is reading this right now.So, if you are the CEO of yourself, what does that make you when you’re at work?I think that it makes you an independent consultant.Whoa!!An independent consultant, you say?But that means I have to be really serious about my work.Umm…yea.You do.
Think about it.We grumble because our manger/VP/company (you pick) doesn’t provide us the opportunities that we think we need.What if, instead, we approached our work like a consultant and our employer like our customer?You still need to work, but now you need to figure out what your end goal is.You now need to figure out how your work meets the goals of your client and the goals you’ve set for yourself.You need to figure out where your skills are lacking and how you’re going to meet those gaps in order to meet your client’s needs.
If you’re not scared yet, take a look at Nickols’ work on ROY– at the end of the paper, you’ll find a worksheet on calculating the Return on You.Take out your learning notebook, because here’s your assignment:after reviewing the ROY worksheet, identify the value(s) that you bring to your company.Step two: think about your current job role and document the benefits that you think your company expects from you and the benefits/growth you would like to receive from this job role.
No relationship should be one-sided.Hopefully by thinking about the benefits you and your company provide to each other, you feel that you have a little more ownership in the relationship between you and your company