Employee development is the set of planned activities that help employees gain new knowledge, skills and behaviours that raise their performance in their current role and prepare them for greater responsibilities in the future. It covers formal training, on-the-job learning, coaching and mentoring, job rotation and professional certificates. The essential difference between an organisation that “trains” and one that “develops” is that the second links every activity to a clear need and measures its effect on performance. In this guide we explain how to build a practical development plan, with a ready template you can copy.
What is employee development, and how is it different from training?
The two terms are often used as if they mean the same thing, but they differ in purpose and scope:
| Aspect | Training | Development |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Close a skills gap in the current role | Build the employee’s capabilities for a longer career path |
| Time frame | Short, usually tied to a specific programme | Medium to long term, and ongoing |
| Methods | Courses, workshops, e-learning | Training, coaching, job rotation, new assignments, self-directed learning |
| Initiative | Usually set by management | Shared between manager and employee |
| Measure of success | Completing the programme and applying the skill | Improved performance and readiness for bigger roles |
In other words, training is part of development, not a substitute for it, which is why the phrase “employee training and development” is used to describe the whole system.
Why employee development matters for organisations in Saudi Arabia
The Saudi labour market is going through clear shifts: growth in new sectors such as tourism, entertainment and digital services, digital transformation of government services, and a focus on localising jobs and building national talent. Saudi Vision 2030 made human capability development one of its pillars through the Human Capability Development Program. These shifts mean that the skills an employee was hired for only a few years ago may no longer be enough today.
At the organisation level, employee development brings practical benefits:
- Better service quality, because trained employees deal with customers and beneficiaries with more confidence and competence.
- Talent retention, because employees who see a path to grow are less inclined to look elsewhere.
- A second line of leaders built from within, instead of always relying on external hiring.
- Support for Saudisation plans, by preparing national talent for technical and supervisory roles.
- Greater agility when launching a new service or rolling out a new system.
Employee training and development methods
No single method suits everyone; a good plan blends several methods according to need:
Formal training
Internal or external courses and workshops for specific skills, such as handling angry customers, using a new system or the basics of supervision. Effective for clear skills that can be taught in a set time.
On-the-job learning
Employees learn by doing real tasks under supervision, for example a customer service employee handling escalated cases alongside their supervisor. It is one of the methods most closely tied to day-to-day reality.
Coaching and mentoring
The employee is paired with a more experienced colleague or their manager for regular sessions to discuss challenges and build skills. This suits leadership and behavioural competencies that are hard to teach in a training room.
Job rotation and stretch assignments
Moving the employee temporarily to another department or branch, or assigning a project outside their usual scope, so they gain a broader view of the organisation and how its departments work.
Digital and self-directed learning
E-learning platforms and short content employees study in their own time, well suited to teams spread across several cities and branches.
Professional certificates
Recognised certificates in fields such as human resources, accounting, project management and IT, chosen for their relevance to the employee’s career path.
How to identify employee development needs accurately
One of the most common mistakes is choosing training programmes before identifying the need. Always start from the data:
- Performance review results: the criteria where the employee scored low reveal clear gaps.
- Customer and beneficiary feedback: if customers repeatedly comment on slow service or staff manner at a particular branch, that is a direct training need.
- Self-assessment: it shows how employees see themselves and increases their commitment to the plan because they helped shape it. For more, read our guide: what is self-assessment.
- Line manager observations: especially for day-to-day behaviours that do not show up in the numbers.
- The employee’s career ambitions: the role they aim for over the next two or three years.
- Upcoming changes in the organisation: a new system, a new service or new branches.
Steps to build an employee development plan
- Gather needs data from the sources above, for each employee or each team.
- Set priorities: focus on two or three gaps per cycle; an overloaded plan does not get delivered.
- Write measurable objectives: instead of “improve communication”, write “reduce negative comments about staff manner in customer ratings within six months”.
- Choose the right method for each objective: a course, coaching, a new assignment, or a mix.
- Assign responsibilities and resources: Who delivers? Who follows up? What budget and time are available?
- Schedule follow-ups: a short meeting every month or quarter to review progress.
- Measure impact and adjust the plan: compare indicators before and after, and roll out what worked to other teams.
The line manager’s role in employee development
However good the programmes HR provides, the line manager remains the deciding factor in whether development succeeds or fails: they see the employee’s performance every day and give them the chance to apply what they have learned. Each manager’s responsibilities should therefore include:
- Discussing the development plan with the employee and shaping it together, rather than handing it over ready-made.
- A meeting before a training programme to agree what the employee is expected to bring back, and one afterwards to agree how to apply it.
- Creating opportunities to apply learning, by assigning tasks that use the new skill in the first weeks after training.
- Giving ongoing feedback that is short and specific, rather than waiting for the annual review.
- Recognising progress, because employees who see that their effort to learn is noticed keep going.
It also helps to make developing the team one of the criteria in managers’ own performance reviews, so that it is not seen as an extra task belonging to HR alone.
Individual development plan template, ready to copy
Copy the template below and use it with each employee in a joint session with their line manager:
Plan details
- Employee name: ……………………..
- Job title and department: ……………………..
- Line manager: ……………………..
- Plan period: from ………… to …………
- Career ambition over two years: ……………………..
Plan table
| # | Development area | Measurable objective | Method | Owner | Due date | Success indicator | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||||||
| 2 | |||||||
| 3 |
Follow-up
- Date of first review: …………
- What has been achieved? ……………………..
- What are the obstacles? ……………………..
- Changes needed to the plan: ……………………..
- Employee signature: ………… Manager signature: …………
Illustrative example of a completed plan
A receptionist at a private medical centre in Jeddah, whose service ratings from visitors show repeated comments about long waiting times at registration. (The example is hypothetical, for illustration only.)
| Development area | Objective | Method | Success indicator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speed of registration | Master the registration system’s shortcuts within a month | Hands-on training with the system supervisor | Fewer comments about waiting in visitor ratings |
| Handling upset visitors | Apply de-escalation techniques in difficult cases | Short workshop followed by coaching from the supervisor | Improved “courtesy” rating in the next quarter |
| Preparing for a supervisory role | Take over reception shift scheduling for three months | Stretch assignment supervised by the manager | Schedules completed without conflicts, and the manager’s assessment of the assignment |
How to measure the impact of employee development
Knowing the number of training hours or attendees is not enough. One of the best-known frameworks in this field is the Kirkpatrick model, which measures impact at four levels:
- Reaction: did participants find the programme useful and relevant?
- Learning: did they acquire the targeted knowledge or skill? (for example, through a test before and after the programme)
- Behaviour: did the way they work actually change once they returned to their roles?
- Results: did this show up in the organisation’s indicators, such as customer satisfaction, quality or productivity?
The third and fourth levels matter most and are the hardest to measure, because they need data from the front line. This is where continuous customer data helps: when visitor ratings of each employee’s or branch’s service are collected, results can be compared before and after a programme instead of relying on impressions.
The RateHex platform supports this by collecting customer feedback through touch screens, tablets, five-button feedback devices and QR codes, showing results for each employee and branch on real-time dashboards, and sending scheduled PDF and Excel reports to managers. Its survey designer also lets you build surveys in Arabic and English to evaluate training programmes. Explore the capabilities on the RateHex features page.
To link development to results at the organisation level, also read our guide to high performance and how to build a work environment that sustains it.
Common mistakes in employee development
- Starting with the programme, not the need: buying ready-made courses because the date is convenient, not because the team needs them.
- Training without follow-up: the employee returns to work and nobody asks what they have applied.
- Overlooking the line manager: the manager is the most important factor in turning learning into practice.
- One plan for everyone: ignoring differences in roles and ambitions between employees.
- Measuring attendance instead of impact: settling for hours and certificates.
Frequently asked questions about employee development
Who is responsible for employee development: the employee or the organisation?
Responsibility is shared: the organisation provides opportunities, resources and time, the manager sets priorities and follows up on application, and the employee commits to learning and asks for what they need.
How often should an individual development plan be updated?
Ideally the plan is prepared alongside the performance review cycle and reviewed briefly every quarter, and adjusted when the employee’s role or the department’s priorities change.
Is employee development suitable for small businesses?
Yes. Development does not have to mean expensive programmes: a small business can rely on internal coaching, on-the-job learning and digital content, with a simple individual plan for each employee.
Start with a clear step
If you want to base your employees’ development plans on real data from your customers’ experience, and measure their impact branch by branch, book a demo and the RateHex team will show you how the dashboards and reports work on a case close to your own organisation.
