If your team is overworked or facing budget shortfalls, it can be easy to push training off until a later time. After all, a lack of training is unlikely to directly and immediately lead to a crisis. Failure to complete cases or adequately staff your team, however, could lead to immediate consequences. In a world of finite resources, this makes it easy to allocate training dollars elsewhere.
While the short term-effects might not be severe, however, the long-term effects could be; 76% of millennials say that professional development opportunities are one of the most important elements of company culture. And even if employees don’t realize it, continually pushing off training can make a career seem stalled due to a lack of growth in capabilities and exposure to techniques used by other agencies to keep their teams effective. Failure to implement the tactics learned at these trainings will also lead to agency performance that lags behind those of other similar teams.
For investigators in Inspectors General offices, the Association of Inspectors General offers an excellent opportunity to affordably ensure that your team members are receiving continuing education. The “CIG”, “CIGA” and CIGI” programs require 40 hours of Continuing Professional Education credits every two years, many of which can be earned through their Training Institute or the annual training conference. The Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency also offers several continuing education programs.
There are other training opportunities for investigators – the AIG accepts any recognized and authorized provider of educational credits, provided the course advances the professional proficiency of an investigator. For investigators outside of IG offices, plenty of professional training is available from other providers as well, including the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the IACP Cyber Center, and private providers such as Anderson Investigative Associates.
These trainings are a great opportunity to learn new approaches to interviews and investigations not only from course leaders, but also from participants from agencies all over the country. If you’re managing an investigative team, make sure to encourage your team members to pursue opportunities to advance their knowledge, their career engagement and your agency’s performance through continuing education!
To learn about how CMTS can help your agency improve results and reduce software frustration, call us at 919.600.5102 or email us at Team_CMTS@WingSwept.com