One of the often overlooked and challenging requirements for any company and its managers is keeping all employees and team members engaged and excited about the work that they are doing.  I have found that offering professional development opportunities is very beneficial in aiding with this goal. As we were discussing an upcoming conference and the staff we were sending, I stumbled  across the Technology Managers Credo:

There's a village in which a Zen Master and a little boy and on his 14th birthday he gets a horse...and everyone in the village says "How wonderful, the boy got a horse!", and the Zen Master says "We'll see."

 Two years later, the boy falls off the horse and breaks his leg.  Everyone in the village says "How terrible!" and the Zen Master says "We'll see."

Then a war breaks out and all the young men have to go off and fight...except the boy can't because his legs are all messed up and everyone in the village says "How wonderful for you!" and the Zen Master says...

Time management is considered an essential skill in today’s world not just for business, but in our personal lives as well.  During the course of the day we are usually performing several different tasks related to several different projects.  Juggling between everything can be at times, tricky.

The costs of professional development for employees is pretty darn easy to quantify. Travel costs, lodging, incidentals and food all get written up in an expense report when one of us goes out to a professional conference, class or workshop. But what is the benefit to the company that is footing the bill for all of this?