Offer These 50 Free Professional Resources to Your Employees

Most employers recognize providing professional development opportunities is a benefit many employees expect. In fact, a 2013 survey of 4,000 randomly selected members of the Society for Human Resource Management found 88 percent of organizations offer professional development opportunities as a benefit for employees.

However, many workers aren't satisfied. A 2014 TINYhr survey of more than 200,000 employees around the world found 66 percent of employees feel their current employer doesn't provide enough opportunities for growth or professional development.

Perhaps a lack of funding is the reason. If that's the case, here are 50 of the best (and free) professional development resources for employees:

1. Career development.

Employees are always looking for ways to shape their skills, experience and the future of their career. Provide them with classes that enable them to develop the professional skills they need to advance their careers within the workplace so they don't go looking for jobs elsewhere.

Here's a roundup of the best (and free) career development courses:

• Land That Promotion, Muse University

• Successful Negotiation: Essential Strategies and Skills, Coursera

• LinkedIn Learning Webinars, LinkedIn

• Beyond the To Do List, iTunes

• Hack Your Work Life, Muse University

• The Seven Secrets of Authenticity, Udemy

• Personal Branding: How to Build and Manage Your Image, Accredible

• Marketing Yourself for Career Success, Udemy

• The Seven Essential Steps to Getting Your Dream Career, Udemy

• Professional Presence, Kaplan University

Related: Pump Up Your Team by Encouraging Employees to Visualize Their Success

2. Communications development.

Strong communication skills are a necessity in the workplace. A 2014 CareerBuilder survey of about 2,100 hiring managers found 56 percent of respondents desire candidates who are effective communicators.

Here's a roundup of the best (and free) communications development courses:

• 8 Steps to Discovering and Creating Content Your Audience Will Love, Online Marketing Institute

• Introduction to Public Speaking, edX

• The Lede Podcast, Copyblogger

• Technical Writing, New Jersey Institute of Technology

• Professional, Technical Writing, Purdue University

• Writing for the Web, Class Central

• Communication for Managers, Massachusetts Institute for Technology

• Proposal Writing, New Jersey Institute of Technology

• Corporate Communication, Saylor Academy

• Being an Effective Presenter, Udemy

Related: How to Hack Your Team's Productivity

3. Technology skills development.

Technology is taking over the workforce, and employees need to be able to edit website code or effectively use Microsoft Excel. In an analysis of more than 100 million job postings by Burning Glass in 2014, it was discovered that 80 percent of middle-skill jobs require candidates to possess strong digital skills.

Here's a roundup of the best (and free) technology skills development courses:

• Google's Python Class, Google

• Javascript, Code School

• Codecademy, Codecademy

• Getting Started with Google Analytics, Udemy

• Intensive Introduction to Computer Science, Harvard Open Courses

• Microsoft Virtual Academy, Microsoft

• Introduction to Cyber Security, FutureLearn

• Excel Easy, Excel Easy

• Introduction to Web Development: HTML, Udemy

• Strategic Information Technology, Saylor Academy

Related: Ban Dull Meetings at Your Workplace

4. Leadership development.

Regardless of whether an employee is ready for a management position, employers need to shape every employee into a leader. In fact, Deloitte's 2015 Millennial survey of more than 7,800 Millennials from around the world found 60 percent of respondents hope to reach a senior leadership position with their current employer.

Here's a roundup of the best (and free) leadership development courses:

• Introduction to Project Management Principles and Practices, Coursera

• A Dose of Leadership, iTunes

• Fundamentals of Management, Coursera

• Introduction to Management, Kaplan University

• What Great Bosses Know, iTunes

• Managing People Who Hate Managing, American Marketing Association

• Being Boss, iTunes

• The Enterprise Shed: Making Ideas Happen, FutureLearn

• Fundamentals of Corporate Management, Alison

• Strategic Management, Open2Study

Related: 5 Standout Ways to Transform Underperformers Into Superb Employees

5. Analytical skills development.

Employers desire employees who are creative and innovative thinkers. A 2013 online survey of 318 employers by Hart Research Associates found 93 percent of respondents think the ability to think critically is more important asset than the candidate's undergraduate major.

Here's a roundup of the best (and free) analytical skills development courses:

• Big Data: Measuring and Predicting Human Behavior, FutureLearn

• Big Data for Better Performance, Open2Study

• Business Statistics, Saylor Academy

• Foundations of Business Strategy, Udemy

• The Analytics Edge, edX

• Fundamentals of Accounting, Alison

• Sets, Counting, and Probability, Harvard Open Courses

• Effective Problem-Solving and Decision-Making, Coursera

• Making Sense of News, edX

• Introducing Corporate Finance, OpenLearn

What are your favorite free resources for professional development? Tell us in the comments below.

Related: 5 Easy Ways to Keep Top Performers Happy