One of the barriers to productivity in any business is your team’s computer skills. People who are more computer savvy can be much more efficient but getting them there with training can be expensive.

As a result, many small businesses just put up with some of their staff “not being very good with computers.” Most of the pain comes with Microsoft software (Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint) because that’s what people use the most.

I came across a solution to this the other day that won’t cost you a penny and I wanted to share it.

Microsoft has tons of online training that your staff can access on demand. It’s remarkably user-friendly and easy to navigate. And it’s all free.

For example, there are 26 courses on Microsoft Word ranging in length from 20 minutes to close to an hour. There is basic introductory training and more advanced video guides explaining how to do mail merges, track changes within a document and take advantage of increased security features.

The Word training can be found here. 

Similarly, there are 18 courses on Outlook here dealing with everything from better managing your inbox to more effectively using your calendar.

For those who need help with Excel, try one of the 19 courses here and you can learn about formulas and producing graphs.

And if you’re having trouble putting together PowerPoint presentations, you can get some valuable tips and tricks in one of the 39 courses here.

Have a look around that site, there are lots of resources that you may want to point out to everyone at your next staff meeting.