Training tips that triumph
Memory science, microlearning and what actually makes workplace training stick.
Sales Team Training – The 5 Challenges of Training a Mobile Team
Sales team training is a long-term investment with a number of challenges that multi-national corporations, SMEs, start-ups, sales directors, managers, and decision makers must overcome. But as technology has become more prevalent in the workplace, organisations have figured out that mobile sales teams – that is, sales teams which are spread across various regions of the world – can benefit massively from online software and mobile applications, online software and mobile applications which are designed to turn employees into experts with quality training programmes that benefit existing development initiatives. Although the number and quality of applications for training sales teams has grown, though, there are core challenges with training a mobile sales team to consider. Let’s take a look at these core challenges to raise awareness and to better your understanding of the experiences training a mobile sales team will bring. 1. Cost The true cost of training a mobile sales team is hard to determine; every organisation will differ, but all organisations will face the same challenges – flight/ other transport costs, accommodation costs, and loss of communication/ potential sales from a salesperson leaving their territory. The true cost of these can only truly be determined through experience and bringing
The 7 Habits of Inspirational L&D Professionals
Highly effective learning and development professionals have seven habits which define the learning process within an organisation. The habits are intertwined with the very foundations of organisations and they promote stellar learning culture and work ethic. Our research has uncovered what these common traits are.[gap height=”20″] 1. Professionals understand communication is key Learning and development culture must be an integral part of an organisation, which means the communication of the importance of learning starts from the hiring process; employees need to understand and recognise that continuing professional development is key to their being respected and valued within an organisation and that only through continued learning can they continuously perform at their best. Communicating effectively is one of the biggest habits of highly effective learning and development professionals, for supporting learning and rewarding employees who seek to be the best and gain new knowledge and skills is the key to growing a highly talented workforce. [gap height=”20″] 2. Professionals trust management It is much harder to learn and gain new knowledge and skills as an employee if there is no trust with those in management. Employees will invest their time into learning initiatives if they trust and believe
How to Engage the Modern Employee
For quite some time, classroom training has been the preferred teaching method for most learning institutions. Children enter this environment on their first day of school, experience it right up until finishing university and continue to receive lessons or further enlightenment during full-time employment. Acquiring new knowledge in the classroom still remains incredibly effective, as it takes place away from the workplace in a dedicated environment, provides two-way communication with another human being and encourages group interaction. However, today’s fast-paced working world means that classroom training isn’t always the perfect solution, especially for the modern employee. As opposed to simply writing down notes in a classroom, the modern employee cohort are tech-savvy individuals who would much rather interact with and share the information they receive. Not only do they want to obtain new skills and benefit from additional training, they expect it too. Work doesn’t just occupy their time and put money in the bank, it is a setting where progression and development are perhaps the most important considerations. On top of this, a whole new level of engagement is required due to this generation’s love of technology and social media. For these reasons, classroom training doesn’t always suffice and
How to Inspire a Culture of Learning
Organisations that value learning will outperform those that don’t. Or, at least, that’s what many people believe. At Wranx, we’re of the opinion that all organisations have some culture of learning, but that few can truly lay claim to a culture of learning that’s intertwined with the very fabric of the organisation. This is what it’s all about; inspiring a culture of learning from the employment process to executive roles. Corporations, SMEs, start-ups, sales directors, managers, and decision makers should start by asking themselves “How can I increase my organisation’s ability to learn”. This is a very important question that needs answering, for modern organisations have a duty to train a workforce and a need to do so, because an organisation’s culture is the one thing that stands between an organisation’s results. To inspire a culture of learning within your organisation, you need to understand how you can improve learning within your organisation, and you need to understand the habits of highly developed learning and development professionals. Understanding how people learn, and what the tools are that people need to learn with, are the first steps toward inspiring a culture of learning. When it comes to creating a learning culture,
Continuous Learning is the Goal of 70:20:10
The 70:20:10 model for learning and development originates from research carried out in the 1980s. In the 1994 book Career Architect Development Planner, data from a Centre for Creative Leadership (CCL) study was published which revealed that the lessons learned by effective managers are 70% from tough jobs, 20% from people, and 10% from courses and reading. The percentages within this study are the reason behind the 70:20:10 name. “The 70:20:10 framework is fast becoming the preferred strategy to improve workplace performance.” says Charles Jennings, Duntroon Associates and founder of the 70:20:10 Forum. “It is applicable across all sectors and organisations, regardless of size, because of its holistic and agile nature. ” Regardless of whether the 70:20:10 framework becomes the preferred strategy for learning as Jennings says, though, it is still a sound concept and one that any organisation can employ. [gap height=”20″] Continuous Learning is the goal of 70:20:10 As Jennings says in one of his blog posts, most people get it with continuous learning, but some don’t. Classes, webinars, courses, and other structured learning events are simply cogs in a wheel in a much larger world of learning and development. The roles of direct and structured learning can and
A Culture of Learning Thrives on Innovation
Even though every business longs for highly motivated employees that possess a desire to learn, develop and grow, it is usually very difficult to achieve. But if you manage to introduce and administer a culture of learning, this dream scenario could become a reality. This kind of transition doesn’t just happen overnight though and will require plenty of hard work. However if you manage to recognise the importance of developing a culture of learning as well as overcome and put into practice the challenge and methods required for implementation, favourable results are a distinct possibility.[gap height=”20″] The importance of innovation with a learning culture An individual or organisation needs to learn a fair amount of knowledge to come up with new ideas that benefits the business or customer. And by its very nature, innovation is creating novel or unique concepts and theories that nobody else has conceived. Therefore the two go hand-in-hand and any business looking to develop learning culture based on innovation needs to recognise this. In order to keep your employees’ creative brains ticking, continuous teaching and tuition is required. If this doesn’t happen, there is a good chance members of staff will become disillusioned with their roles
Non-Invasive Continual Assessment
As we all know, training is a vitally important part of any business. Employees can learn new skills, acquire different expertise and progress in their careers. As a result of this personal development, they can carry out their roles and responsibilities a lot more effectively and efficiently, which enhances a business’ daily operations. Even though a fair amount of time, money and effort is required to implement training programs, organisations need to think about the long-term benefits. Profits might not increase overnight, but a highly skilled workforce that is better equipped to meet company objectives and consumer requirements can be a priceless asset. However, existing learning systems have several flaws and faults, especially when it comes to retaining and reciting information that has been learnt on courses or programs. Therefore, more and more businesses are looking at alternative ways to teach and test employees. One of the most prominent and powerful techniques is continual assessment. [gap height=”20″] What is continual assessment? Often used in schools and higher education institutions, continual assessment is when a student is evaluated and tested on a daily or fixed interval basis, instead of at the end of their teaching experience. The advantage of this examination method
The Effectiveness of Gamification in Employee Training.
Gamification is a subject you have probably heard a lot about, but there is little information out there that can guide us to *why* it works. Understanding this can help us uncover motivational methods that may already exist within your business. Worth an estimated $2.3 trillion, the global entertainment and media market is big business. While this comprises of television, radio and film, it also includes video games. Currently, global revenue of this booming industry is $101.62 billion, as average consumer spending comes in at just over $90 each year. But it isn’t just the financial side of things that raises eyebrows… The average gamer is said to spend eight hours a week playing their favoured console or device. Add into the bargain that 67 per cent of US households play video games and it is clear to see that we have a bit of an obsession. But the enjoyment and pleasure we get from gaming is being used for other purposes aside from entertainment. Research has found that adopting game thinking and mechanics in non-game contexts can help improve engagement levels, assist in completing certain tasks, improve individual learning and encourage personal development. This is known as gamification.[gap height=”20″]
How can e-learning content and a learning management system complement each other?
As with other areas in business, learning and development has its own raft of specialist words and phrases. These, of course, help people working in the field to convey ideas clearly and precisely, but they can be confusing for those who don’t have expertise in the area and end up being wrongly used. Two phrases that are often used interchangeably, despite meaning different things, are “e-learning” and “learning management system (LMS)”. The reason for this is that there is some overlap of what they are and both have become more widely used with the rise of the internet. A simple way to understand the difference between the two phrases is that an LMS deals with the administration of learning, while e-learning deals with its actual delivery. More detailed definitions are as follows: · E-learning: learning that people do with the use of a computer or similar technology. · Learning Management System: software used for the administration, tracking and reporting of learning and development programmes. An LMS is one aspect of e-learning, but is no use on its own. In short, it needs some learning to actually manage. This is where your e-learning content comes in. Although an LMS can be
How can microlearning and Spaced Repetition help with employee onboarding?
Starting a new job can be an intimidating experience, even before you have to try and remember the huge amount of information that is typically involved. Inductions for new starters can cover organisation structure, HR procedures, health and safety, equipment overviews, job requirements, training and development programmes, meetings with colleagues and more – so how can we be expected to remember all of this in one go? The short answer is that we can’t. Our brains simply aren’t geared up to remember a large volume of information at a stroke, or to easily recall small, specific bits of information that may have been buried within it. Although we know this, don’t expect induction procedures to change much. Time and cost pressures mean that most companies still take the approach of throwing all the relevant information at a new starter, hoping that some of it sticks and filling in the gaps later as required. This isn’t the most efficient approach, but adding microlearning and Spaced Repetition into the equation can make a big difference. Microlearning breaks topics down into tiny pieces. It aids the learning process because it suits the brain’s ability to learn short, easily consumable segments, rather than overwhelming
Spaced repetition, gamification and microlearning: a glossary of e-learning terms
E-learning has done a huge amount to reduce the cost of training for businesses, make it easier for them to deliver and make it more convenient for employees to do. As it has exploded in popularity over the last 20 years or so, though, it has also spawned a whole raft of new learning approaches, technologies and terms. This can make the e-learning landscape a minefield to navigate. If you’re not familiar with what certain terms mean, how can you understand what is being discussed, let alone what learning and training solutions your company should opt for? With that in mind, we’ve pulled together a glossary of e-learning terms to help you along the way: Asynchronous learning – Learning from resources that allow students to progress at their own pace. Authoring tool – A platform that allows a teacher or learning provider to create learning content. Blended Learning – Learning from a mix of different mediums, such as online resources and classroom teaching. Certainty-based learning (or confidence-based learning) – An approach via which the learner indicates how sure they are about knowledge, thereby measuring self-assurance as well as competence. Collaboration technology – Platforms that allow learners and teachers to communicate
Reading about it is the easy part
See what daily retrieval practice looks like running on your own training content.