Gone are the days of training programmes delivered in stuffy meeting rooms with a flipchart or whiteboard. Training programmes today must be able to really engage employees, capture their attention and deliver the core messages you need to put across. If you’re fed up of ineffective, overly corporate training programmes, here are just three ways you could crank up the volume to 11.
The vast majority of people are visual learners and will retain more information if it’s delivered through a visual medium. Of course, when leaders simply deliver verbal information and expect staff to take notes, you’ll probably spot that most people lose focus and interest after a few minutes. However, deliver the same information in an entertaining video or animation, it’s a safe bet that your staff are more likely to engage and process the information you need them to take away.
Research has also shown that learning through a visual medium also improves higher-order thinking and critical thinking skills. That means people are analysing and thinking about the information you’re presenting on a much deeper and more meaningful level. When they’re concentrating on a video or animation, more of the message is sinking in, and, as a consequence, more of it will stick with them.
A learning progression platform is a great tool for keeping employees engaged and interested in your training programme. These could either be in-house via your intranet or through an app for freelancers and those working off-site, allowing them to monitor what they’ve learnt and still have to learn.
Who doesn’t love crossing things off a to-do list? If employees can visualise and track the progress they are making; every task or module, they can tick off fires up the brain’s reward centre. That sense of purpose and achievement can be a real motivator and spur them on, meaning they’re more enthusiastic about engaging with the next part of their training.
People learn faster when there’s an element of fun, enjoyment and competition to their training. Gamification is a great way to spice up your training and keep people keen; give them incentives and rewards which make the process feel more worthwhile. That doesn’t need to mean sparking up competition between different individuals – when there are incentives involved, people are often happy just to be competing with themselves.
By applying game theory to your training programme, you not only avoid it becoming dull and corporate, but you could also raise satisfaction levels among your staff and improve retention levels. One of the biggest reasons people jump ship from a company is because they’re not offered enough room for personal development and progression. By delivering more ‘fun-filled’ training programmes, you’re probably offering something most other companies aren’t.
Training doesn’t have to be a boring affair, and there are plenty of ways you can inject a little fun and improve the quality of teaching.
Get in touch to kick-start your new training programme!