Innovative Approaches to Employee Training
Employee training is an essential component of workforce development for any company. Training sessions help employees acquire new skills that will make their jobs more efficient; however, keeping employees engaged during these sessions may prove challenging.
Innovative training approaches can make employees excited to learn. Such methods include:
Self-directed or self-paced learning
Self-directed learning is a popular training technique that empowers employees to take charge of their professional development. It gives learners freedom of pace while at the same time demanding they be self-motivated and disciplined when it comes to staying on course with learning goals. Self-directed training comes in various formats including videos, presentations, talks, podcasts, books, written material, quizzes and games – selecting one suited to your learner’s preferred style will ensure they retain knowledge better; visual learners may prefer videos while auditory learners might benefit from lectures or podcasts more.
Role playing is another method of employee training that helps employees hone their skills in a risk-free environment. Role-playing provides the ideal setting to develop critical thinking, problem-solving, communication and conflict resolution skills – particularly useful when employed in high-risk roles such as pilots or surgeons.
One disadvantage of self-directed learning can be its difficulty for employees to network with one another, leading to frustration when people work at different speeds. But this issue can be addressed by setting regular touchpoints with managers and learning and development specialists (L&D specialists).
Simulations offer another innovative method for employee training: they help employees prepare for potentially hazardous or high-pressure situations by simulating potential scenarios in virtual reality environments that mimic real life workplace environments, often used by nurses and pilots for example, although less dangerous jobs may also benefit. Simulations use technology-assisted environments, where employees practice tasks in a safe virtual environment that mimics what would occur if placed directly into potentially risky real world scenarios; this provides much safer and easier training solutions than engaging them directly in high-risk situations directly in real life!
Case studies
Case studies are an effective teaching method that utilizes real-life situations or problems as the backdrop. Employees must then assess them critically before creating solutions and communicating any conflicts they come across to management. A case study should include detailed narrative that engages employees so they can apply what they learn at work.
Training designed to develop employees’ ability to respond rapidly and efficiently in emergencies like natural disasters or workplace accidents can be especially useful. It teaches employees a framework for thinking through various situations and can even incorporate interactive simulations to make learning more engaging. When conducting such training sessions it’s essential that a clear storyline and language are established for the audience, but regardless of industry this training tool can prove to be extremely valuable.
Gamification, an innovative form of employee training that uses game mechanics and elements to make learning fun and engaging, can be particularly effective for employees who struggle to retain information in traditional classroom settings. Gamification has quickly become popular as it provides a more interactive learning experience than traditional forms.
Cross-training is another type of employee development which helps employees learn different job functions. It can be beneficial in improving productivity, increasing employee retention rates and decreasing recruiting costs; as well as helping employees prepare for vacant roles or transition into different ones according to their desired career aspirations.
Longitudinal case studies can also be an effective training method, providing data on the long-term impacts of specific learning techniques. This can act as a powerful incentive to encourage employees to take training seriously as they see how it will boost performance and add to company value.
Role playing
Role playing can help employees prepare themselves for the challenges they will encounter on the job. Through role playing, employees develop creative problem-solving abilities which they can apply in real-life situations as well as become comfortable with their communication style – for instance if an employee is role playing as a salesperson they can practice different approaches when pitching products to prospective customers, potentially improving performance and increasing sales.
One advantage of using this training technique is its flexibility in delivery; this is especially useful for companies with distributed workforces. Technology also plays a part, with tools like Blackboard Collaborate, Skype and Google+ Hangouts offering online spaces which enable live video conversations so external participants can join role plays and provide their input and give feedback during these training sessions.
To conduct an effective role play, it’s essential to select realistic scenarios and assign roles for all the characters involved – some employees may handle the situation while others could represent supporting characters like customers. When conducting your session, make sure participants act out the scenario while devising ways of solving it; if your team is role playing as salespeople they could develop different approaches for handling customer questions about price and features.
As part of your role play goals, it’s also essential to remain realistic with its ambitions. For instance, if your aim is to teach a complex new behavioral model, break it into smaller parts and encourage participants to role play each part. This will create a more comfortable experience and enable participants to take risks safely in a controlled setting.
Simulations
Simulations are an interactive form of e-learning that allow employees to practice new skills in a virtual environment, engaging them through highly engaging activities and providing real world examples of using new tools. Simulations enable employees to quickly and efficiently acquire these new abilities while also giving them a chance to experiment with strategies which would otherwise be challenging in real life, testing what works and what doesn’t.
Simulation training is often utilized by industries that involve workers operating complex machinery or interacting with customers, such as pilot training simulators and doctors and heavy machinery operators undergoing simulation-based training. Simulation-based learning provides a much safer and cheaper alternative to actual work experience while helping employees acquire necessary skills before beginning employment in these positions.
Simulations offer another benefit of simulations by customizing learning experiences for each employee. This can be accomplished using branching scenarios that adapt based on participant answers, making the process less tedious while at the same time showing participants they are being heard and cared about – further motivating participation in training activities.
Simulations can be an excellent addition to an employee training program, particularly if a company needs to hone the management team’s abilities. Unlike role plays which provide one-on-one sessions between manager and employees which can easily become abusive, business simulations provide managers with a safe space in which they can hone their skills without risk of abuse from employees. Furthermore, business simulations can be accessed anytime for managers with hectic quotas and customer retention targets who may struggle with regular practice sessions with individual managers.
Peer-to-peer training
Peer-to-peer training is an innovative learning method that involves employees in each other’s professional development. This approach is particularly helpful for new hires as it encourages socialization and teamwork while increasing employee engagement. Peer-to-peer training’s benefits are many and easy to implement – giving employees access to one another’s knowledge is an added advantage!
Encourage employees to meet in groups to review and give feedback on each other’s work – be it presentations, written reports or any other projects – during group sessions. This practice helps improve communication skills while practicing critical thinking as well as breaking knowledge silos through collective knowledge sharing between employees.
Peer-to-peer training can be implemented most effectively by assigning an experienced employee as mentor for new hires. This allows newcomers to find someone to turn to with any questions or issues about their role and can often feel less intimidating than asking their manager directly.
Employees can participate in online discussion groups with peers to exchange experiences and expertise, which can be an invaluable way to develop problem-solving and decision-making abilities. It may especially prove useful for employees in high-risk positions like flight pilots or surgeons.
Simulations offer another excellent method for testing and training employees in real-world scenarios. Although well known for its use in flight simulators, simulations can also be employed in high-risk customer service and sales roles as virtual environments provide employees with safe environments where mistakes can be made without consequence – providing employees with practice in teamwork and collaboration skills as well.
