Four Benefits of Virtual Training
Training is typically one of the first things companies cut to reduce costs during tough times. While it does cost money to train, that training is an investment in the future of your business and your team. Your employees need continuous training to improve their skills and stay motivated.
Just because you aren’t seeing your team in person every day, does not mean you put training on hold. There are many options out there to keep your team learning, growing and engaged. I’m talking about virtual training! This is not a new concept, but in today’s environment it is becoming increasing more popular. When talking about virtual training, we are referring to two types:
Live Virtual Instructor-Led Training: Such as Learning Alliance’s “Telephone Essentials” course and newly added, “Service Essentials,” online course.
OnDemand Training: These are sessions or courses that have been prerecorded, so you are able to watch them anytime, anywhere. Examples of these are videos on The HUB’s Video Library such as: “Steps of a Service Call,” “Building an All-Star Team Series,” “Call Center Basics,” or “Technician Service Call Basics.” Learning Alliance also has over 80 On Demand training videos in its library and that number keeps growing.
If you have never participated or used virtual training, it’s understandable to be skeptical. Many managers wonder, is it worth it? Are my employees really learning? How will virtual training keep them engaged? But the truth is, your team is exposed to media and technology all the time, and that is now spilling over into how they expect to learn. Here are a few benefits of virtual training.
1.) Overall Cost: By not having to travel, you are saving on flights, hotels, and food for each of your learners. Virtual training also means less time away from work so your team can be more productive. Instead of taking a couple days off, they are just taking a couple hours off.
2.) Convenience: Virtual training allows anyone with access to a phone, laptop, or computer and internet connection to participate in training. This means it can practically be done anywhere, even between calls. It also allows learners to better connect the training to their jobs and remain engaged. As soon as they learn something, they are able to immediately implement it.
3.) Knowledge Retention: For many, virtual training such as Learning Alliance’s On Demand sessions, deliver a more effective learning experience because of the ability to have short, interactive modules that can be repeated if needed. These short modules—also referred to as microlearning—help learners find what they need quickly and help break up learning to make it more manageable and memorable.
4.) Participation & Engagement: It may seem like there would be more opportunities for participation and engagement in traditional classrooms setting, but this is not necessarily true. There are many ways to interact in virtual classrooms through chat and polling features, as well as social learning. The interactive-chat feature help learners engage and connect. It also allows learners who may not be as comfortable with interacting in-person an opportunity to contribute.
People expect fast, convenient, engaging ways to learn and virtual training accomplishes that. These tough times will pass, where will you and your team be when it does?
