Main Benefits of Corporate Online Employee & End-user Training
In this article we will present a short definition of online corporate training, online end-user training, and the related benefits.
In simple words, all digital training programs (aka online training, web-based training, eLearning, and mLearning), are aimed to educate individuals; the main difference between online corporate and end-user trainings are, the online corporate training programs are targeted mainly for company employees, and the online end-user training is geared toward internal and/or external users of a specific technology, service or product. In many cases the online end-user training are also used in digital marketing strategies or provide general information about a service or product to potential customers.
Employee and end-user online trainings become essential when businesses roll out new technology to employees, together with new programs for performance management, time tracking, project management, CRM, ERP, and any other day-to-day technology. In this instance the end-users in your business are your employees, and without sufficient user training and support, employees are unlikely to use new technology correctly or efficiently. The end-user of your product or service is your customer and potential client.
The most common methods of training include instructor-led training, eLearning, simulation employee training, hands-on training, coaching or mentoring, lectures, group discussion and activities, and role-playing. On the same token, there are common digital training methods, which include web-based learning (in corporate environment accessible through an Intranet), computer-based training (saved on a local server or memory), webinars, virtual classroom, mobile learning (mLearning), and video-based learning.
There are a number of different types of training that can be used to engage an employee and/or end-user. These types are usually used in all steps in a training process, such as orientation, in-house, mentorship, and external training. The training type utilized depends on the amount of resources available for training, company type, product or service, and the priority the company places on training. In recent years many companies are moving from the traditional type of training delivery, to a more dynamic digital online training at a fraction of the cost, reducing company operational expenses and improving customer satisfaction.
Whether your online training is targeted to employees or external end-users, make the effort to personalize each training experience to the furthest extent possible. Many organizations have realized the benefits of offering unique learning experiences, they have found that if they personalize their online learning modules based on the needs of every internal and external user, then the end results are greater. If you offer something that your learners want, they are more likely to accept it. Personalized online learning can help you boost your employees’ performance and ensure that your Return On Investment (ROI) is high.
End-user training is one of the important factors that can decide the success of an ERP implementation. The end-users of this system are in-house employees and remote vendors. It might not always be possible to gather all of them under one roof for the training sessions. But training all of them on the new system and keeping them up to date is essential.
The main objective of an online corporate training is to ensure an employee has the knowledge and skills to undertake a specific operation to enable an organization to continue to operate. Fundamentally, corporate training is centered on knowledge transfer. Conferences and workshops are an essential yet expensive part of business and online training makes it affordable and efficient. For instance, salespeople of an organization can receive their training on new products and sales strategies online. Digital training can be translated to lower costs to deliver training in a shorter period of time, especially when employees are spread worldwide.
In corporate environment and targeting company collaborators, there are several types of digital trainings for employees. In all situations, a variety of training types will be used, depending on the type of job and company objective:
New employee online orientation. To answer any questions or concerns a new colleague may have, make them aware of company policies and expectations, compensation and benefits, employee conduct, safety and security, and ease them comfortably into their new positions. Technical training addresses software or other programs that employees use while working for the organization.
Skills training focuses on the skills that the employee actually needs to know to perform their job. A mentor can help with this kind of online training.
Professional training, specific information needed about a profession to perform a job. For example, tax accountants need to be up to date on tax laws; this type of online training usually can be purchased and/or customized. A personal fitness trainer will receive continuous training to stay up to date in new fitness and nutrition information.
Online process training. A business process is a collection of linked tasks which find their end in the delivery of a service or product to a client. It is a set of activities and tasks that, once completed, will accomplish an organizational goal. In many organizations today there is an area to define and control these processes, work-flow, and applying best practice. Online process training will enable all collaborators learn and occasionally be updated on the organizational processes in order to best execute their job and provide value to the organization.
Quality training is a type of training that familiarizes all employees with the means to produce a good-quality product. An example would be to The ISO sets the standard on quality for most production and environmental situations.
Online soft skill training. These trainings do not relate directly to job function, but are important. An example would be, all employees must interact with other colleagues, suppliers, clients, and in general, internal and external individuals; online soft skills training may train someone on how to better communicate and negotiate, and provide good customer service. Other examples include teamwork, problem solving, time management, and personal financial management.
Online collaborative team training is a process that empowers teams to improve decision making, problem solving, and team-development skills. Team training can help improve communication and result in more productive businesses. These online collaborative environments empower all participants to express their opinion, thus improving innovation and employee engagement. In recent years, companies have reported the following important benefits of online collaborative team training, such as improving communication, making the workplace more enjoyable, frequent integration of colleagues, shared common goals and vision between employees, self-regulation and auto-motivation, understanding of self-strengths and weaknesses, and improving team productivity.
Online employee career plan and progress track. An example would be a series of abilities required for an internal candidate to take on a management role.
Online safety training is important to make sure the organization and the employees are meeting all standards required by the company, an association to comply with certain certification, or a governmental entity. Safety training can also include disaster planning, contingencies, and recovery. Depending on company infrastructure, there are some required safety trainings which can be presented online, such as OSHA, eye safety, first aid, food service safety, hearing protection, asbestos, construction safety, and hazmat safety.
A skilled workforce is essential for the success of any organization. In this ever-changing world, where new technologies and products come up at the spur of the moment, continuously polishing the skills of employees becomes crucial. This is why corporates need to invest considerable time and effort in imparting meaningful and relevant professional training to their employees.
Traditional learning methods such as classroom training or printed manuals is just not enough to meet the training needs of today’s world. The work life of employees nowadays is becoming increasingly erratic, as they are constantly chasing targets and clients without seeing the clock. Such a learner group makes it difficult for learning managers to gather everyone under the same roof for the good old classroom learning session. In addition, the traditional methods of learning might be perceived as too dull for a generation that has been raised on flashy technology and high speed Internet. That’s why you can adapt a digital training program to better fulfill your organizational learning goals.
Online corporate employee and end-user training reduces costs compared to instructor-led training, and it does so much more. If you are considering the development of digital learning programs, following are some of the major benefits for your company, collaborators, and all internal and external end-users:
Greater reach. Every employee learns in a different way. Some learn visually, some through audio, some by attending lectures, and others by reading. With digital learning, you can incorporate different modes of conveying knowledge in your program. Unlike traditional learning, online training doesn’t restrict learners to just one form of information transfer. Due to this, the reach of your learning program increases as every learner can connect with your training through some section or the other. Digital training modules also enable learners to access information any time, as they don’t need to stick to the schedule for a classroom session.
Scalable for any number of employees. Once you’ve created your online training modules, they can easily be scaled up to roll out to as many employees as you need, in as many languages as you require. Instead of trying to find instructors and classroom space to dedicate to training, all that your employees need is access to a computer or mobile phone.
Reduces learning time for employees. Today’s employees demand workplace solutions that fit their lifestyles. Providing training that can be accessed when it works best for them accounts for your employee’s need for flexibility, thus improving overall employee morale. Studies show that online trainings reduce employee’s learning time by as much as 60% when compared to traditional learning, especially with the advent of mLearning (mobile learning).
Provides employees and managers timely feedback. Employees are able to get real-time feedback during an online training module. And because everything is connected online, management can also get up-to-date analyses on how courses are performing, and they track the progress of individual employees.
Provides employees with ongoing access to key resources. If your training covers a lot of material that will need to be referenced later, such as new product specifications, online training provides your employees with the opportunity to access those resources right when they need them.
Makes learning fun. As it happens many times, your training is too hard on employees. You can adapt a scenario-based learning, game-based learning (gamification), or your employees can learn through exploration and discovery of the topic. With gamification, videos, and other interactive content, online training can greatly increase your employee’s engagement with and retention of key information.
Risk-free environment for employees to engage. One of the major drawbacks of instructor-led group training is that some employees will avoid contributing to the lesson because of a fear of failure. eLearning solutions provide employees with an opportunity to fail in a safe environment. After a failure, students can go back and try again.
Allows for global collaboration. With an increasingly global workforce, one of the greatest benefits of online learning is that it can be built to encourage online collaboration across the world. Some of the best online training solutions allow employees from different departments and countries to contribute to larger company discussions, right in the training module itself.
Ensures training consistency and standardization. Once you’ve put in the work to create an online training, you know that all of your employees will receive the same high-quality training, no matter where they are.
Conclusion:
By adapting a digital learning approach, you can save many of the recurring costs and fees associated with classroom training, from arranging classrooms and transport, trainers and employee time, travel, booking accommodation, catering and materials. These are substantial costs every time you have to repeat the training. Companies can put an end to this as developing a digital learning program, along with the implementation of a centralized Learning Management System (LMS). Once your digital program is ready, you only have to pay for the occasional updates and maintenance. Employees will just need access to a computer or a mobile phone, and some time to complete their training.
Keep in mind that there are some instances where a blended online and instructor-led will work best, such as, hands-on, mentorship programs, and complex collaborative topics where employees will get the most benefit from small group training sessions. Additionally, online trainings must be designed well so they don’t distract the learner with overly flashy graphics or animations.
Digital training methods are the future and companies need to adopt it in order to stay ahead in this competitive market.