20 Ways to Improve Mandatory Training
How can employees be challenged to change their attitudes about mandatory training, How can you train people who don’t want to be trained?
Finding the answer to these questions has been the source of multiple research studies over the last two decades, spurred by the growth of the e-learning industry and globalization of the workforce.
As e-learning continues growing at a rapid pace, now is a good time strategically to consider new ways to think about designing and delivering mandatory courses eLeaP can be a powerful part of that new thinking.
Based on some of the most significant studies into the delivery of mandatory training in the last 30 years, we have compiled 20 ways to improve mandatory training in your organization.
Make sure to learn even more about employee training plan from our brand-new video and whitepaper.
20 ways to Improve Mandatory Training
- Content is King
Your training content determines whether it will be interesting and easy to understand for participants. Your learning management system’s success depends on the content, whether it is attention-grabbing, attractive, or useful. Learning management system usage is directly affected by the content, whether it is the attention, the attraction, or the use of it. If your content does not capture their attention, all of your efforts will be for nothing.
- Relevant
To start with, mandatory training should be relevant to the employee’s job. Relevant training affects the employee’s job directly and concretely. The subject matter expert and your team should jointly decide the content depth and structure based on the learner analysis. You can use real-life examples and exercises based on work situations if possible.
It was good to see the relevance of the concepts and the spread of the content in the presentation.
- Creative
If you want to improve your training content, you must first understand who it is intended for and what it is meant to achieve. You must then ensure that the lessons are presented in the most creative way possible.
When creating a course’s content, you must first know who the intended audience is and what its purpose is. Once you have done this, you can put the course content together creatively.
Unlike academic training, enterprise training focuses on achieving the company’s goals rather than teaching students about a subject thoroughly.
It is important that your content reflects this, and not stray beyond what’s necessary for employees to know to do their jobs well (although you are always free to include pointers for further study for those who desire it).
- Easy to understand
Your training content should have a narrative arc. There is a beginning, a middle, and an end to everything. You will learn how to improve your training content when you consider it from a simple perspective. Your training course can be enhanced by incorporating the power of storytelling to keep learners engaged.
- Course content
A subject matter expert narrates a course presentation with PowerPoint slides and voiceover. Most students have rated this course positively, and there are a large number of students enrolled in it. The most important thing is the quality content.
Furthermore, despite your best efforts to ensure that the depth and spread of content are adequate, there will always be learners who will want more or less. The key is to be patient and use your discretion.
- Involve the boss
It has been shown that bosses are more likely than HR or training professionals to initiate training because they have a keen sense of the skills their team members need to build. There are not enough training and skill-building programs that explicitly define managers’ roles. In comparison to a central human resources or learning and development team, managers are much better able to see and control employees’ priorities.
- Ensure employee Comfort
It is important to ensure employee comfort when it comes to mandatory training since your organizational performance and your needs are your current employees’ needs. You’ll appreciate their interest and provide valuable feedback about what could be improved or eliminated.
- Eliminate the fear
The next vital step is to eliminate the learners’ fears. When it comes to technical training, the level of confidence of learners can be increased by providing one*on*one assistance, particularly in the startup phase.
- Offer rewards
Certifications are often awarded to employees who have completed mandatory training. In addition to providing proof that they have completed their training, the certificate also gives them a sense of accomplishment. Training sessions can be planned around mealtimes (or during breaks) and nutrient-rich, tasty food can be offered.
By increasing employees’ motivation to learn, you will increase the profitability of your training. You might want to hint that those who are taking the course will be at the top of the list if they are being considered for promotion.
- Extend Consequences
Do not be afraid to impose consequences on those who fail to attend – Announcing something as mandatory and then doing nothing when employees refuse to attend undermines the effectiveness of the message. Training should be conveyed as something necessary and if not taken, there will be consequences, and these are some possible outcomes. Those who take the required safety training will be considered for the new project, for example, if the company is about to take on a new project but requires additional safety training.
- Break the Ice
It can be funny, engaging, or even an exercise that makes the participants team up and talk to others taking the same course. You could interview different teams about what they do and then have each write a job description for their roles if you are teaching a course on proper recruitment and job description procedures.
- Be pressed the resistance
You may wish to emphasize that companies are teaching sexual harassment policies because employees deserve fair and equal treatment at work rather than saying they will be sued if they are not followed.
- Give them a break
Keeping in mind the content that you need to cover and the level of difficulty can help you determine the length of your course. Two 18-minute modules and one 24-minute module are generally considered suitable for a one-hour class. Rather than covering a lot of material in a single day or week, consider breaking it down over a few days or weeks.
- Intermingle cyber and real life
Create a script and theme for your training program that will grab employees’ attention and surprise them. An unexpected twist can be added to the material by incorporating pop culture references or even inside jokes. The fire station of one fire station, for example, arranges in advance for a student or instructor to stage a heart attack while mandatory cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques are being taught.
Take a look at what happens when a student is suddenly placed in a real‐life situation. Although the ruse is apparent at the time, it will still be a memorable moment and a chance to reinforce what was taught.
- Change the Scenery
If you usually hold training sessions in your boardroom, meet with employees there but then change venues suddenly. It might be beneficial to be out on the factory floor if you are learning safety techniques, for example. If the training is on soft skills, you may want to move outside where there is Wi-Fi for a change of scenery.
- Update the content
Fads or people who are long gone or have fallen out of favor seem more out of date than references to fads that are long gone or have fallen out of view. Words like “unfriend” didn’t exist before Facebook, and “tweet” had a completely different meaning
- Add action
Keep people awake by making it creative and difficult for them to sleep. Writer Kristen Marshall, a contributor to the eLearning Industry website, suggests adding games, videos, and characters to your course.
- Let some skip ahead
Give employees the option of skipping content they already know when training is provided individually. You should ask three questions at the beginning of each module to highlight the key points to be taught. The employee should then proceed to the next module.
- Encourage questions
Learners don’t always think about mandatory training. In all honesty, it’s not the most enjoyable type of learning. To get the training done quickly and easily, it’s your responsibility to remove barriers to training. Following are some questions you may want to ask:
- What’s up with you outside of work
- How did you spend your weekend
- When you have time off, what do you like to do
- How would you describe your personal goals
- Use exit surveys
Finally, exit surveys are not to be overlooked. If an organization is delivering mandatory training for employees, it is probably its most critical attribute. To ensure compliance training, health and safety, security training, and everything else, you need to document it and survey it. You must prove that the training was conducted to protect your employees and your company as a whole.
If your LMS allows reporting on training statuses, you should be able to see who has finished and who has not begun the course. Besides generating reports on assessment results, you’ll also need to review training histories.
