Customize Your Training to Meet Employee Expectations

Job candidates and employees not only want employers to offer skill-building and professional development opportunities, but they also want training that includes “crisp, varied [and] visual and round-the-clock learning experiences and moments,” according to a recent report.

Here’s what they would rather skip, according to What Employees Want from L&D in 2024, a report from TalentLMS and Vyond:

• Lengthy sessions.

“Overly extended, unengaging training sessions are a chronic drawback” to learning and development, according to the report, which is based on findings from a survey conducted in October 2023 with 1,000 employees in the U.S. who have received employer-provided training.

• Monotonous delivery.

“Long chunks of text, text-heavy slides and a lack of visual and interactive elements can dramatically sink the effectiveness” of how people learn, TalentLMS and Vyond found.

• Restricted access to training. Allowing employees to access training materials and content on demand so they may learn at their own pace is a key factor for employees, according to the report.

Customize Your Training

One way to provide the specific professional development job seekers and employees want is to use in-house training. In addition to being cost-effective, it can better resonate with employees, said Annie Rosencrans, people and culture director for the Americas for London-based HiBob, a provider of HR management systems.
“You can relate it to the work they do every day,” she said.

So, what should employers consider when developing in-house training?

Understand what problem you’re trying to solve through training.

“What are the greatest gaps?” Rosencrans asked. Do employees need training in new technology? Your culture? Soft skills?

Get leadership’s commitment.

“It needs to be something that’s encouraged by leadership,” including the heads of various departments and the CEO, Rosencrans said.

The message to employees should be that the training “is deeply important to your development and this company, and it’s critical that you close your computer [or other electronic device] and engage in [it].”

Know your target audience.

Is the training companywide or directed to a more specific audience?

Use a variety of training approaches.

Nearly three-fourths of the workers (72 percent) in the TalentLMS and Vyond survey reported being more engaged when short video content is used; 70 percent said they retain information better when training topics are presented in a video than in writing.

“If you’re teaching a diverse audience, the best approach is to have a mixed training module, some combination of lecture mixed with hands-on [training],” such as breakout sessions, quizzes, gamification and discussions, Rosencrans said. “The more you can get people engaged and testing their skills in real time, the more effective it’s going to be.”

Simulations that allow individuals to practice the skills being taught is the format that two-thirds of employees (66 percent) find most engaging, the survey found, followed by videos that can be accessed any time (65 percent) and in-person, instructor-led sessions at a scheduled time (63 percent).

Such delivery methods may reduce distractions—such as checking electronic devices—that can impact learning.

“Multitasking has been instilled in all facets of work life and learning is not an exception,” researchers noted in the report.

Incorporate humor.

Use humor and storytelling when delivering training; 76 percent of respondents said it helps them remember more of the content. Three-fourths (74 percent) said retaining information is easier when storytelling is used.

Be mindful of who is delivering the training.

Sometimes, the default choice is the most senior person in the room or the HR professional leading the program, Rosencrans noted. Instead, consider whether there are subject-matter experts in your organization you can tap to customize the training.

“[This] can serve as a development opportunity for someone to showcase their abilities,” she pointed out.

Watch the time.

It’s hard to stay focused when training is several hours long.

“It’s exhausting for all parties involved,” Rosencrans said, noting that employers are “better off breaking up content to an hour or 90-minute chunks.”

Other SHRM Resources:
Employee-Generated Videos: Not Just for Recruiting Anymore, SHRM Online, March 2, 2022