Training employees on all the applications they need to use on a daily basis is daunting. There are a number of challenges that come with this endeavor and many companies fall short on providing this type of crucial training for their workforce. Let’s take a look at the four most common challenges and how you can begin to remove many of the barriers for your team.
1. New Software Programs/System updates
Seems like there is always either a new software being introduced or system updating happening… and it can feel impossible to keep up with all the training & documentation needs.
Maybe it’s a company-wide new system or just a department, no matter the impact, there is a whole new set of screens & processes that have to be captured in order for the users to continue their daily work & onboard incumbents. Even without introducing new systems, we will still be in a state of change with technology. Why?…
Well, we are all too familiar with the pop-up window message, “Restart now & install new updates.” The dread! What is going to change? Will I know where everything is or how to get my tasks done because buttons have been moved around? Unfortunately, it’s a common problem that isn’t going away, so we’ll need a way to roll with the punches in order to support our workforce well. Educating & providing resources for employees is crucial to maintain an efficient & purpose-driven team. Seriously, who likes feeling helpless? Needing to get “____” done but get road blocked not knowing how, not having the time to learn, or know where to access the documentation easily.
2. Coordination of Scheduling
Often times, meetings get thrown on everyone's calendar to present in a large group how the new updates or new software will change processes & workflows. Now we have those that couldn’t make it & those that did but weren’t paying attention or simply forgot what was presented.
Meetings, meetings, and more meetings. There are too many already, we don’t need to try to coordinate another when it would be better suited for sharing simple interactive how-tos.
3. Accessible Relevant Training
Whether the employee was able to make the meeting or not, we can’t possibly expect them to retain everything they learn from the first time they hear it. It’s best for them to be able to reference it later when they need it.
Many times the help is in another application that the employee then has to navigate away from the task at hand. This gets the employee out of rhythm and takes them longer to get back into the same frame of mind. Keeping training in the application being used increases efficiency for the employee. Beyond keeping the training at their fingertips it is beneficial when it is short & task-based. As we know, the human attention span is quite short.
4. Learning Style differentiation
While as humans, we all get distracted quickly, many prefer different ways of learning these tasks. I don’t know many companies that have the time to create training that is versatile for the learner to decide how they would like to take it. In the education world, teachers are taught how to create lessons that speak to the diverse learning styles but in the corporate world that gets lost. Often solely because they lack enough time & resources to make it doable.
What’s the Solution?
Alright, so we can all agree these are four of the biggest employee training challenges but now what? It’s actually a very simple solution. Use a tool that allows SME’s to quickly capture & update training content as the systems change. A tool that provides a finished output that can be accessed on a global scale so that timezones & meetings aren’t a barrier, and everyone is getting the same instruction in their native language at a convenient time. Instead maybe just sending a short email saying to reach out with anything follow up questions.
Not only that but a tool that allows these instructions to be accessible in the application where the employee is working without navigating to find the help documentation, therefore reducing productivity. Last but not least, providing a tool that enables you to capture content once and it is automatically available in 5 different formats for every employee to choose how they would like to learn the information.
Does such a tool exist?! Yes, let me introduce you to iorad. Your new companion, that you’ll wish you hadn’t lived without for so long. iorad is everything mentioned previously and so much more.
Sign up for a free account to start capturing & sharing those confusing new processes, and you’ll be the office superhero.
