Christoforos Pappas is founder of The eLearning Industry’s Network, which is the largest online community of professionals involved in the eLearning field. He offers these tips for facilitating professional growth through online training.
Let employees pave their own online training path. Empowering each employee to take charge of their professional growth and development fuels their intrinsic motivation and encourages participation.
Enact online training contracts. While allowing employees to choose online training activities that align with their needs, job position, and performance issues, online training contracts can outline goals and may even include completion deadlines.
Include “reflection breaks” to facilitate meaning. Reflection breaks offer employees a respite from online training so they can fully absorb the information. They also have the ability to think back on their behaviors, decisions and actions in order to spot potential gaps, or challenge assumptions and beliefs that hinder their progress. For example, they reflect on the task-based simulation they just completed and realize that they are missing a vital skill. Thus, they can use microlearning online training resources to develop this particular talent and improve proficiency.
Hone essential skills with interactive online training simulations. Online training simulations should include realistic situations and challenges, as well as images, sounds, and characters employees typically encounter on the job. This fosters immersion and allows them to feel the same emotions they would feel in the workplace. For example, the pressure they must face when dealing with a unsatisfied customer or confrontational coworker, or the stress of having to troubleshoot a tech issue within the allotted time.
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