Employees want better training experiences today. One of the biggest expectations is customization. Younger talent is searching for opportunities to expand their skill set and develop their careers. They want more than the basic onboarding and introduction many workers receive when they start working for a company.
One way to help make this happen is to develop role-specific employee training. This includes curriculum or learning paths that are tailored to the needs of a job. It’s a good way to ensure that all workers in that role have the same level of knowledge. It also gives employees a better understanding of what they need to do to move into a job role.
Employees who can work towards a role they want or hone their skills in their current role will feel more driven. They will be more confident and capable with a stronger sense of purpose. The Harvard Business Review posted that “Research has found correlations between purpose and earnings, engagement, and loyalty.”
A good training program is a key element in that equation. If you give workers the tools that they need to reach their goals and become the professionals they want to be, you will get better overall results.
The first step is making sure you have adequate training for all job roles within your organization. What can you do to build a solid training program for each position?
· Use a Good LMS to Distribute, Track, and Manage Role Training
Finding a good LMS will make all the difference in your role training courses. The right platform will be able to house, distribute, and track classes. You can visit LMS.org to read LMS reviews and learn more about the eLearning market.
Look for a system that allows you to organize your team into groups with unique permissions and access to courses. This will make it much easier to get your job role-specific courses in front of the people who need them.
LMS reviews can guide you to the right platform or help you decide if it’s time to switch. Most platforms expand their features list every year. Checking in on new developments will help you stay on top of what’s out there so your training program doesn’t fall behind.
· Ask Employees About Their Roles and Request Feedback for Training
A good way to figure out how to personalize employee training and development is to ask workers what they need. Meet with workers in each role and learn more about what knowledge and information they use each day. Ask them for feedback on existing training.
It’s important to be open to feedback and suggestions if you want to create the best training program possible. Your subject matter experts and top performers are best equipped to identify weaknesses in your job role-specific courses.
· Keep All Training Content Relevant and Accurate
Make sure all training content is accurate and relevant to the job role. Anything outside of that scope should be removed.
Most organizations have onboarding training that covers the basics of being an employee. This information should not be a part of job-specific training. Instead, job role training should delve deeply into the role only.
Also, make sure all job role courses are up to date. Methods and best practices can change. Your training program should contain the most recent information. This is especially important if the role requires compliance and certifications.
· Create a Mentoring Program to Help Learners Reach Training Goals
If you don’t have a mentoring program, now is the time to establish one. This will give learners access to someone who knows the job role and can answer questions. This should be a person who can be contacted for guidance and support.
Your subject matter experts and top performers are good candidates for mentoring. Check in with these individuals so they are prepared and know what is expected if they agree to do it.
Connecting with someone in the job role will also help learners network with the people they will work alongside when they finish their training.
· Cater to Different Learning Styles in Every Course
Gone are the days of boring text and lecture-only lessons. If you want to get the most out of your training, you need to address different learning styles. There are several types, including auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and reading and writing learners.
Including a variety of activities and content types in your course material will help address the needs of all learners. Some can overlap, like interactive videos. You can present visual and audio content that is overlayed with text highlights and questions.
· Make Learning Paths and Progress Easily Accessible Through Your LMS
Learners should know where they stand when it comes to training. A good LMS will include user profiles that record this information. Every learner should be able to see their progress and know where they are headed. This helps them make better decisions about training and keeps them motivated.
Management should occasionally check in with their teams to make sure each person is on track and not struggling. Providing guidance will help learners along as they work towards their desired job roles or become more adept at their current roles.
· Break Role Training into Smaller Pieces for Maximum Flexibility
When building a role-specific training course, keep each segment concise. If you wonder why microlearning is an effective employee training method, you may need to look more into this method. It improves knowledge retention and prevents mental overload.
Having smaller modules or segments also makes your training program more flexible. If you centralize your training with an LMS, you can take pieces of one course and add them to another. This saves time and lets your trainers fine-tune every course for a specific goal or role.
· Invest in Updating and Expanding Content Now
If you already have role-specific employee training, it may be time to take inventory. Evaluate your current program and look for skill gaps and weak spots. Know your strengths as well so you can utilize them to the fullest. If you find a method that works well in one course, it may be time to implement the same method elsewhere.
Organizations with older training programs that haven’t been updated recently may need to invest more resources and funds into this process. It’s worth doing if you want to reap the benefits in the future. Hone your training materials to give your team the best learning experience possible. Doing so will reward your business with less turnover, better customer relationships, and higher productivity.
Make sure your employees have the knowledge and skills they need to excel in their job roles. Get started by building job role-specific courses that cater to the needs of your team.