During new employee training, managers need to share a great deal of information with employees in a short amount of time. With more employees working remotely, it is typically not feasible for companies to bring all new employees to one central location for in-person training.
New employee training often can make or break an employee’s effectiveness for years to come. Ongoing training is necessary to keep employees’ skills sharp and update them on new offerings and procedures. Yet training for hours on end in a classroom does not always help employees learn and remember company policies and product information effectively.
Video can facilitate more effective training and higher levels of retention through live Webcasting and dynamic on-demand training modules that employees can watch and process at their own pace. Video-based training can be done without travel—at employees’ desks and home offices, or even a coffee shop, minimizing disruption and costs. Here are three ways companies can use video to train new employees and keep them up to date on new products and policies.
Getting on Board Quickly
Managers and Human Resource teams need to communicate information necessary for any job, often in just two or three days. Communicating large amounts of complex information is best done in a visual manner, which traditionally has meant in-person. Instead of sending employees to the one location where subject matter experts or Human Resources personnel are, managers can use video to share knowledge from multiple people quicker and easier.
One tip is to create brief videos of easy-to-digest content. Each video can cover a different policy or topic. Videos shorter than five minutes can be quickly absorbed and comprehended. With a video platform solution, new hires can quickly access a library of video assets that cover corporate policies, including travel, hiring, and benefit programs. When video assets are managed by an enterprise video platform, managers also can ensure that employees watch the videos and comply with onboarding by tracking viewer statistics for each new team member.
Product Launches and Ongoing Training
Constant market changes now result in frequent new products or upgrades, with more details for employees and sales teams to learn. Videos can have a dramatic impact on the speed of employee education versus traditional training methods.
Regular product update videos help existing employees knowledgably discuss products with customers, partners, and media. Product demonstration videos show how exactly a product works, helping employees communicate those benefits in sales calls, during meetings, and on trade show floors. For companies with dispersed sales teams and rapid offering changes, daily two-minute videos can get employees up to speed and in the right frame of mind before hitting the sales floor each morning. When housed in an internal company library—such as one accessible through Microsoft SharePoint, IBM WebSphere, or any enterprise portal technology—employees can watch videos on the go for quick reference before meetings, as well.
Guest Speakers and Professional Development
Once employees have onboarded with their teams and are familiar with products, services, and policies, they still have more to learn. Many businesses provide continuing education options, beyond new product offerings, to cover the latest market trends, sales skills and professional development. Companies can offer these learning sessions through live-video Webcasting or video on-demand courses. Certain video solutions also allow PowerPoint, video clips, Web browser interaction, or virtually any application interaction to synchronize with the presenter. Valuable course content is easily preserved and communicated, improving employee knowledge retention and collaboration. Again, keep in mind that video management platforms can enhance the ability to create, share, and search video assets. Having an organized and accessible library of content makes it easy for learners to access what they need.
Managers can easily use video communications to train, collaborate, share knowledge, and address problems quickly, efficiently, and with more impact. Video training can shorten onboarding time, increase knowledge retention, and enrich continued education for employees and team members.
Vern Hanzlik, senior vice president and general manager of Qumu, has spent more than 20 years building and growing enterprise software and service companies. Previously, he served as president of the EMEA at TEAM Informatics, as well as a member of its board. He also co-founded Stellent, an enterprise software company acquired by Oracle. For more information on Qumu’s enterprise video platform, visit http://www.qumu.com.
