Creating Training for Employees Who Are Always on the Go

The average American spends roughly one hour per day commuting to and from work. For a person who works five days a week, that is equivalent to 260 hours per year or almost 11 full days. This does not account for the time employees spend traveling to meetings or waiting in line for lunch. What are employees doing to maximize productivity during this time?

One way to maximize employee productivity is to provide mobile, on-demand professional training and development. This allows employees to learn new skills that increase the quality of their work in addition to their productivity. Employers should create training programs that maximize the learning experience by synchronizing to the lifestyle of employees.

Here are some characteristics employers should consider when creating a training program:

1. Mobile friendly: The average American spends 4.7 hours on their cell phones per day, most of the time when they are on the go. Because of this, it is important for employers to create a training program that is mobile friendly. This will allow employees to access training anytime and anywhere.
2. Short lessons: As our attention spans continue to decrease, it is important to create a training program with concise lessons. People retain more information when they are presented material in small chunks. Short and simple lessons work perfectly for employees who have limited time to learn new skills.
3. Interactive: Create or find an interactive training program that includes hands-on exercises. This will allow employees to apply their newfound knowledge and increase retention.
4. Measureable: Quizzes and assessments allow employees (and employers!) to measure how much they are learning. They can show employees which areas they should focus on developing while tracking improvement. Measuring progress is essential to making sure your training program is effective.

Employees are always on the go, whether they are waiting for a meeting to begin or sitting on the train commuting to work. It is important to take advantage of their downtime and increase productivity by offering on-demand training and development.

Sam Sanchez is an applications engineer with SolidProfessor and a Certified SOLIDWORKS professional. She is an alumni of UC San Diego, and in her free time enjoys 3-D printing and hanging out with her dog, Ruby. You can see more training videos on a wide range of CAD, CAM, and BIM topics at www.solidprofessor.com.