Building a training program from scratch gives organizations control over the content and goals presented to their workforce. But in a messy reality with compliance deadlines, small HR teams, and antsy employees looking for signs that their career development is important, sometimes that kind of time investment isn’t going to happen.
When an urgent training issue arises, here are some quick ways to get quick wins:
1. Pivot to an off-the-shelf learning library. Off-the-shelf training courses are ready-made for almost any skill set imaginable. Courses on everything from compliance to soft skills can be purchased to suit an organization’s needs. A program can be bought and rolled out in a single day, if needed.
Off-the-shelf content also tends to be more current and relevant to workers. Companies that use pre-built courses from reputable sources can rest assured that certifications and legal issues have been checked and double-checked.
2. Curate outside content. There’s no reason organizations should reinvent their entire training program, when the content they need likely is already available online. Open-source videos, games, and articles that support the mission and desired culture of a business can be used to supplement the learning process.
There are even content libraries that pull together the best of the Internet, or services that will build custom collections to suit an organization’s particular needs.
3. Focus on microlearning. Microlearning means breaking learning up into bite-sized courses workers can consume when and where they need to. Shorter modules are faster to create and update, too. And because they’re so modular, it’s simple to push new content at regular intervals to reinforce concepts.
4. Upgrade technology. When time is running out to meet training goals, it might be time to review the company’s technology choices.
Look for software and programs that create a Learning Experience Platform (LXP), instead of just a management tool. Modern learners expect options. An LXP works with admins and users to integrate a wide variety of training content into a single place, giving workers more choices in how they learn.
Like all business-related tasks, training comes with deadlines. Using pre-built courses, curated third-party content, microlearning modules, and the latest technology can help speed things up. These options will allow training programs to hum along at a quick, sustainable rate in no time.
As chief product officer at eLearning Brothers—with a B.S. in Computer Science, a Ph.D. in Instructional Psychology and Technology, and 25 years of experience in high-tech software development—Dr. Christian Weibell is widely known for his Principles-of-Learning Framework (principles-of-learning.com ).