We have all been the victim of a bad online trainingprogram. When this occurs, most people tolerate the situation by half-listeningand/or working on other things. Participants have come to expect that they willhave to sit for too long, hear content that is too generic, or listen to presenterswho may be content experts but not online trainers.

We have spent over 30 years providing bothin-person and online learning events. There is just no substitution for liveevents where participants experience small group activities because they allow forinformal dialogue with peers, reading non-verbal body language, and they supportmaking human connections. They also provide for the spontaneity of insightful commentsand the ability for the facilitator to adjust to real-time content. If you havea mostly remote team, look for opportunities to tie a workshop to meetings inwhich everyone may be together for other things like an annual conference, newhire onboarding, or compliance training.

If virtual learning is a necessary format for you,here are 5 ways to improve your next program by keeping these critical factorsin mind.

1. Keep your group size to 20 people or less.

Whether in person or live, it becomes morechallenging for everyone to participate when there are more than 20 attendees.Ideally, everyone should be on camera and actively adding to the conversationvia chat and/or breakout rooms. A large group also makes it difficult tocustomize the content, so you end up with a one-size-fits-all session. Consideroffering learning tracks based on participant job specialties, years of experience,or open enrollment so participants can choose the session they knowwould benefit them the most.

2. Don’t use online learning to check the box.

When training is seen as a singular eventinstead of one facet in an overall organizational development strategy, thelearning is often disjointed, and random, rarely leading to performanceimprovement. Subsequent training events should: build on previous ones;add depth and layers to a developing competency; and continuously increase incomplexity.

3. Provide post-training reinforcement.

Webinars create awareness by sharing contentprinciples, however, for lasting improvement to occur participants needadditional reinforcement in a real-life setting. Consider providingparticipants with a follow up option such as a team coaching session 3 to 6 monthsafter the completion of a program with some individualized assessments. Coachescan also provide feedback on the application of the principles taught in thecourse and support in overcoming obstacles that impede team performance.

4. Use professional trainers.

Most organizations save money using onlineplatforms over in-person events. Use that budget to pay for a professional. Bewareof using subject matter experts as online facilitators. The advantage of usingoutside presenters provides an objectively focused learning agenda and cangenerate more honesty in dialogue. Trained online learningspecialists have advanced skills in speaking and facilitation skills whileusing an online platform. Beyond slide content, the delivery of the learningdetermines success or failure.

5. Expect to have “Vacationer” / “Prisoner” / “Learner”participants.

Every audience contains three types ofparticipants:

·        TheVacationer who is thrilled to getout work and uses the webinar time to escape from reality;

·        ThePrisoner who absolutely does notwant to be there and sees an online session as an unwanted interruption fromtheir priorities and multi-tasks through the program;

·        TheLearner who is actively lookingfor ways to improve him or herself and will seek out takeaways to get valuefrom any learning program.

Trainers must prepare for these three types ofparticipants and develop engagement levers for each.  

Final Thoughts

Do not use meeting software for a learningsession. Instead, use a program that is set up for interactive features likepolling and break-out rooms. By using the right platform along with these tips,you can avoid giving your online training events a bad reputation. Mostemployees dread the idea of giving up an hour or two to listen to a talkinghead with little attention being paid to their unique learning needs andpreferences. A focused investment in time and effort can make a very worthwhileimpact on any event, not to mention the overall competence of your workforce.