Employee engagement is the level of enthusiasm and involvement of an employee at their work and workplace, it remains a top priority for many organizations. It is only possible for an organization to grow and succeed if its workforce is highly engaged. A workplace benefits greatly from employee engagement since invested employees are more productive than disengaged ones. Employees that are interested and invested in their work are less likely to leave an organization. Sometimes the best employees aren’t engaged, and organisations run the risk of losing them. Thus, employee engagement is crucial if organisations want them to stay longer, motivated, and productive.
Organizations can encourage employee engagement in several ways, including setting clear expectations, keeping employees informed about the company’s performance, training and providing regular feedback. Engaged employees hold a sense of purpose at their work, enthusiasm for the company they work for and a sense of belonging. As a result, businesses need to create employee engagement methods for their training programmes. Effective employee training needs to be engaging and delivered in a compelling, relevant and digestible format. Training not only needs to be engaging but also needs to be tailored to suit different every job role and learner.
Here are the ways your organization can make its employee training programs engaging.
1. Microlearning
Emerging personally and professionally is one of the things that employees of all age groups value the most and learning is a key driver of a happy workplace and employee engagement. With reduced attention span and less time for training, organizations want to make sure that learning is relevant, effective and takes less amount of time in daily work routine. With this in mind, organizations must create and deliver training focusing on specific concepts.
Microlearning is a comprehensive approach to learning. The bite-sized modules of microlearning are available anytime anywhere and are easy to digest and less time-consuming. The smaller training modules can be a stand-alone course or as segments of a longer core curriculum. It ensures learners are engaged for a longer time with short lessons and helps retain knowledge. Microlearning enables learners to learn while working and meets the demands of quick and concise responses. As a result, employee performance and productivity increase.
2. Mobile Learning
There is no denial of the fact that mobile phones are deeply entwined with our daily lives and also transforming training in the workplace. Creating an engaging learning experience is all about removing friction and building a streamlined experience. Therefore, L&D teams prefer mobile-based content to deliver training so that employees can complete it quickly and retain information easily.
Today’s workforce is more accustomed to using technology, and they need dynamic, engaging and interesting learning materials that are available anytime, anywhere on a variety of devices. Mobile learning allows learners to control how and when they want to learn, helping employees to stay focused on their job. Mobile training includes features that enable quick feedback and recognition which makes learners more engaged and committed to their work and organization. Engaged employees tend to perform better and stay longer.
3. Use Gamification
Engaged employees are more productive, and will aid in achieving business goals. Organizations are constantly looking out for innovative approaches to create an engaging training program that caters to the preferences of modern learners.
People enjoy competition and rewards. Game-based learning provides a competitive edge to the learning journey, making it fun and engaging, challenging, and thrilling. It keeps them motivated to learn more and engaged throughout the learning journey. Utilizing gamification in training modules that pique learners’ interests inspires them to complete, earn recognition and a feeling of accomplishment.
4. Incorporate Simulations
Simulation-based training is taking the centre stage in the corporate world of employee learning and development. Through simulations, learners practice, learn and explore in a similar environment to the real world for enhanced performance on the job. Engaging learners in the learning process through simulations fosters their emotional connection and engagement, making it more memorable. Thus, resulting in the fast acquisition of knowledge and skills.
The opportunity for learners to practice without risk, reduces the overall amount of time and money spent on training and keeps them engaged completely in the learning process. As an interactive training approach, simulation promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skills, improves employees’ decision-making abilities, and improves their confidence.
5. Include Videos
It’s no secret that videos are gaining popularity and are a very potent medium for getting employees engaged in the training material. Videos are said to be the most powerful tool to engage beyond written and spoken words. According to research, the brain processes visuals more quickly than text and therefore people tend to retain more information when they watch it in video format. Video plays a practical role in employee engagement.
A lot of organizations are developing content in video format for training. Videos are visually more compelling and it provides the learners with the flexibility to pause, play and rewind. As a result of this, learners gain a deeper understanding of brand-new ideas, experience greater levels of engagement, and retain more information. The videos can raise morale, increase engagement, and eventually boost production and productivity.
Conclusion
Employee engagement is now more important than ever as a strategic corporate goal since it improves business outcomes, long-term employee retention, and employee performance. And workplace training is certainly an integral part of the employee growth and development process. It is no secret that digital learning is becoming increasingly popular. Utilizing the correct learning approach effectively in workplace training can be extremely useful and effective for employees and business outcomes.