Employee training and development is one aspect of talent management that HR professionals and business owners should never overlook.

The unfortunate thing is, that professional training and development are usually written off as little more than a mere formality.

This happens when training materials are poorly designed and employees are not engaged. As a result, the entire exercise becomes counterproductive.

The value of employee training

This is why HR professionals and business owners need to take a new approach to employee training and development.

Experts agree that learning and development is a vital part of employee engagement and retention… And this is why HR professionals and business owners need to view employee training as a long-term investment.

Providing employees with opportunities for professional development allows them to improve themselves and build new skills. It also shows employees that their presence is valued by the organization.

This is then translated into better work performance, higher levels of motivation, and an overall improvement in company culture. 

Consistently upskilling employees also allows the business to develop a core of skilled and motivated individuals… All of whom will form the backbone of the organization’s talent pool.

How to develop an engaging training program

But before all of this can be done, HR professionals and business owners must first develop an engaging training program using eLearning authoring tools. So how can you deliver on this?

By keeping to a few tried and trusted guidelines:

1. Ensure that training is relevant

Employees often become disengaged from their training due to the lack of relevance to their actual job. 

Ask yourself this; how many times have you sat through a PowerPoint training only to ask yourself why is any of this related to you? 

This is what goes through an employee’s mind when they are forced to sit through pointless training sessions. 

Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach to training, work with supervisors and experienced employees to identify skill gaps that need to be addressed. 

Only then will you be able to customize your training program to suit the needs of your employees? Such tools are known as eLearning authoring tools in the market.

2. Adapt teaching styles for a new generation of learners

In Singapore, it is estimated that 66% of the workforce consists of millennials. This means that traditional paper-based training methods will no longer be effective.

Instead, HR professionals should leverage the power of technology to engage with a new generation of learners. 

This includes making use of videos and articles to illustrate various topics. 

3. Adopt microlearning

Microlearning is a training method in which materials are presented in small, easily digestible units. 

Doing so helps prevent monotony and boredom from setting in and lets audience members learn at their own pace. 

In fact, studies have shown that microlearning helps participants retain up to 80% of the material presented. 

And as an added benefit, employees won’t have to sit through lengthy training sessions. 

4. Make materials easily-accessible

Training and development should be an integral part of any organization’s culture… This is why training materials should be made easily accessible to all employees at all times. 

This can be done by archiving information in a common area for all employees such as Sharepoint or Google Docs or developing holistic eLearning authoring tools that facilitate easy learning.

Doing so improves knowledge retention and encourages continued learning. 

Putting it all together

Designing an engaging training pack requires a significant time investment and some skill. 

Add in the complications caused by the COVID pandemic and things just got a lot harder. 

Thankfully, eLearning authoring tools make it possible to develop online learning packages that allow for remote learning. 

Authoring tools help designers identify and insert content that makes for engaging training materials. This also includes using multimedia assets such as pictures and videos that will keep audience members interested. Thus, improving your talent pool and better qualifying succession for each individual.

To help HR professionals gauge their audience’s understanding, some eLearning authoring tools also allow trainers to conduct assessments. Hence revealing any possible knowledge gaps or weak points. 

Closing thoughts on  eLearning authoring tools

eLearning authoring tools make it possible for HR professionals to develop quality training programs that educate and engage their audience. While it may seem complicated, it is much simpler than many would think.