Have you ever returned to work from a training session, excited about putting your newfound knowledge and skills into action, only to fall back into old work habits within a week? You’re not alone.

For many workers, knowledge gained through traditional training methods can often prove hard to retain. In fact, only 20 percent of trainees will actually change the way they work as a result of training. This means that most learners, even those with the best intentions, are failing to apply what they’ve learnt in training to the workplace – and this is largely due to a lack of knowledge retention.

Knowledge retention is a vital component of successful learning and development. For employees, successful training tools are essential for professional development, with staff who receive ongoing, engaging training also likely to be happier and more satisfied in their jobs. Effective training methods are also critical for employers, as an essential part of maintaining and improving service standards and profits. With learning and development taking up a significant part of the budget for most organizations, it’s important for employers to see a positive return on their investment.

So how can you help staff to retain knowledge after training? Are some learning methods more effective for knowledge retention than others? Let’s look at some important training methods and ideas you can use to help improve knowledge retention in your learners.

Let’s be honest. Digesting information, learning new skills and acquiring fresh knowledge can be hard work. It’s even harder when your boss sends you to training sessions that aren’t relevant to your position or are just downright boring. After all, it’s difficult to recall information if you weren’t really listening in the first place!

To prevent boredom – the number one enemy of knowledge retention – trainers should endeavour to make their sessions as engaging as possible for learners. To increase the engagement level with your audience (and overall success of your training) you need to provoke a mental shift within your learners – each individual needs to want to change, before they can feel motivated to put these plans and thoughts into action for long-term change.

“Only when people believe that the personal benefits of making the change outweigh the pain of doing so will they commit to altering their behavior,” says Sebastian Bailey, author of Mind Gym: Achieve More by Thinking Differently.

Bailey also recommends keeping training sessions short to “increase the likelihood that learning will stick,” with bite-sized chunks of learning resulting in a 17 percent greater transfer of knowledge, and participants learning and remembering more from these sessions. Similarly, Dianne Dukette and David Cornish suggest keeping things short, with their research finding that the maximum attention span for learning is 20 minutes.

Set your goals – and know how to stick to them!

In addition to being short and sweet, the most successful training sessions also contain an element of goal setting. While this may be common knowledge for trainers, there’s a very important tip for making your goal setting exercises considerably more effective.

Psychologist Peter Gollwitzer found that when he asked his students to think specifically about when, where, and how they were going to update their resumes, 80 percent of the students did so, compared with 20 percent of those who simply wrote down their commitment but didn’t follow through.

That’s why it’s very important to get individuals to think about exactly how they'll implement changes when they get back to their desk or work site, rather than just focusing on a vague outcome. This form of action delivers far better results for knowledge retention amongst learners.

The benefits of eLearning for knowledge retention

One of the most effective training methods for improved knowledge retention is online learning. As we’ve said, modern training sessions need to be short, engaging and goal-oriented – and you’ll find eLearning offers employees all of those elements.

With online training, gone are the days of sitting in an all-day conference room, trying to hear what the presenter is saying and not think about how long you’ve got until lunch. These days, eLearning offers employees convenient, engaging training tools that can be used how and when they prefer.

Through online courses and mobile-friendly apps, staff can access training at a time and place that suits them, while working through learning materials at their own pace. In fact, studies have shown that using apps for training can greatly improve knowledge retention, with students reaching a competent level nearly four times faster than by using traditional training methods. The freedom and flexibility of online learning encourages full focus, helping individuals to become more engaged with the materials and retain more of what they’re absorbing.

Hopefully this has provided you with some helpful ideas for your company’s learning and development, to ensure staff are receiving the most effective training methods for improved knowledge retention. If you’re interested in finding out more about online learning, visit the Go1 website and see how eLearning can work for your staff.

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Improving knowledge retention in learners

As we move forward into 2017 there is one chief concern that stands out among human resources departments and business leaders: the status of leadership.

The modern workforce is changing at a rapid speed and it’s presenting new challenges for organizations of all types. The recent Human Capital Trends report by Deloitte outlines some of the specific concerns about leadership and how we might address them moving forward.

According to the findings of the report, 89% of companies see leadership as an important or very important issue. 28% of those who were polled responded that they are dealing with weak or very weak leadership pipelines. Clearly organizations are adhering to older models of leadership that need to evolve along with the nature of our global economy and more diverse working environment.

Here’s a statistic that really stands out from the report and highlights the urgency of the current leadership crisis we are facing:

Only 7% of companies feel like they are excellent at building Millennial leaders.

That is an abysmally low number when confidence is so important to the execution of effective leadership. The report goes on to tell us that in 2015 companies spent almost $31 billion on leadership programs. However, according to Barbara Kellerman of Harvard University, many of these programs are structured around story-based solutions that propagate myths, fads, and even superficial solutions that don't really address the underlying issues the companies are facing. Can you guess what this means?

It means that these leadership programs are not producing measurable, lasting, or even reliable results.

The report raises a very interesting and logical question:

If we can invest in IT solutions and see measurable results, then why can't our human resources departments deliver the same type of measurable results?

These are the kinds of questions that investors are asking and it's one reason why HR departments are seeing quite a bit of friction from the “powers” higher up on the food chain.

Another interesting finding from the report is that high-performing companies will outspend their competitors on their leadership by almost 4 times. But it isn't a simple matter of spending more, they are also spending their money much more intelligently.

Naturally, the companies that are blazing ahead in leadership during this somewhat murky time of change are investing in programs that have a solid foundation in research, priorities, and perhaps most importantly, outcome based assessments.

Organizational design is certainly one of the factors that is changing and challenging the nature of leadership today. Now we are seeing more and more organizations embrace a more diverse and “flatter” team environment that is becoming more complex by the day. This means that leadership must be embraced and exhibited by more members of the team. We are experiencing less and less top-down based leadership as our companies evolve.

We talk about “awakening leadership” because the nature of what it means to be a leader is changing today. Organizations and the people within them are demanding leaders that are less supervisors and more coaches who understand how to collaborate with and inspire their people.

Perhaps it's because the Millennials are entering the workforce en masse and that means they are bringing a culture of scepticism and expectations of accountability to the people they look up to. This demographic may not be the most experienced in a corporate environment, but they are one of the most educated groups to enter the workforce and that means they have at least four years of very specific expectations when it comes to leadership.

Utilize analytics and evidence to find talent that may have previously been overlooked.

Capitalize on online tools to locate potential talent earlier in their careers and across the global workforce.

Work with leaders who are at later stages in their careers to mentor and cultivate our next generation of leaders.

Develop a comprehensive leadership system that can identify talent within the organization, narrow your focus on training the employees with the highest level of potential, and provide key opportunities for younger leaders to enhance their skills and experiences so that they can advance quickly.

This is not simply the information age, but an evolution of the information age. The companies that will succeed as we move forward will understand how to identify, cultivate, and retain the highest degree of leadership talent—those individuals that understand how to adapt quickly and help others do the same.

If you’re looking for resources to help your teams improve their leadership talent, have a look at the Go1 Marketplace. We have thousands of both paid and free eLearning resources to help you.

In an effort to make their managers and leaders the best they can be for the business, today’s companies are investing record amounts in leadership development programs for their employees. This is understandable – after all, your company’s long-term success depends on creating strong, successful leaders for the future.

However, with such large proportions of funds going into this area, it’s important for organizations to develop ways of measuring leadership outcomes, to see if these investments are paying off. Unfortunately, leadership is a lot harder to assess than other more tangible aspects of an organization, such as sales figures or productivity reports. So how do we go about measuring leadership development?

Patti Phillips, president and CEO of the ROI Institute, believes that “investments made in developing leaders deserve the attention measurement and evaluation can bring.” Taking the time to set up a framework for measuring and evaluating your leadership development methods will give you a far better idea of just how effective these methods are. You’ll also be able to determine how well your money is being spent in this area, which is important for your company’s bottom line.

Let’s see how you can start measuring and evaluating the effectiveness of your company’s leadership development programs, to ensure positive leadership outcomes for your business and a return of investment on your spending.

The first step in improving your development strategy is to create a set of competencies – that is, a list of essential requirements that all potential, current and future leaders of your organization need to have.

Book time with your senior leaders or management team to think about exactly what your business needs in terms of leadership. It’s important to determine, as a group, the specific leadership skills and behaviors needed to successfully drive your business. Make sure you’re really clear about what these needs are – the more specific, the better. 

Next, look at your current pool of employees and identify those with leadership potential. With your competencies set, it’ll be far easier to see how a candidate measures up. Consider training and development tools that could help these individuals improve and develop their leadership skills. You can then start addressing these needs and consider the relevant resources you need to cater to them.

As Phillips says, “by knowing who your potential leaders are and what they need to do to fit the competency mold you’ve created, you’ll know what must be done to develop their leadership acumen.”

Use Evaluation Methods to Measure Your ROI

As with most aspects of a business, you want to be sure that you’re balancing your costs and benefits. It’s important to be able to show a return on investment to key stakeholders, to show the value of your leadership development investments.

Kristen Harcourt, corporate consultant writing for the McQuaig Institute, recommends the following three points for building an effective leadership development program:

Identifying employees who have potential to meet these requirements

“Once you’ve established the competencies that your leaders need to have and your high potential employees, it’s time to use these two parts of the equations to help build evaluation methods for your leaders,” says Harcourt. 

Work performance results from both leaders and their direct reports can give a good indication of leadership outcomes. Use these in combination with one-on-one meetings with your upcoming leaders, to gain a sense of the training tools and methods that work best for each individual, as well as to see how they are tracking against your leadership competencies. Include assessments at various stages of each individual’s professional development program, to help keep future leaders on target. This practice will also help employees in knowing exactly what skills and training they need to develop to further advance their career.

Taking these steps to improve your leadership development strategy will give you a much clearer idea of what you’re looking for in potential leaders, as well as ways in which you can measure their success. While you may not ever get an exact tangible figure on your ROI in this area, you’ll gain important insight into your expectations for potential leaders and how you can assist them with their professional development. In doing this, you’ll be doing your best to support and empower strong future leaders for your organization and the world.

How to measure the success of leadership development programs

As we move into 2017, there’s a lot of talk about the skills gap that’s taking place across job markets worldwide. What is the skills gap, and how can it affect your organization and staff?

In Australia, statistics tell us that 800,000 people are currently unemployed – yet at the same time, there are an estimated 150,000 jobs that remain unfilled. And this is happening in many countries. As employment expert Nicholas Wyman neatly summarises, the skills gap is simply "people without jobs and jobs without people".

To expand on this, the skills gap is essentially a mismatch between the skills that employers want and need, and the skills that workers actually have. While it’s easy to expect new employees, particularly graduates, to be equipped with the most up-to-date and relevant skills when they walk through the door, in reality this may not be the case.

In addition to this, sometimes companies will roll two positions into one or simply expand the duties of one position to avoid making new hires, further contributing to the gap. So what can employers and managers do to help bridge the skills gap in their organizations?

Acknowledging the Skills Gap in Today’s Workforce

For today’s organizations, it’s important to acknowledge the skills gap and be prepared to take action on this issue.

Author and HR professional Jessica Miller-Merrell says that skills gaps can be seen as “the point at which the organization can no longer grow or remain competitive, because they don’t have the right skills to help drive business results and support the organization’s strategies and goals.” This is a very unstable situation for any company to be in, so it’s vital to have some strong strategies in place to help prevent this from occurring. 

Miller-Merrell recommends the use of skills testing and ongoing employee training to help avoid and overcome the challenges of skills gaps for your business.

It’s very important for employers and managers to recognize the need for constant skills testing and training, so teams and individuals can keep up with industry changes and needs.

Miller-Merrell advises skills testing as a very effective way for employers to “stay on top in our changing world … and see where their employees stand in reference to specific skill sets.”

Skills testing also serves the purpose of providing employers and managers with a benchmark of results across the organization. You can use these results to identify improvements or changes in employee performance after training. They will also be useful for recognizing top performers and making sure you’re getting a return on investment from your L&D spending.

Invest in Training and Development for Employees

Investing in learning and development is absolutely essential to make sure your employees have the skills they need for today’s workforce. As an employer, it’s your responsibility to ensure your staff have opportunities for professional development in their career.

You also want to make sure you’re creating a workplace that attracts and retains top talent. In today’s competitive work force, people pay close attention to the work culture offered by organizations and expect employers to be committed to investing in ongoing training and development.

Managers can create professional development programs for each member of their team, to help identify and address any skill gaps. This will help make sure each employee continues to learn, develop and grow within their role, organization and industry. In terms of the skills gap, managers and team leaders can work with their staff to improve, update and develop technical skills that are required for their roles and have become necessary for the organization.

Encourage Employees to Bridge Skills Gap with eLearning

As an employee, you should also be taking the initiative to assess your own skills and determine any gaps that need bridging.

Look at your current capabilities and realistically assess their relevance in today’s workforce. With so many advancements in technology, across all industries, it’s likely you’ll need to develop new or improved skills to stay on top.

Sit down with your manager to discuss training tools that are available to you. One of the best ways to learn new skills, or improve existing ones, is through eLearning. Online training courses have become a very successful and popular way for staff to receive ongoing learning and development in the workplace. You can simply enroll in the courses you need and complete training modules online, at your own pace.

You’ll have many new skills available to you, helping you to become better equipped for today’s competitive job market.

What you need to know about the skills gap

In today’s workforce, so-called 'soft skills' have become increasingly valued by employers. While traditionally, workers were hired primarily for their technical or functional skills, organizations are now placing greater emphasis on less tangible qualities, such as good communication skills, cooperativeness, flexibility and a positive attitude.

In fact, “nine in 10 employers believe that graduates with soft skills will become increasingly important,” according to a survey by Talent Q. In this hiring climate, even the best academic transcripts and CV may not be enough to land you the job, if your soft skills aren’t up to scratch.

If you’re keen to move up within your company or get noticed, improving your soft skills is one of the best ways you can set yourself apart from the competition.

The Difference Between Hard and Soft Skills

When we talk about hard skills, we’re talking about technical or functional skills that are directly related to your job, for example, your engineering, accounting, veterinary or project management skills. With these skills, you have proven your ability and expertise in this area – the skills have been learned in some way, and can be tested or measured.

Soft skills are completely different, in that they relate to intangible qualities and are often an inherent part of your personality. With soft skills, we’re talking about character traits and qualities such as:

Many of these qualities can be seen in people who have high levels of emotional intelligence –the ability to monitor your own and others’ feelings and emotions, and to use this information to guide your thinking and actions. Emotional intelligence, or EQ, is a very important factor in maintaining successful relationships, both personal and professional.

As you can see, these skills can’t exactly be measured or tested, yet can add so much value to the functioning of your team, or the experience of your customer. And just like emotional intelligence, soft skills can be developed and continually improved upon.

How Improving Your Soft Skills Can Help Your Career

It’s very important for employees to understand the importance of soft skills in determining career success, as it’s often the soft skills that matter when employees are being hired and fired. This can be particularly true for the healthcare and non-profit industries, where qualities like empathy and compassion are vital.

Let’s say you’re a hiring manager or HR professional, faced with two employees with the exact same set of technical skills. Yet these two individuals may be very different when it comes to attitude or the ability to communicate and work as part of a team. Which person will you promote to a higher level – the staff member with the good attitude who is always willing to pitch in, or the uncooperative employee who seems to enjoy making life difficult for their colleagues?

Improving your soft skills can also help you become a better leader, as many traits that are necessary for strong leadership can be linked to high levels of interpersonal skills and EQ. For anyone in a leadership or management position, developing your skills in areas such as problem solving, decision making and motivating people will be very beneficial.

The Benefits of Soft Skills for Organizations

Hiring employees with advanced soft skills can have a significant impact on an organization’s ability to function effectively, within its own structure and as part of their industry. For example, with sales-focused companies, employing staff with strong communication and teamwork skills will have a direct impact on customer experience, as well as profits.

If you’re in a management or recruitment position, it’s worth knowing that workers with high-level soft skills can bring a number of benefits to your organization. Being able to handle conflict, perform well under pressure and work as part of a team are all very valuable skills for any employee.

In addition to this, staff who possess soft skills tend to conduct more satisfying relationships, which leads to better workplace outcomes and a more positive work culture for all.

Improve Your Soft Skills through e-Learning

With soft skills often being underrated or neglected in the workplace, it’s important for individuals to recognize the link between these qualities and career success. Generally, organizations won’t provide set training in these areas, so it may be up to you to look at avenues to develop your soft skills.

Online learning is a great way to boost your soft skills and increase your job prospects. Through eLearning, you can improve existing skills or learn something completely new, in a time and place that’s convenient to you. You could even use your daily commute to work on developing your abilities in this area. 

While soft skills can’t exactly be assessed, a good measure of your success in developing soft skills is how well you manage the relationships with those around you – so get started today and see if you notice a change in your interactions with others, at work and at home.

The importance of soft skills in today’s workforce

When it comes to eLearning, there are always new buzzwords popping up. This article takes a look at 13 buzzwords that you’ll likely encounter in the eLearning space, including: Lifelong learning, Blended learning, Personalization, Microlearning, Rapid eLearning, Scenarios, mLearning, Gamification, Social learning, “Tin can”, MOOCs , Learning Management System (LMS), lLocalization.  

We hope that this article helps you to better understand some of the terms that are throw around when reading up about online learning, assisting you in providing a better learning experience for you and your team.

The term “lifelong learning” refers to the voluntary, ongoing, and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge. This can be for either professional or personal reasons. Lifelong learning enhances active citizenship, social inclusion, personal development, and also improves employability and competitiveness.

Lifelong learning recognizes that learning is not something that is confined to childhood or to the classroom, but is something that takes place all throughout life and in a number of situations.

During the past fifty years or so constant technological and scientific innovation has greatly affected learning styles and needs. Learning today is not divided into school and the workplace, but is now seen as something that takes place each day from the interactions that we have with others and with the world around us.

The term “blended learning” refers to a formal educational program that offers students the chance to learn through an online delivery system and within a classroom. Students will experience a blend of face to face classroom instruction combined with activities that are computer mediated.

Personalization in the eLearning environment refers to allowing students to customize many of the elements of the educational process. This means that students will set goals, work at their own pace, and communicate with other students and their professors in order to customize the entire learning process to their individual needs.

Essentially, the student is in charge of managing their own personal learning and can customize their experience as they have a direct say in the content and processes that are provided. Students have the chance to learn what they want to, when they want to, and even have a say in how they want to learn it.

The term microlearning refers to learning in smaller steps. This goes along with more traditional eLearning. Elements of microlearning include short term lessons, coursework, or projects that have been designed to provide the student with smaller amounts of information.

Microlearning essentially involves breaking down broader units into smaller chunks that are more digestible. This type of learning is often best utilized at points where a student needs the information or when the student is going to be receptive of receiving the particular information.

In learning we use scenarios to put the learner in a real life situation to reinforce the practical uses of training.

By forcing the learning into problem solving situations, the student is much more likely to be able to retain the information that they are learning, and then apply it to their everyday job without needing to return to resources to assist them. Scenarios need to be adapted specifically for a particular audience, but can be one of the most effective tools associated with creating learning material.

The term mLearning refers to any type of learning that happens when a student is not at a predetermined location. It also refers to any type of learning that happens when the student takes advantage of learning opportunities on a mobile device.

Demonstrate changes of understanding take place within the individuals involved

Demonstrate that these changes go beyond the single person and becomes situated in a wider social unit or community of practice

It must occur through social interactions between people in a social network. 

Past specifications had limitations and were difficult. The Tin Can API is flexible and simple. Some of the things that can be communicated and recognized with the Tin Can API include:

Note: this is a community driven API and is free to implement.

MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Course. These deliver open access to different types of learning materials. An MOOC tends to be focused on community using forums for online discussions about a topic. The content typically will contain a number of different resources and activities that may be automated, or offer a self or peer assessment.

An Learning Management System (LMS) is a software application that provides infrastructure and framework for the facilitation of delivery, tracking, and reporting of training online.

Localization is translating eLearning content to any language and regional context. For example, in Spain, an American-based company might need their advertising images to be changed in order to be more culturally congruent to the Spanish public.

These are just a few of the buzzwords you’ll encounter in the eLearning space. To find out how your company can improve from eLearning resources, make sure you check back in with the Go1 Blog regularly!

Top eLearning buzzwords and what they mean

When it comes to eLearning, the way you approach content delivery is paramount. Video has long been an essential part of the learning process for corporations. Today, you have a multitude of options for creating video content. Some companies, for example, host their videos internally and supplement them with streaming videos from popular platforms like YouTube or Facebook.

Audio is more important than you realize.

Active videos are more engaging than passive ones.

Interactive videos may include features like:

These are just a few of the options you might consider when developing your videos.

If your lighting is murky or dull then that’s exactly how your learners will feel. On the other hand, if you use dynamic lighting and make sure the visual elements are sharp and clean, then your learners will be more attracted to what they see on the screen. Some lighting issues may be addressed in postproduction, but it’s certainly a factor to consider before you begin shooting.

Optimizing for the appropriate devices helps

How will your learners be accessing the material? If many of them will be viewing the videos from a tablet or mobile device, then the way you shoot the video might be different than if they were viewing them on a large desktop computer. The more optimized your video is for the appropriate device, the easier it will be for your learners to access it.

Did you write your script from the perspective of a human or a corporate robot? There’s no faster way to put your learners to sleep then to make your video script sound like a boring corporate trainer. Use their language. Make them feel like you understand them and their feelings.

A few ways you can make your script more human is to include some personal details or stories. Act like your video is on a “date” with the learner and your job is to make a good first impression. Don’t be afraid to treat your video script more like a personal exchange than a didactic treatise. Plus, if you’re able to throw in just a little bit of humor then your engagement levels will go much higher.

Music lights up several different parts of the brain at once, so it makes sense that the right choice of music will capture your viewer’s interest early on. However, if you decide to use cheesy out-of-the-box stock material then you might just turn them off out of the gate.

Consider what music might be appropriate for the material you are delivering—even if it’s only in the intro and outro of the video. If you can add a sense of drama, mystery, excitement, or curiosity into the audio aspect of your video production then your viewer will be pulled in to what you are doing easier.

There’s no question that video production matters when you’re creating your eLearning material. While you don’t need to hire Industrial Light and Magic, you will need to keep your learner in mind when you create their videos. Keep them excited and give them something that shows you value their time and they will appreciate it and be much more likely to retain the material you are teaching in the long run.

How video production affects student engagement

Preparing your L&D budget is no small undertaking. Sometimes it can seem like you are going out and fighting a battle every time you attempt to justify it to the higher brass! However, if you perform your due diligence and truly take a strategic approach to the budget, then you are far more likely to get approval for it.

Here are a few ideas that will help you make the process more effective:

Before you prepare your budget, you will need to identify exactly what the macro and micro objectives are within your learning strategy. You should put together a document that identifies key deliverables, short and long-term objectives, and most of all, the return on investment. You should be able to clearly articulate how this program will pay for itself over and over again.

Research is a huge part of the process when you create your budget. First you'll want to have a look at what's going on in the industry and where other organizations are allocating funds. The truth is you don’t have to look far—you can do a tremendous amount of research these days with a simple Google query.

You also want to look at what your own internal numbers look like. Where have you needed funds the most in the past? Where did you fall short of your target before due to financing obstacles?

For each one of your line items, you should ask yourself how much of a direct impact it will have on the bottom line. If you are acutely aware of profits and the processes that drive them within your Learning Department then you'll know which items to “zero-in” on.

When you create your research documents, make sure that you highlight the industry standards so that you can compare where your organization is right now versus where it should be in the near future to maintain a competitive edge.

The "powers on high” that have the authority to approve or deny your requests will want to know exactly how you came up with each item within your budget. This means you will likely need to justify your requests and provide the data that backs up your findings. If you can't explain why a budget item is the number that it is, then you will be fighting an uphill battle that you will likely lose. Again, it's a good idea to focus on explaining the return on investment so that stakeholders feel confident in handing you the money.

Your budget should be oriented towards measurable results and there are a few metrics that you can use to measure your success. Cost-per-learning-hour is one of the easiest to start out with. Following that, you should look towards outcome-based metrics, like improving employee satisfaction scores, reduction in compliance issues, sales growth, and so on. If you stay focused on the numbers that provide a way to measure your success, then you will be able to better understand and justify the financial resources required to obtain them.

Before you complete your budget you should spend some time evaluating opportunities that may have been overlooked in the past. What changes are happening in the industry right now that could affect your people? What new developments are taking place to improve eLearning deliverability, for example? Are there new tools and resources that can cut down on costs?

This is a fantastic opportunity to sit down with leadership and your key team members and brainstorm about the opportunities that could be out there. This may change the budget, but it could be the very thing that convinces stakeholders that you are on the right path. Innovation is one way that companies maintain their competitive edge and if you can discover innovative ways to deliver your learning material, for example, then you might have a much more attractive budget in the end.

Prepare a document that discusses worst-case scenarios and alternatives

This goes back to the justifying process that you may need to do. It's a fantastic way to present your argument because you will be illustrating what could happen if funding is not acquired. How might a compliance issue affect the company as a whole? What would the legal costs be?

Always be prepared to talk about the lost opportunities in the financial obstacles that could come about if your Learning budget isn’t met. Some of the results may not be disastrous but they could certainly be cases of lost revenue. If you can articulate these clearly then you will be able to attack any objection head-on and you’ll be much more likely to get the funding you need.

Some might argue that preparing your L&D budget is one of the most important parts of the eLearning process. After all, nothing happens without acquiring the funding to do it, right?

This is a part of the job that requires meticulous research and evaluation, while at the same time understanding how to sell your ideas to stakeholders. So don't forget the “human” aspect of the process. While you might be dealing with numbers, the real test will come when it's time to hold your hand out and ask for the money!

For more insights, subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs.

In this article, we'll show you how to create an effective L&D budget. We'll also share some tips on how to manage your L&D budget effectively.

Preparing your L&D budget is no small undertaking. However, if you perform your due diligence and truly take a strategic approach to the budget, then you are far more likely to get approval.

When talking about leadership, we often make mention of highly skilled public speakers – leaders who know how to motivate and encourage teams with their powerful words. While certainly, strong public speaking skills are highly valued in any leader, listening is also an incredibly important and underrated skill for effective leadership. 

You can probably think of someone you’ve worked with who never really pays attention to what you’re saying – they may appear to be listening, but often have a glazed look or appear lost in their own thoughts. A lot of people, particularly in the workplace environment, are also more interested in thinking about what they’ll say next, than paying proper attention to what’s being said by others.

It can be quite uncomfortable talking to any of these people. And particularly frustrating if the person is your boss! When faced with a manager or supervisor who doesn’t ever seem to really listen, it’s easy for employees to assume their leader simply doesn’t care. Team members can feel unheard, unsupported and unsatisfied in their jobs when working under this kind of management.

Why Listening Skills Are So Important for Managers

All managers have a responsibility to listen to their staff – to understand their individual perspective, provide support and professional development, and act as an effective link between employees and upper management.

As Taylor Berens Crouch, doctoral candidate in clinical psychology says, "if we’re trying to lead people in a direction that they want, it’s absolutely necessary that we understand people’s desires and perspectives and thoughts, and listening is necessary to get that information."

If you’re a manager or employer, you’ll find that being a good listener will turn you into a far better leader. Let’s look at how you can work to improve your listening skills and leadership style.

You probably hear a lot of talk about “mindfulness” and “being present.” But when it comes to listening, presence really is key to mastering this skill. 

To be a mindful listener, it’s important to be aware that your own thoughts have the ability to distract you from really listening. Whenever you feel your brain drifting away into your own thoughts, consciously push them away and bring your focus back to the person in front of you.

Judith Humphrey, founder premier communications firm The Humphrey Group, believes “good listeners have a physical, mental, and emotional presence, and they know how to integrate all three.”

You can take conscience steps to listen with presence by:

Turning your body and head towards the speaker

Putting smartphones or computer screens away

Avoiding crossing your arms or forming any barriers

Saying phrases such as “yes” and “I understand” 

These steps will serve to reinforce your listening, showing staff members that you are paying attention to their words and engaging with their thoughts. Managers who learn how to listen with their whole body, giving their employees their whole attention, have far greater potential as leaders. 

Connect While Listening to Your Employees

When you listen to someone speak and make the effort to connect with their feelings, you are practicing emotional listening. This ability to read nonverbal signs – through a person’s facial expressions, tone of voice and posture – is also connected to greater emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence, or EQ, is a very valuable trait for managers, allowing them to better handle conflict, perform well under pressure, and lead and manage teams. EQ is also very highly regarded in today’s workforce, with studies showing that 90% of top performers have high EQs.

Emotionally intelligent individuals can also expect to earn more, possessing attractive skills for employers in any industry, such as calmness, clarity of mind and the ability to conduct more satisfying relationships. These are all very positive traits for those in a leadership position.

The Benefits of Being a Leader Who Listens

Practicing mindful and emotional listening, while connecting with your team members and putting aside your own emotions to feel theirs, will make you a more effective and appreciated leader. This will have great benefits not only for the employees who report directly to you, but also for your organization as a whole.

As Humphrey suggests, “the raw material that you and your company need to move forward together lies in the hearts and minds of those around you.” Strong leaders are able to successfully draw that raw material from their employees, for the greater good of the organization.

So start improving your listening skills today. By listening – really listening – to your employees properly, you’ll make each person in your team feel more valued and connected. You’ll also be working to improve creative and collaboration processes, enhance work relationships and contribute to a more positive work culture.

Improve your listening skills and become a better leader

Gender equality is one of the hottest topics in compliance today. Over the past few years we’ve watched the national spotlight turn to the persistent wage gap, lack of promotion, and other gender issues that Americans are unhappy with. While the United States is miles ahead of the pack in many ways, we still have a long road ahead before gender inequality is completely done away with.

That’s just one reason why access to effective corporate training is so critical. Gender equality issues hold organizations back and can set them up for costly legal issues that hinder growth dramatically. Luckily, as technology continues to advance, so too does our ability to deliver powerful and effective training programs for employees.

Today, more and more companies and employees are embracing the eLearning model and turning online for their gender equality training. Here are just a few reasons why:

Online gender equality training is more cost effective.

Traditional training systems are expensive. Not only are you forced to pay for specialized training personnel, you’ll also likely need to cover classroom rental fees, transportation costs, and physical training materials. Since most corporate training is delivered in large chunks of time, you also have to factor in potential productivity issues.

eLearning solutions are far cheaper to implement. Since the material is delivered to portable devices and desktop computers, there’s no need for your employees to relocate. They can go at their own pace and study the materials in smaller chunks of time—and at periods when it’s less likely to have a serious impact on productivity. In some cases, there’s no need to foot the bill for developing these courses, since there are plenty of effective gender equality training programs that have already been created.

Traditional training programs can be tedious affairs. After the first hour of training, it’s easy for a fatigued employee to “zone out” and miss important details. On the other hand, online solutions can be better customized to the individual learner. If something is missed, then all the learner has to do is access the material from their device and review the section that he or she didn’t catch.

Research has proven that eLearning increases knowledge retention by up to 60% and this means that your staff will be much more likely to adhere to gender equality policies in the long run.

Online gender equality training causes less anxiety. 

There are some compliance issues that can cause more anxiety in learners than others. Gender equality is a complex topic and many learners don’t want to be “put on the spot” about what they don’t know by a trainer in front of a classroom. Online training allows learners to make mistakes and even participate anonymously if they choose. This lowers the amount of anxiety involved in the process and is another reason why the retention rate is so high with online learning.

Online learning is the ideal method for training Millennials. 

Millennials are now the largest generation in the United States workforce and these individuals have grown up with hyper-connectivity as a way of life. They came of age with text messaging, social media, high-speed internet, and unlimited information at their fingertips.

When it comes to training, this is a boon.

Millennials are accustomed to acquiring information through mobile devices and in many cases their primary education was delivered through 21st century technology. Their university experience was certainly more digital-based than not. So when it comes to learning about gender equality compliance, Millennials clearly will prefer an education process that they are accustomed to.

Mobile learning promotes a social learning experience.

Humans are social creatures, so it makes perfect sense that we would respond well to opportunities to learn in a social environment. While traditional gender equality training programs tend to be more lecture-oriented, mobile platforms promote true collaboration between learners.

Online applications allow learners to bounce ideas off of each other, discuss case studies, participate in simulations and take advantage of discussion groups and chat functions. These features help reinforce the material that’s being learned, while at the same time promoting a sense of camaraderie and mutual respect between employees.

The best companies understand that interaction is an absolutely critical aspect of gender equality training. Gender equality is a social issue that requires individuals to internalize the concepts so they can relate to those who are potentially discriminated against. Online training platforms promote discussions that do exactly that.

More and more companies are embracing the remote work model for their employees, in part because it helps with reducing overhead. Even companies with a large in-house staff still have executives and sales personnel who spend a great deal of time “on the road.” This can make bringing everyone together for a training event a logistical nightmare.

Online training, however, can be accessed 24/7 from anywhere in the world. Learners can log on from their iPad on a red-eye flight to Los Angeles, just as easily as they can from their home office in  New York. This is another tremendous opportunity to save time and money on gender equality training.

The best companies in the world are addressing gender equality issues head on. As we move forward into 2017 and beyond, it’s clear that eLearning is the most effective and efficient path to training your staff and maintaining compliance.

Why people are heading online to learn how to improve gender equality