How Do You Find The Perfect Collaborative Training Platform For Your Business Needs?
Our previous articles gave you a sense of the 5 limitations of traditional training Collaborative Learning can help you overcome, as well as the 3 most common Collaborative Learning mistakes and the right strategies to avoid these. Now, it’s time to get down to brass tacks: how can you select the right collaborative training platform?
1. Choose A Collaborative Training Platform That Is Flexible And Adaptable
With the right collaborative training platform, you can enable people to learn new products and processes quickly. In contrast with traditional top-down learning set by the L&D team, It becomes significantly easier to create training programs. In turn, this makes it easier for specific departments or even entire companies, to adapt to products or processes. But first, you need the right platform.
As you’re making a shortlist of potential collaborative training solution vendors, be sure to examine the level of customization and adaptability available in their platform. You need a solution that makes it easy to connect learners with subject-matter experts across your business, and which offers the flexibility to quickly create, develop, and ship new training projects in response to emerging learning needs.
This flexibility is a huge competitive advantage in a world in constant flux. A learning platform focused on quick and nimble responses to training opportunities can have a profound impact across your entire business. With a responsive learning platform, you’ll be able to pivot quickly to meet changing market dynamics or counteract world events. In practice, this means smoother transitions for major workplace developments, such as the switch to remote working.
2. Find A Tool That Supports A Robust Learning And Engagement Culture
Effective collaboration encourages active learning, making it more useful for knowledge retention and deeper learning engagement than traditional passive learning methods.
As we’ve seen in earlier chapters, active learning increases knowledge retention. Employees have a more involved learning experience when they create and take peer-generated courses instead of watching training videos or listening to lectures. With the right collaborative training platform, employees have the opportunity to interact with the learning materials, and they can ask questions and suggest feedback.
This culture of engagement is also linked to greater employee motivation to learn. Employees are more motivated to complete courses when they know their peers are counting on them. For example, 360Learning strengthens this motivation by encouraging group members to become learning champions who share their skills with others, and by enhancing communication and team-building capabilities.
The right collaborative training platform can support this robust learning and boost employee engagement by creating an atmosphere where team members are continually collaborating by learning with and from one another. Employees are always sharing expertise and building new skills, leading to higher levels of engagement in the learning process, and greater learning outcomes. To find the right platform, test it out and make sure it supports active learning, encourages social engagements in course creation and delivery, and recognizes subject-matter experts across your organization. Together, these features will ensure you maximize your training ROI, boost employee engagement, share institutional knowledge, and give your teams the tools they need to grow together.
3. Be Clear About Your Implementation Timeline (And Budget)
As you can imagine, choosing the right collaborative training platform can be a big decision. Not only do you have to qualify different solution vendors, but you also need to set an accurate budget for the transition to this new platform, outlining a timeline that is realistic and tailored to your needs.
As we covered in our eBook, it’s crucial to be crystal clear in your internal communications with your Collaborative Learning implementation timeline, get leadership on board, and give your teams the chance to have their say. You need to bring together all the rights teams on this implementation project, including management, finance, IT, operations, and HR.
Week-By-Week Breakdown
Start by building a rough picture of your implementation timeline and budget, and get specific from there. You’ll need a week-by-week breakdown of who’s doing what when including:
- When your new collaborative training platform will be tested, and when it’ll go live
- Who will get the chance to test out your platform first
- How you’ll conserve and migrate your existing training material
- What happens with your learning targets for the month, quarter, or year
- Who will design the shape of your main learning paths
- When you’ll offer training on your new platform
- The metrics you’ll be tracking to ensure successful implementation (e.g. courses created, percentage of people creating or contributing to courses, amount of course engagement on behalf of learners)
Conclusion
Don’t forget to create a clear budget and monitor your performance against this budget over time. The last thing you want when selecting the right collaborative training platform is a nasty surprise at the end of the month. This way, you can maximize your training ROI in a smooth, predictable way.
Looking for insider secrets to change mindsets about online training and get employees actively involved in the process? Download the eBook How Collaborative Learning Boosts Engagement Rates To Over 90% to discover how the collaborative approach breaks down barriers and maximizes your organization's L&D potential. Also, join the webinar to learn how to hit 90%+ learner course completion with collaborative learning.
References:
- 3 Data-Based Ways To Prove Training ROI (+ Free Training ROI Calculator)
- Get 5 brain hacks to drive learner engagement
- Benefits of collaborative learning
- Collaborative Learning in Higher Education: Evoking Positive Interdependence
- How Active Learning Can Help You Avoid the Biggest eLearning Pitfall
- Projects Tool: Streamline Your Course Delivery With Collaborative Learning
