Creating A Sense of Community For Your HR Online Training Program
Every member of the team needs to possess some degree of interpersonal skills. But your HR staff must be masters of active listening, communication, and conflict resolution. Instilling a sense of community in HR online training gives you the ability to build these essential skills and boost morale. They’ll have a constant source of online support that can help them tackle work challenges and improve performance. Even if they are thousands of miles apart and working toward different goals. Here are 7 ways to bring a sense of community to your HR online training program.
7 Tips To Build A Strong Sense Of Community
1. Set Up A Social Media Support Group
Social media support groups aren’t just for exchanging feedback and work-related tips. They also instill a sense of community in HR online training by giving employees a collaborative platform. They’re able to commiserate about the latest company policy that has stirred up some controversy. Or share personal anecdotes about what happened to them during a meeting, as long as it’s not confidential. This fosters a sense of community and gives them an outlet, as well as a place to learn more about each other and recognize commonalities.
2. Incorporate Group Collab Projects
Group collaboration projects ‘force’ employees to work together to achieve a common goal or solve a problem; even, if they may have conflicting personalities. As they share information and utilize their skills for the benefit of the team, they learn how to see past differences. They are no longer forced to collaborate and are able to enjoy the experience and form their own sub-community. It can be something as simple as creating a presentation that covers the latest hiring policies or regulations. As long as they’re able to enjoy the shared experience as part of the online training community.
3. Add Incentives
Gamification is a great way to instill a sense of community in your HR online training program. Leaderboards often have a bad rep because organizations take the competition too far. Everyone is so busy vying for the top rank that they lose sight of the objectives. But, if you do it correctly, they have the power to build teamwork skills and connect employees on an emotional level. It’s true, they’re all competing for the top spot or to earn the most points. However, they’re all working toward a common objective and can motivate one another to perform at their best. It’s best to give employees an ‘out’ if they so choose. For instance, some might prefer solo rewards, like badges, that don’t involve a high degree of competition.
4. Launch A Peer-Based Coaching Program
There are times when even the most seasoned employees need some guidance. Or maybe they are simply looking for a fresh perspective to help overcome a performance issue. This is when peer-based coaching comes into play. It offers personalized support and instills a strong sense of community. It gives employees the power to use their skills and personal experiences to assist co-workers and, in the process, learn more about themselves. Peer-based coaching also makes employees aware that they do have that support tool always available. The online learning community is there to help them through the obstacles.
5. Host Weekly Events
Schedule weekly catch-up events where your HR employees get to exchange stories, tips, and helpful resources. They can even host events of their own to share with co-workers unique insights and expertise. Just make sure that you have guidelines in place so that everyone knows what hosting entails. As well as, which behaviors are encouraged and which behaviors are strictly prohibited. For example, calling out a co-worker in the comments section probably isn’t the best to way to build a sense of community.
6. Tap Into The Magic Of Personal Storytelling
Encourage employees to jot down or record their personal stories. The caveat is that they must tie it into their job duties and maintain some semblance of professionalism. In other words, no talking about the latest family reunion or date night. Personal storytelling gives employees the ability to see things from another POV and to relate to remote peers. They can see that they all have certain plights or work-related struggles in common. It also allows them to vent, within limits, and form a stronger emotional connection to each and the HR online training. For example, a co-worker’s story prompts them to pinpoint aspects of their own task performance that may need some work. Or discover that they’ve been misinformed about a compliance regulation.
7. Start An Employee-Generated Library
Invite employees to develop their own resources and share them in the HR online training library. Ranging from bite-sized demo videos to infographics. They can draw on these online training resources during their moment of need. However, it also instills a sense of community through information exchange. They give and they get, which is a crucial part of any thriving community. Set ground rules so that employees know what’s expected of them. For instance, they must contribute at least 5 online training resources every year. And, every activity must center on HR topics from the approved list. They can provide feedback, as well. This helps everyone identify strengths and weaknesses; to continually improve.
Conclusion
A strong sense of community makes HR employees feel like they’re part of something bigger. A thriving support network that respects and honors everyone’s thoughts and opinions. Thus, they can collaborate more effectively to achieve organizational goals and facilitate knowledge sharing. No matter where they are, or which challenges they face, remote peers are there to lend a hand.
You need a LMS that supports social learning and group collaboration in order to instill a sense of community in HR online training. Find the ideal system for your needs with the help of our exclusive online LMS directory.
