Learner-Centered Training: How To Align Your eLearning Team And Programs To Enhance Personalization
Often we don't even recognize our biases or realize we're trying to enforce them onto others. It can be hard to put yourself in other people's shoes. And yet for a training course to be successful, that's exactly how we must structure materials. We need to communicate knowledge in the learner's ‘language', breaking it down into ways they understand. In order to push our training agenda, we need to put trainees first. How can a learner-centered training LMS help us align our eLearning team and programs to enhance personalization?
1. Ensure Your L&D Team Has Access To Relevant LMS Reports
Report-writing can seem like one of the most tedious parts of any job. We spend hours putting them together, and deep down, we’re afraid nobody actually reads them. LMS reports are a little different. They’re not written by human hands, so they don’t aim to impress. Instead, they're automated. The AI picks only relevant details and keeps everything direct. This ensures reports are shorter, less fluffy and more content-dense. They're also easier to analyze and implement. Ensure your LMS can generate this type of customized reports by incorporating WYSIWYG tools. Office admin can tick off relevant boxes to indicate what information they need. Then they can generate the report in seconds. Give your L&D access both to report generation and archives. They're best placed to derive the right data, such as drop-off rates and the exact point of discontinuation. Or commonly downloaded JIT references as a content guide.
2. Pre-Assess To Develop Custom Tailored Resources
In that thought-space, it's a human reflex to see ourselves in others. Or to try to. It's why we try to make our kids, spouses, and partners more like us. Whether they want to be or not. In the corporate training space, this can display as offering the training we want. Or the training we think they deserve instead of simply asking them what they need. Assess your staff before you begin any L&D activity. It will save you a lot of time and money. By providing the kind of training they've asked for programs are more customized. Which means trainees will be more invested. They'll feel heard, appreciated and they'll see the value in their eLearning course. This will make them work harder and stick with it even when it gets hard. Plus, it gives them a sense of career movement which is a good retention strategy. It can be satisfying to the L&D team too when they see their trainees' enthusiasm.
3. Identify Gaps In Your Current Online Training Strategy
Surveys and pre-assessment can give you a big-picture blue-sky view of your staff's ambitions. You want to word it in a way that doesn't lead them or constrict them. This way you get more honest answers. But once you've established loose lines it can be helpful to drill down. You know what they want and you know what you want (as a training lead). Now it's your task to find a happy middle ground. The first steps were about identifying trainee interests. It's time to get practical. Conduct a training needs analysis. The goal is to spot skill-gaps that need to be filled. You can then match this data with individual staff preferences. There are sure to be areas of overlap. You can train and position someone to plug a skills-hole that's related to their interests or job description. This works better than forcing someone into a position they dislike. You may develop the right skills in them but if they hate the work, they won't do it well.
4. Provide Microlearning Modules
Personalization isn't always about content and style. Sometimes it's about time. Be aware some trainees can only study during their lunch break, or after their kids have gone to bed. Others would rather listen as they drive or read in the subway. Provide suitable teaching formats for each of these study patterns. Each online lesson should be available as a video, audio clip, visual display (e.g. infographic) or curated text. Trainees can pick their preference. Provide lesson options that are less than five minutes so they can study in bursts if they need to.
5. Focus On Social Interactivity
The beautiful thing about interacting with others in the training space is that it enhances the fluidity of your support system. Personalization is all about getting the specific resources you need to address your goals and gaps. Rather than relying solely on an online training library, encourage employees to work together for the greater good. A solid online training community that's comprised of online forums, peer coaching, and group collabs. All these social learning tools not only enrich the online training experience but individualize the process. If employees have a problem, they can turn to seasoned in-house pros to show them the ropes. Your L&D team may not be directly involved. However, they helped to frame your collaborative online training program so that employees can always avail themselves of peer guidance.
Taking a learner-centric approach to eLearning personalization isn't complicated. It just requires willingness and creativity in delivery. What are some of your options? Give your eLearning team access to reports. Assess online learners before you build their eLearning course. Spot skill gaps and find ways to fill the hole. Finally, provide condensed online lessons for time crunches. These steps will help create a personalized training path for employees. It keeps them invested, which helps the whole company.
Collaboration is key to unlocking in-house talent and facilitating social learning support. Adobe Captivate Prime can help you deploy learner-centered training for your remote workforce. It features auto-assign learning plans, auto-generated user groups, and personal dashboards. Making it easy for your L&D team to improve eLearning personalization without having to do all the work manually.
