Top 16 Employee Training Methods For 2022

Employee training is an essential part of any organization, as it can help employees learn and develop new skills and stay up-to-date with the latest advances in their field. There are many different employee training methods that organizations can use to foster employee development, such as classroom training, computer-based learning, on-the-job training, coaching, and mentoring. 

Each training method has unique advantages and disadvantages, depending on the type of employee development required. In the digital age, continuous training and growth are becoming progressively common as organizations seek to stay competitive and employee productivity becomes increasingly important. 

Organizational change is a key factor that can impact employee training. For example, if a company is undergoing rapid growth or experiencing significant transformations to its business model, it may need to invest in employee training to help employees adapt and keep pace with these changes. 

Change management strategies, such as employee engagement programs and feedback systems, can also help facilitate employee learning and development. 

The growing popularity of Digital Adoption Platforms (DAPs) and APIs means that employee training can now be automated and personalized, allowing employees to learn at their own pace and in the best way. However, it is important to consider the needs and preferences of different employee groups when choosing a training method, as certain methods may work better for certain job roles or employees. 

Ultimately, the best employee training method will depend on the needs of both the organization and its employees. However, regardless of which method is chosen, it is crucial that employee training is seen as an ongoing process rather than a one-time event. 

Withproperright support and commitment from employees and employers, employee training, can help your organization thrive in today’s rapidly-changing workplace.

Research suggests that training is not always practical, with employees reporting that they use only 54% of the skills they are trained in.

The Importance of Employee Training 

It would be nice if staff started their job with no training needs – and never required further up-skilling.

However, the reality is that even the existing skills of very highly-qualified candidates won’t meet every last demand of their job function. Therefore, new employees need to be schooled in the details of an organization’s internal systems and operations.

Furthermore, work environments don’t stay the same. Change happens exceptionally quickly, and in a few months, even a veteran employee who avoids training might be unable to work effectively. In some circumstances, allowing existing employees to pick up the practical skills to do their job at their own pace may be possible. However, the demands of most businesses won’t allow it.

It’s too easy to let training slip through the net.

The nuts and bolts of innovation are often outsourced: businesses of all sizes happily pay for plenty of third-party apps and systems, hoping to make more efficiencies. However, the burden of  digital employee training and learning often falls on the shoulders of the organization – not the vendor – and failing to take responsibility for training means there’s a genuine risk that businesses will lose out on their investments.   

According to a recent Gartner report, on how leading finance teams are training their way to digital expertise. Improving digital competency in finance is essential to get the most out of the broad transformation that is taking place, yet most training is currently inadequate. 

Considering all the types of training that an organization may need to supply, establishing a solid employee training process is a recipe for success. After all, it’s far easier to re-train existing employees than to search for replacements.

For any organization that wants to move with the times, training employees is non-negotiable.

How the Right Employee Training Methods Can Lead to Organizational Success

It’s easy to agree to provide good training for staff. It’s much harder to create training materials that improve the working experience of every employee.

Get the training methods wrong, and staff will feel alienated and undervalued.

But plan the training methods well, and there’s a great chance to engage employees in the changes within a company and society.

Suitable training methods can lead to specific successes, like the following:

• Drive efficiency across the organization; 
• Helps staff to meet performance management targets; 
• improve employee job satisfaction; 
• Improve employee retention; 
• Ensures that the team is up to date with digital literacy. 

A positive culture of training will be less evident than a bad when. If no one understands what they are doing, mistakes will constantly be made; if everyone gets it, everything runs smoothly. 

The Benefits of Understanding Employee Training Methods 

Few training methods provide complete, off-the-peg training solutions that fit every circumstance. Indeed, the research on training is changing all the time: from one year to the other, there’d be different views on the most effective employee training approach, the best way to keep employees interested, and the top method of ensuring knowledge retention.

It’s essential to get to know many training methods because the best choices for today may be very different tomorrow.

There’s no better example of this change than the ‘learning styles’ approach. This is the idea that we can easily categorize learners as visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic. Although some guides to training still promote this idea, there’s no solid research base to prove this is more effective than other ways of approaching learning.

Corporate environments have one benefit – they are not forced to teach in any particular way. They can experiment freely without pressure from external bodies. 

But on the other hand – in a corporate setting, a flawed training method can lead directly to depleted revenue. So it is all the more important to keep up to date on the latest training methods.

The Most Effective Employee Training Methods of 2022

With that in mind, we’ve put together some of the best ways to train employees in 2022. 

These methods could improve existing training programs – or inspire new organizational change management approaches. 

1. On-the-job training

Learning on the job gives employees hands-on training that ensures they can handle the reality of their role. Employees see the skills and challenges they need and quickly receive the support to make a difference.

This training method can work exceptionally well. When technical skills are learned, it’s a great way to get employees straight into real-life applications and practice tasks.

However, there are plenty of times when on-the-job training won’t work. For example, when a company plans to go live with an extensive software launch, there’s no way to practice with the entire system before the ‘big bang.’

2. Job-rotation

Giving staff a job rotation experience is a fantastic way to develop a comprehensive skillset within an organization. It’s especially great for showing early career staff all the skills they need – with a focus on long-term improvement.

It’s often used in medical training and management training schemes. Training through job rotation is most likely to take place as part of an extended onboarding process – in which hires begin working immediately in one environment before moving to others.

There’s no better way of helping new employees get up to speed on how a large and complex company works.

3. E-learning

There are many types of E-learning training methods. The term can encompass online lectures, in-app training, XR technologies, and more.

E-learning can provide highly efficient forms of delivery. It might not always be inspiring and innovative to do the job. Staff clicking through an online slideshow would still be more interesting than the same conducted through in-person training – and can help measure progress much better than instructor-led training.

Moreover, E-learning can help to accommodate the different schedules of your employees. E-Learning may be delivered at a specific time, but it may also be asynchronous – meaning staff can conduct their learning at a time that suits them.

E-learning is most necessary when the learning goal includes some aspect of digital literacy. When it comes to the new software applications a company uses, forget about older methods – in-app training is the perfect digital adoption solution for achieving employee retention.

Overall, e-learning can be a highly cost-effective method of delivering training and reducing the cost of training and improving productivity. 

4. Mobile Learning

This is a more specific type of e-Learning in which employees access training materials through their mobile devices. M-Learning can be accessible, entertaining, and efficient. Mobile learning  can be used to deliver training materials in real time, and can also have onboard assessments and quizzes that help employees track their progress. 

The benefits of mobile learning  are numerous, including increased employee engagement and retention, as well as the ability to learn in a flexible and convenient manner. However, there are some challenges to implementing m-learning in a business context, such as employee resistance to change and technical difficulties. 

As such, it is important for companies that are considering implementing m-learning to carefully consider their employee training needs and choose the method that is best suited for their employees.

5. Coaching

In the right circumstances, individual coaching can be one of the best training methods.
When employees struggle with some part of their organizational role, they are assigned to an individual coach. 

Coaching is a highly effective employee training method, as it focuses on the employee’s specific needs and challenges. It also allows for tailored feedback and support, which can be especially beneficial for employee development and retention.

This could be someone from their team or from elsewhere in the organization. The coach works closely with the employee: trying to understand their struggles, suggesting solutions, and offering encouragement.

With coaching, the employee can feel in charge of their learning experience. Having autonomy can help employees feel respected and appreciated.

6. Mentorship Programmes

In some ways, mentorship is similar to coaching. A staff member is assigned to a mentor who works together for weeks, months, or even years.

Mentorship also differs in some important ways. While the employee and their coach are often working on very specific tasks or skills, mentors can provide a more holistic view of an employee’s performance.

For example, they may help an employee develop in their career or personal life. They can also provide support, guidance, and advice when needed.

However, a mentor will offer more general advice and support: advising the junior staff member on approaches, opportunities, and potential dangers.
Mentoring is a great way to help develop leadership skills in junior staff.

7. Reenactment (post-mortem) Training 

Reenactment (or ‘post-mortem’) training occurs at the project’s end.

It is most likely to form a series of group discussions. The team gathers to discuss what aspects of the project went well, what went poorly, why it went wrong, and how you can repeat the success.

This employee training method is especially useful for identifying and addressing employee concerns. By bringing these issues into the open, you can help employees feel supported and valued.

This is an exciting training process that helps you learn profound lessons. Moreover, everyone in a team can contribute to the shared learning – where established employees and brand-new hires can work together to improve their outcomes.

8. Compliance Training

Compliance training ensures that staff is all up-to-date on their statutory responsibilities.
Compliance training is essential: failure to properly comply with regulations can be illegal in some professions. 

Compliance training is often carried out by external trainers. They work with staff members and managers to create a customized employee training program, based on their specific responsibilities and areas of risk. 

This employee training method can help staff members feel more confident in their work and understand the legal context in which they are operating.

Whatever precise method the training sessions use, clear attendance and assessment must be built into the process.

9. Collaborative Learning and Interactive Training

Collaboration helps people to learn in many ways. Learners improve their understanding by sharing their problems and explaining challenging concepts. Group discussions help staff to find inspiring solutions they would never have discovered on their own. And working together improves morale – keeping staff motivated when the material is complex.

Collaborative learning solutions can also be interactive, engaging learners through all their senses. This is a great employee training method for staff in technical or creative roles, as it can help them to enhance their skills in a way that feels more like play than work.

Collaborative learning can be most effective when employees use problem-solving skills to help their businesses.

10. Video Conference Training

Forms of online training are a lot more common since Covid turned up and changed our lives. For employees already comfortable with Zoom, training through a video conference can effectively offer organization-wide CPD and can easily combine with localized group discussions and other activities.

Video conferencing training  can be an effective employee training method for remote teams and organizations, allowing staff to share their knowledge and skills in a convenient and flexible way. As more businesses adopt remote working models , video conference training will become an essential employee training method for many organizations.

11. Case Studies

Case studies can offer similar outcomes to on-the-job training – but with fewer risks. Studying case studies allows staff to see how theory can meet with practice without the potential pitfalls of doing this in reality.

By looking at successful employee training methods in case studies, staff can learn and adapt those approaches to their own situations. While online learning tools are a great employee training method, case studies offer valuable insights and practical advice that staff can put into practice right away. 

Whether you are learning about employee engagement, employee retention, or employee productivity, case studies can offer valuable lessons that will help you improve your employee training strategy.

Staff can analyze and investigate the details of workplace challenges – equipping them with the understanding they need to perform effectively at the moment.

12. Gamification of Learning

Games are a great way to improve employee engagement in the learning process.
Learning can be gamified when game-like tasks are included in learning materials – such as a quiz, a rewards system, or a league table for the cohort’s results. 

Gamification is an add-on to other learning methodologies, inputting a bit of fun into otherwise monotonous activities.

On the other hand, game-based training is when games are specifically used to reach the stated learning objectives.

There are many ways to introduce gaming features to learning – the only limit is the instructor’s creativity. 

13. Lectures

Lectures are a form of traditional classroom training – and it’s easy to be critical of them. This is not a form of interactive training and poorly done lectures can switch the whole audience off.

However, when delivered effectively, lectures can be a powerful employee training method. They offer the opportunity to share knowledge and expertise in an organized way, and can be highly engaging when well-structured.

In particular, lectures are an excellent employee training method for those who prefer to learn at their own pace. They allow employees to use the time they spend in training to pause and reflect on new information, allowing them to fully absorb it and understand the context.

However, there are times when a clear and straightforward explanation of a new policy or an upcoming event is the best way to ensure that workplace training has been delivered effectively which is why it is important to  consider a variety of employee training methods for your workforce.

14. Blended Learning

Blended learning occurs when two or more training methods are combined to reach one common goal. This is not a strict methodology, but it offers a great way to balance independent and instructor-led training.

Usually, blended learning will offer a combination of face-to-face interactive training and online education. Employees can continue their learning process at their own pace for some elements. In other aspects, instructors can provide detailed instruction, answer questions, and give detailed learner-specific feedback.

15. Management-orientated Training

Potential managers need well-tailored training to make sure they can succeed.
Sometimes, management-oriented training can focus on critical technical skills that managers need to get right. That might be around performance management, end-of-period reporting, or niche digital skills that most staff don’t need to worry about.

But employee training methods may also focus on broader leadership skills and team development. This is an important area for potential managers to develop, as it will help them to understand employee motivation and build strong teams.

Alternatively, it might be about soft skills, which must include some real application through job shadowing, role-playing, or case studies.

16. Cultural Training

This is about educating employees about the culture and values of the workplace. Cultural training methods can be far more radical than in other areas!

Organizations that want their employees to understand the importance of trust, empathy, and compassion can’t achieve that through another PowerPoint presentation.

It’s more likely that cultural training takes place on a corporate away day – in the mountains, on the river, or at a training center. Employees can tell when the culture and values of an organization are just words. Businesses that are serious about their values will also invest heavily in their training. 

Choosing The Right Employee Training Methods For Your Organization 

When an instructor tries to choose the most effective training methods for their staff, they need to ask the simple question: will this method help meet the learning objectives?

In some cases, the choices are pretty obvious. For example, suppose someone wonders whether an online learning module will help train warehouse employees to use a new pallet truck. In that case, they must choose an alternative method more suited to practical training.

Likewise, collaborative learning probably won’t help to introduce middle management to our new values program.

But perhaps blended learning would be an excellent way to help HR staff get to know a new HCM system.

Other criteria can enter the picture if the learning objective can be achieved:

• Is it cost-effective?
• Will it keep your employees engaged?
• Can it deliver the learning outcome in an appropriate time frame?
• Do we need a third party to deliver the training, or can we do it in-house?  

An employee learning experience can be poor-quality, whatever approach is taken – whether it’s through traditional training methods or the latest XR technology. Employee training programs need to be relevant, well-designed, and up-to-date. 

What Does a Suitable Training Method Look Like?

The days are gone when awkward training videos were enough to get employees up to speed on the latest workplace developments. Today’s employees rightly expect more from their employers: and the challenges of digital innovation make it all the more important to get training right.

Digital adoption is a crucial aspect  of employee training, and it’s important to find the right balance of digital and traditional methods to suit employee learning styles.  Some employees might prefer hands-on, practical learning experiences, while others may benefit more from self-paced online modules or interactive ebooks. 

Ultimately, there isn’t one employee training method that’s better than all the rest. Simply put, the best employee training methods lead to fulfilling a learning goal – and allow the trainer to determine whether the learning has taken place effectively. 

In the future we can expect  to see more employee training methods that incorporate artificial intelligence, such as chatbots and machine learning. These technologies have the potential to personalize employee training experiences, which in turn can lead to a greater overall employee experience management.

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