Now a days, many organizations are leaning toward an online training model. This is understandable. It's much cheaper than a classroom based class, especially for organizations with geographically distant locations. It also provides live instruction which is vitally important aspect to any training course.
Still, it is different from a live classroom based course, and the time has come to get as comfortable as possible in holding a course in this fashion. Common challenges are listed below with some tips and techniques that will help conquer them.
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Master your online medium – Know everything you can about the online application you are using. It is a challenge, because now you have two applications to master, but you can do it! Prepare for the worst; setup contingency plans in case something goes wrong, or if an internet connection is lost (doubtful, but possible.) Make sure your participants are aware of what might happen, and how to respond; what you will do, and what they should do. Make it part of your introduction. Think of it as an online fire drill.
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Get a feel for your participants – A colleague of mine shared this with me and it really works. During your introductions, close your eyes and really listen to each participant as the introduce themselves. Picture yourself in a large meeting room, and pretend each person is sitting in a specific seat. Draw a rectangle on a piece of paper and write down the participants names where you see them sitting. Look at that seat while they are speaking. This will help you remember them.
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Make your own feedback – You won’t be able to see your participants, so you don’t know how they are doing. Make your own feedback by asking questions frequently to confirm understanding. No yes or no answers where. If you haven’t heard from a participant in a while, ask them a question. If you application allows for it, give a participant control and have them complete an exercise for the rest of the class. Keep moving from participant to participant. If your participants know you are paying attention to them, they are more likely to pay attention to you. It just requires more work in an online learning environment.
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Make a realistic schedule and include “filler” classes – You don't expect everyone to make all of your classes in a standard classroom based event, why would you expect them all to make an online event? Take into account employee schedules and time zones when building a class schedule. Once you have built a schedule, and have a total number of classes, add 10% more for “filler” classes. You will have employees miss their assigned class, so give them another avenue. How long are your classes? Remember to give yourself at least 30 minutes, preferably and hour, between these classes. You will need it. Remember to ask your participants to arrive at least 10 minutes early so you can start on time as well.
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Provide a practice environment – You have heard this before from me, and you will hear it again...and again. Retention will probably be a little lower in online classes than in a live instructor led classroom based class.
If possible, provide a Kronos practice environment in which participants can go practice what they learned. You may also want to provide some time in your schedule for online workshops, where participants can call you with questions and you can go online to the application to answer them.
It is my opinion that online training, for all of its advantages does not compare to standard classroom training. That doesn't mean it isn't can't be a component in your Kronos training program. Remember to monitor the challenges above to provide the best possible online training.
Good luck with your training implementation!
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