Employees are the backbone of any company. If you hire the right people, manage them effectively, and help them develop their skills, the business will thrive. Many organizations understand this and make employee training a top priority.  However, elaborating learning strategies and developing training programs are very demanding tasks. When working on them, L&D professionals have to deal with a number of challenges. Here are the five most common of these challenges and how you can address them with modern technologies.

Challenge 1: Digital Transformation

Digital technology is integrated into all areas of business. And this is definitely a benefit. Leveraging the technology allows companies to create efficient workflows, strengthen security, and boost profitability, but it should go side by side with a digital approach to employee training.

Remote workplaces and field jobs are here to stay, so traditional classroom training is no longer the best solution. L&D teams have to look for more time-efficient and cost-effective ways to train their staff.

How to address it?

The only approach that really works is using digital solutions. Courseplay is an innovative learning technology solution for enterprises that will let you deliver training online and ensure that everyone in the company is within teaching range. Just upload your courses to the platform or choose ready-made content from its marketplace, assign it to your employees, and keep track of their progress and results.

Challenge 2: Hybrid Workplace

The hybrid workplace is the new norm. This is the scenario in which remote employees work together with on-site staff. And some employees prefer to have a choice as to where and when they’d like to work. This is one more reason why classroom training is no longer a total solution.

How to address it?

Again, the only way for L&D teams to reach the entire staff is to go online. In a hybrid workplace, it makes sense to follow the blended learning approach. You can conduct virtual instructor-led sessions by using web conferencing tools like Zoom or MS Teams and pack the rest of the training sessions into online courses that your employees will take at their own pace, when and where it’s convenient for them.

Challenge 3: Scaling the role of L&D

This challenge is a consequence of the first two. Due to the digital transformation and a need to provide consistent training to employees no matter where they are, an L&D professional has to wear multiple hats. Often being on-site trainers, they have to be part-time LMS admins and even course developers.

How to address it?

It’s almost impossible to be an expert in all these areas at once and be an advanced user of all complex software solutions. It takes a lot of time to gain all the necessary skills and master all the tools. However, you can make things easier by choosing software that doesn’t require profound tech skills and a specific background.

For example, if you’re going to create training content on your own and aren’t ready to invest tons of time mastering a tool, you may wan to opt for iSpring Suite. It’s an all-in-one authoring toolkit that allows you to build online courses right in PowerPoint.

Plus, as these are PowerPoint-based courses, you can also create interactive quizzes, video tutorials, role-play simulations, interactions, and eBooks with a page-flip effect.

Challenge 4: Poor Learner Engagement

Let’s be honest, not all employees are ready to spend their free time studying another manual or memorizing product features. Low learner engagement can reveal itself in various ways: bad program completion rates, an unwillingness on the part of employees to learn anything beyond mandatory courses, and even outright resistance to training. L&D specialists need to find the right strategies to ensure that the staff is engaged in learning. Otherwise, you face the threat of a failed training program, which can cost you significant amounts of time and money.

How to address it?

Successful training deployment always starts with a strong sell of the “why.” Your employees should have a clear answer to “What’s in it for me?” Will training help them grow in their careers or move closer to a promotion? You need to communicate to them how they’ll benefit from training.

Besides, learner engagement depends to a great degree on what kind of content you provide. For example, if you provide them with a Word file with instructions on how to deal with a difficult customer or enrol them in a colourful role-play simulation with storytelling and interactivity, which one do you think they’d prefer?

You can also use some additional tools to motivate your staff to learn. For instance, Courseplay lets you make the training process more entertaining and challenging with gamification elements like points, badges, levels, and leader boards.

Challenge 5: Budget Cuts and ROI

Being an L&D professional means finding yourself stuck between a rock and a hard place: budget cuts and achieving high ROI. L&D teams are often challenged to reach great training results that are expected to lead to improved business performance, thus reducing training costs. But imagine how much time and money you need to invest in just a two-day training event for, let’s say, a hundred people!

How to address it?

The answer is online learning again. Using a learning platform is a cost-effective solution that will also provide you with a complete picture of training results. With Courseplay, you can track and analyze employees’ performance, behaviors, learning, and growth to get an x-ray view of your staff and maximize your ROI.

Another way to overcome this challenge is to create engaging learning content in house. Buying ready-made courses is not always consistent, especially if you need company-related content, and outsourcing course development is extremely expensive. By building courses on your own, you can save a lot of money and provide content your employees will really enjoy and complete on time. To start creating courses today, get in touch with us to download a free iSpring Suite trial.

Conclusion

Nowadays, online training is a real lifesaver for L&D teams. But to make it work, you need specific software. The Courseplay learning platform and the iSpring Suite course authoring toolkit together comprise a complex solution that will help you overcome all possible challenges and create training that will help your business drive enormous results.