The Lambda Solutions eLearning Blog

Continuous Learning: How to Create Engaging Training Programs for Professional Development

Written by Lambda Solutions | May 7, 2019

- 3 MIN READ -

Did you know that 94% of employees say they would stay at their current job longer if they had access to a great training program providing career-growth opportunities? It's also good for the company to provide a continuous learning and development program. Delivering an L&D program that fosters long-term professional development is crucial for employee satisfaction and retention.

For more insights on creating successful training programs, watch our on-demand webinar: How to Create Engaging and Effective eLearning.

What Factors Drive Employees to Continuously Grow and Learn?

Identify goals and objectives as a starting point for your L&D program. They will determine how employees navigate it and measure their success. Have them set their own professional-development goals according to their chosen career path, but set goals and objectives that help define the program's scope and structure.

Self-directed learning is another factor to consider. That will help improve motivation and encourage employees to take ownership of their professional development.

Quality training material is another factor that will encourage employees to learn, so select courses and other resources developed by industry experts. Update your training library frequently, for employees to use to stay up-to-date in their field.

Making your training program accessible and easy to navigate, to increase learner engagement. Ideally, your content is accessible on mobile devices and structured so employees can easily find training modules for specific skills and learning goals.

TIP! Using short videos is a great way to break down your program into modules that learners can complete within a few minutes, which we cover in this blog: Incorporating Video-based Learning Experiences Into Your eLearning and Training Programs.

Top Strategies to Keep learners Engaged

Fifty-six percent of employees say they would take a course if their manager suggested it. So, get your managers involved in designing your training program and have them help employees navigate it. Managers are a valuable asset since they know each employee's strengths and weaknesses.

Your L&D program will also benefit from support at the executive level. Everyone in your organization should understand the value of the program and support it. That helps create a company culture that values growth and training. Employees are more likely to engage with something if they think it's valuable.

A successful training program should yield immediate benefits. Employees are likely to stay engaged if it gives them a solid foundation that makes them feel more confident in performing their daily tasks. Structure yours to prioritize the skills paramount to your employees' success.

WATCH: How to Create Engaging and Effective eLearning more insights on creating successful training programs

Progress is another key element in keeping employees engaged, and milestones keep learners motivated and wanting to look for the next challenge. Use learning paths to map progress and help learners keep track of their achievements with points or badges. Analytics are another interesting way to improve your programs and deliver customized insights and recommendations for learners. But only if you know How to ditch vanity metrics for actionable metrics for better eLearning.

The best way to implement those features is by adopting a learning management system (LMS). Platforms such as Moodle or Totara Learn allow you to pull learning material from a multitude of sources, structure your program, assign individual learning paths and help learners track their progress. Lambda Solutions can guide you through the process of implementing an LMS and show you how to build a long-term program.

Let us know how we can help!