So, your company just completed a training and development initiative. It may have been a short training program or a long and intensive one. Either way, the training has come to an end and you’re wondering, ‘What comes after course completion, and is there anything you can do to engage learners post-training?’
Staying connected to learners post-completion of eLearning-based training is a real challenge. As surprising as it may sound, many companies find it very easy to host and conduct the initial rounds of training but are struggling to find a way to engage learners once the training has ended. Learning and development do not stop once learners complete their online courses. In fact, training is an ongoing process, which means there’s a lot more to do once learners complete their eLearning courses.
It’s here that L&D must focus on a term called ‘post-training activities.’ Post-training activities are ways to continue training learners once the primary training and development initiatives have ended. It’s a group of techniques used to engage learners post-training in an attempt to ensure that learners retain most of what they have learned and also implement it.
Here are 8 ways to engage learners post training
Follow-up courses
Surprise, surprise! If you think that a few training courses are all you need to successfully build your learners’ skills, then you may want to think again. Statistics says that a follow up course to your original training initiative can improve knowledge retention by up to 60%. Follow-up courses work especially well when presented on a learning management system after the completion of the primary training.
Think of follow-up courses as bonus training modules which learners unlock after completing their primary training. A good follow-up course builds upon what is already taught, adding an extra layer of difficulty and advancement in training. Learners who truly appreciate the training initiatives will definitely appreciate a well-put, follow-up course. It’s one of the more popular ways to engage learners post training.
Live events
We at eNyota Learning have always maintained a positive outlook on blending in-person interactions with self-paced online learning. We clearly understand that there’s no way for companies to switch to online training completely. Instead, we recommend blending some form of in-person interactions and online learning for a more rounded training approach and use it to engage learners post training.
One way to engage learners after completing an online training course is by organizing a live event. Live events can consist of one-on-one Q&A sessions or even follow-up training to cover topics that need a more human approach. Be sure to record these live events for future use and/or to distribute to learners who couldn’t make it to the event. Do ensure that learners are adequately informed about the need to attend this event followed by the date and time.
Social media groups
A very innovative and highly engaging way to keep learners in the loop after the completion of a training course is by creating a social media group and adding all participants to it. You can also create a WhatsApp group if some learners do not have access to social media. Social media and WhatsApp work as great passive, post-training engagement techniques. Both WhatsApp and social media are highly accessible, and learners often spend a sizeable portion of their day on these platforms.
By uploading updates or creating weekly discussion forums, you can push training across to learners wherever they are as long as they are accessing their social media, another excellent way to engage learners post training.
Self-paced certification training programs
If your training program does not certify learners once they complete it, then you are missing out on a great engagement tactic. Hosting a certification event post-training allows learners to apply and test their knowledge in an attempt to get certified. Certifications work as proof of knowledge gained by learners and the thought of getting certified and displaying certificates encourages many learners to continue training post course completion.
Micro-learning library
Building an online micro-learning library with bite-sized training materials and learning assets will help learners to access information in digestible chunks whenever they want. Think about circling back to follow-up courses. It’s in such online libraries that you can host follow-up courses and additional training materials for learners to access, microlearning are already engaging in themselves and they become even more potent tools to engage learners post training when used correctly.
Micro-learning libraries work in two ways:
- By keeping learners engaged long after the courses are completed via use of additional training content
- Addons or updated training bits can constantly be uploaded to these libraries to keep learners engaged
Monthly newsletter
Another way to engage learners post training is by ensuring they are constantly informed, a concept which advocates the use of social media and WhatsApp. Likewise, sending out monthly newsletters to your learners keeps them informed about ongoing and upcoming courses. Through newsletters, you can also initiate new topics for discussion to further engage learners.
One important thing to keep in mind is to ensure that the news updates inspire learners and offers them valuable inputs or content. Curating a special newsletter with knowledge collected from Subject Matter Experts can be of great value for learners and will provide them with engaging and interesting content.
Feedback is crucial
Learners wish to be heard and they want their inputs and opinions to be valued. Online learners are more likely to engage when you request for their feedback and give importance to their opinions. Conducting surveys and sharing questionnaires are popular ways to gather feedback from online learners.
Inviting learners to participate in online discussions for the development of upcoming learning courses can also be an effective way of collecting feedback. Feedbacks allow you to determine areas that need improvement and thereby, enhance the quality of content and learning experiences delivered to learners.
Podcasts and online video series
Video series that cover new topics every month can generate interest among learners to follow your channel. Uploading or linking these videos to your website can help you reach your target audience and attract new learners alongside keeping existing learners engaged. Adding schedule details on the website for the next video or podcast can further attract new learners and improve engagement.
Concluding
To engage learners post training and ensure maximum knowledge retention, it is absolutely crucial to continue the activity of training in one form or another. We know this because we have been actively involved with building training both primary and post to assist organizations with meeting their employee development goals through all levels of their corporate employee structure.
To know more about how we, at eNyota Learning, build courses to drive learner engagement for our clients, feel free to connect with us today! We are always available for a quick chat on how you can improve the engagement rates of your training initiatives. Also, take the time to test our Learning Management System – Abara LMS.
