How Custom eLearning Helps Distributed Workforce
Most large and established companies today have their employees based in different locations. More often than not, effective communication among staff spread out across multiple time zones, as well as ensuring that customers receive a consistent level of service, are big challenges. When the employees of your organization are decentralized, it is difficult not only to establish your company’s online training program, but also to ensure an economical and effective knowledge distribution. This is where custom eLearning comes in: Customizing your online training courses can connect your loosely coordinated teams and help them receive efficient knowledge anytime, anywhere. In this article, I'll share 12 incredible ways in which custom eLearning helps distributed workforce, so that you will be able to successfully handle the challenge of having a remote personnel.
- It is cost effective.
One of the most convincing reasons for custom eLearning is a reduction in training costs. You know already that one of the greatest advantages of custom eLearning is that the only costs involved are the ones of initial course development and some periodic maintenance costs. This means that you don’t have to budget license fees, which significantly reduces your eLearning courses’ long-term investment. eLearning is the cheapest way to train a globally distributed workforce, as it eliminates instructor travelling expenses and accomodation, training space rental fees, and printed material costs. In addition, it can be distributed to any number of staff for free. You can therefore be sure that using custom eLearning to train your workforce around the globe can really make a huge difference in your company’s budget. - It addresses each location’s unique needs.
eLearning localization provides multiple benefits, as it positions your brand as a global eLearning company with international presence and boosts the effectiveness of your eLearning courses seeing that all members of your audience can learn in their own language. Especially for your distributed workforce this last one is critical, as while international English is the standard online training language, translating your eLearning courses will produce superior results: When your employees are able to receive the information in their native language, their knowledge retention massively increases, and therefore your most important messages get across more accurately. - It creates training experiences that are in-line with cultural norms.
In many cases, a distributed workforce involves a blend of cultures, languages, and societies that all must be considered when creating an online training course. For example, the eLearning content you create for your marketing team in India would be much different than the training you provide for your sales team in the United States. Custom eLearning gives you the ability to design online training experiences that are in-line with cultural and societal norms, making eLearning localization more effective and streamlined. You can include culturally accepted images and graphics in your eLearning courses, as well as include subtitles to improve comprehension for every member of your global workforce. - Reduces the risk of law violations.
In a perfect world rules and regulations would be the same in every region, as this would make it easier to create compliance training courses for your distributed workforce. Unfortunately, when your employees work in different countries and regions, local procedures and processes may vary due to local laws. While one code may be in force in your California-branch, for instance, an entirely different law might be in effect in your Colorado location. Custom eLearning helps to reduce the risk of code violations, thanks to the fact that you can design online training courses which incorporate local laws and procedures without spending a fortune on printed learning materials. - It offers complete control over the outcome.
The most significant advantage of custom eLearning is probably that it enables you to have complete control over the look and feel of your eLearning courses. When training several thousands of employees who are located in different parts of the world, the overall experience must be designed carefully in order to successfully handle multiple challenges. Customizing your eLearning courses will ensure that every aspect of them will be exactly as you imagined it and will convey exactly what messages and points you want to get across. - It offers custom assessment and feedback tools.
Focus groups and surveys are two of the most common tools for evaluating the effectiveness of your online training courses, and thus ensuring that your audience has obtained the information provided. However, when you address audiences which are located in multiple countries and regions, you cannot be sure that your pre-built assessment tools will work the same way everywhere, due to cultural differences. By customizing your eLearning courses you are allowed to adapt your eLearning assessment methods to different circumstances and ensure that your learning objectives are being met without relying on the generic solutions that off-the-shelf eLearning provides. Furthermore, customizing your eLearning assessment tools you can collect valuable feedback about the effectiveness of processes or channels used in each of your company’s local branches. - It breaks down cultural barriers.
Communication in a work environment can be challenging, even if all of your employees share the same cultural background and are located in the same place. In companies where the workforce is scattered around the globe it can be even more difficult, as there are multiple language, societal, and cultural differences that need to be taken into account. Customizing your eLearning courses will allow you to adapt your eLearning methods and strategies to different cultures and ensure effective and efficient communication will all of your staff. By developing your online courses in a way that bridges potential gaps of culture, you cannot only create a climate of respect and acceptance in your company, but you can also unite your employees towards a shared organizational vision. - It effectively reflects brand image.
The more your business spreads across a number of countries, the more difficult it becomes to ensure a consistent comany's brand. Pre-built eLearning courses don’t allow you to communicate your organizational culture, and your distributed employees, no matter where they are, need to embrace corporate values in order to keep brand promises and be consistent with their customers. Custom eLearning conveys the brand message that you have built, as it allows you to design your eLearning course as you like and ensure that all aspects of it, from images and graphics to texts and the color scheme, are aligned with your company’s brand, image, and culture. Brand image isn’t just essential for building credibility and loyalty amongst consumers, but to cultivate a sense of pride and community amongst your distributed workforce. It builds brand integrity and shows that you care enough about your employees to provide them with a cohesive online training experience that aligns with your brand message. - It reinforces your company’s internal social network.
The real basis for team interaction is their personal relationships. Custom eLearning helps distributed workforce by connecting staff working in multiple time zones and improving communication and operations via consistent online discussions that strengthen the bonds among your employees, despite rarely seeing one another in person. Custom eLearning breaks down barriers of time and distance, eliminates the sense of detachment that mobile workers usually feel, and generates involvement in a brand aligned virtual environment. - It allows quick and convenient updates of the eLearning content.
When you are training employees that are located in different parts of the world, you may need to often modify your eLearning content in order to keep it updated and relevant. Customizing your eLearning courses will enable you to deal with potential issues early, as well as make alterations and updates as often as you like; since you are responsible for the eLearning design and development, it will be very easy for you to make the necessary adjustments in no time. Thus, your distributed workforce has the opportunity to access updated manuals, tutorials, and a variety of other custom eLearning content on-the-go. If they are out on a sales call or meeting with an important client halfway across the globe, they can simply log on to the training program and immediately review the updated processes and procedures or complete the necessary modules. They no longer have to worry about scheduling time for extra face-to-face training, because all the updated information they need is right at their fingertips. - It is clear about the organizational values and goals.
One of the most important advantages of custom eLearning is that it allows you to focus on your company vision, values, and goals. With remote personnel this is vital, as your employees absolutely must understand what they need to accomplish, no matter where they are located. Customizing your eLearning courses will help your distributed workforce comprehend what is expected from them much easier than an off-the-shelf eLearning solution, and thus focus on improving their performance in order to accomplish your company’s ultimate goals. - It increases employee retention.
Last but not least, it has been proven that remote workers are more likely to leave their position than local workers. However, if you provide your distributed workforce with the training and tools they need, this increases employee satisfaction and employee retention. They feel more connected to the company and have the skills required for their daily job duties, which makes them more self-and fulfilled while they are on-the-job.
Now that you know all the ways that custom eLearning helps your distributed workforce, you may be interested in learning how it can bring the best out of your employees. Read the article Top 9 Reasons To Develop Custom eLearning That Engages Employees and find out how you can create engaging online training experiences that break the routine of work, satisfy your employees’ unique needs and provide them with opportunities for improved job performance.
