How To Train Millennials
There’s a lot of talk nowadays about millennials everywhere you look, but who exactly are millennials? There seems to be divided opinion about this, but the general agreement is that millennials constitute people born between the 1980s and the early 2000s. Millennials grew up seeing and using technology, which not only makes them tech-savvy, but dependent on technology in most cases. So, why are millennials important for organizations? Because they constitute more than half of the global workforce right now, and in a decade or so, will constitute 100% of the global workforce. Knowing how to train millennials is something every organization must understand well.
Training millennials has been known to be a challenge for organizations because they do not respond well to traditional methods of learning like classroom training, and now, even the traditional eLearning methods don’t engage them as much. But not to worry, as this article is written exactly for the purpose of informing organizations how they should update their training approach to tackle millennials.
1. Deliver Learning On Their Smartphones
One identifiable feature of millennials is that they cannot live without their smartphones. Millennials use their smartphones for everything, be it communication, shopping, ordering food, entertainment, or learning. Making digital learning courses available to them on their smartphones ensures that they have the flexibility to take courses anywhere and anytime they please, on a device of their preference. Mobile learning is also great for onboarding new hires without them having to even set foot inside the organization.
2. Deliver Digital Learning Content In Bite-Sized Pieces
Millennials have short attention spans, perhaps the shortest of any generation till now. This is due to the fact that they are practically drowning in information, which is available to them from multiple sources, mostly on their smartphones. So, in order to ensure that they are not continuously distracted during training, organizations need to deliver content to them in bite-sized pieces that take no more than 5 minutes to consume. This strategy, known as microlearning, is extremely popular with millennials and works great with mobile learning.
3. Gamify Your Digital Learning Courses
Because of their short attention span, millennials get distracted or bored very easily. Thus, in order to keep them engaged and motivated to complete courses, it is necessary to add an element of fun and entertainment to the digital learning courses. Gamification is a strategy that employs game elements like points, levels, badges, power-ups, health, rewards, and leaderboards to turn digital courses into games that entertain and engage learners while helping them learn. Combine gamification with microlearning and mobile learning to create mini-games that millennials can enjoy while commuting to and from work, during breaks in the office, or at home while also completing their training.
4. Use Video-Based Learning In Your Courses
Video is the preferred form of content for millennials. It is also a great way to engage both their visual and aural faculties at the same time. Videos can demonstrate how to apply skills and knowledge in a way no other content format can, and millennials can practice applying skills while they watch videos, pause them in between to carry out steps involved in a task, and also watch videos just before applying skills (as they’re just 5-minutes long) for Just-In-Time learning.
5. Use Simulations With Branching Scenarios
Millennials love choices. By including simulations with branching scenarios based on the choices they make in their digital learning courses, you train their decision-making capabilities by basing simulations on real-life scenarios. By including rewards for correct choices and penalization for incorrect choices in simulations, you also help learners understand that their choices will have consequences, just like in real life. Create characters and environments in the simulations which are similar to people they meet and places they go in real life to help millennials relate to them better and boost learning.
Millennials, despite rumors of them being lazy and entitled, are a highly intelligent and creative generation that develops skills and knowledge quickly if you provide proper and adequate training to them. Using the above-mentioned strategies will help you do so, and turn the millennials in your organization into a workforce that takes the organization to new heights.