How To Make Your Employees Online Training Trendsetters
Employees are more likely to relate to peers than upper management. They’re on the same level and know how it is to deal with everyday work challenges. Which means that there’s no one better suited for L&D advocacy than in-house staff. But how do you turn your employees into training trailblazers who set the trends and lead the way? Here are some innovative ways to get your resident experts to promote online training and facilitate knowledge sharing. Spoiler alert: they are all free or low-cost, which makes them ideal for SMBs and startups.
7 Creative Ways To Transform Staffers Into Trendsetters
1. Social Media Groups With Employee Contributors
Launch a social media group for each department or job title and encourage members to step up and post helpful tips and tricks. This not only helps you identify who is a trendsetter but gives them a platform to pave the way for their peers. You can even choose a small group of online training in-house experts to moderate and contribute info every day. Their co-workers will get an insider’s POV, learn about new training opportunities, and follow their lead to achieve their potential.
2. Live Events Hosted By Your Top Talent
Find out who excels in a particular skill or task then invite them to host a live event on the topic. For example, your customer service supervisor or team lead has a knack for active listening. They always seem to know what a customer needs and how to address the problem. Thus, they can be online training trendsetters for fellow customer service employees who may lack tact. The host can show peers how to use training tools to brush up on skills and interact with customer personas to build practical experience. Assign topics so that there aren’t repeated events that cover the same concepts. And provide hosts with an outline they can use to create a script and stick to the subject matter.
3. Employee-Produced Podcasts
Every member of your team is passionate about something. Given that something may not have anything to do with online training. However, there are certain L&D topics that grab their attention and tap into their talents. Ask employees to speak on these subjects in a bite-size podcast. It could be a brief explanation of how a certification course helped them raise their sales figures. Or pointers on how to use the microlearning performance support library to bridge personal gaps. They can even discuss challenges they’ve faced on-the-job and the top 5 go-to activities that helped resolve the issue.
4. Ask Staff Members To Contribute Their Talents To The Training Library
You may already have a support library that employees use during their moment of need. However, a repository that features employee contributions may have a more memorable impact. Peers know that the resources were created by co-workers who face the same problems and work in the same conditions. Thus, they’re more likely to follow their advice and take the information to heart. Ask selected members of your staff to upload activities and support resources that align with their talents. Such as a demo that shows the right and wrong way to handle a customer call or IT issue.
5. Co-Worker Mentoring Programs
Launch a peer-based mentoring program that pairs online training trendsetters with less experienced team members. The mentor can even coach a group of employees who lack the skills or know-how they offer. Use video conferencing tools to open up the lines of communication and encourage them to set weekly or monthly check-in meetings. As well as set goals and milestones to track progress and hold themselves accountable. Another great way to get them to collaborate is to assign a group project. They must work together to develop a presentation or solve a practical problem using the available resources.
6. In-House Expert Blogs
Setting a blog is free-of-charge and your employees can become resident bloggers. Sharing their expertise and getting feedback from peers or visitors. They’re able to use this platform to spread the word about upcoming training courses, valuable activities, and other L&D updates. Plus, it gives them more space to share their thoughts and ideas outside of social media groups. Just make certain you set some ground rules to avoid conflict and ensure everyone plays nicely. You don’t want off-colored remarks turning the trendsetter’s blog into a battleground.
7. Real World Benefit Recaps
Hearing how others have benefited from online training to overcome challenges similar to their own is a game-changer. Employees can share how the training helped them overcome a challenge and share their training plan through real-world recaps. This may be in the form of personal anecdotes, checklists, or video clips. The only caveat is that the recap must include employee training recommendations so that peers can get the same rewards. For example, the example explores how a sales employee used specific simulations, podcasts, and courses to improve task performance.
Conclusion
Mentorship programs, employee contributed resources, and live events are just the tip of the trendsetting iceberg. The key is knowing what your employees are good at so that you can transform their passions and talents into peer-based advocacy. For example, your top sales performer might be particularly fond of negotiating and breaking down difficult customers’ barriers. Thus, they’re ideally suited to help co-workers who are still mastering the fine art of deal-making. Conduct surveys or assessments and evaluate LMS reports to identify their strengths and position them as training trendsetters.
