How To Train Your New External Partners With Employee Onboarding Software
The nature of remote work can make it challenging for external partners to access corporate resources. And it's not just about telecommuting freelancers. This barrier can also affect sales teams, seasonal hires, day laborers, or staff in foreign offices. Even customers are part of the equation. You want to reassure them they're a fully valid member of the team. But how? Below are just some of the ways that you can use employee onboarding software to keep your external partners in the L&D loop.
1. Company Policy Resources
When your partners are out there, they're representing your brand. So, while they might not wear uniforms or have designated parking spots, they're still part of you. When customers see them, they see you, so ensure your brand image is consistent. Within your onboarding software, outline your company's approach to business. Use authentic examples and case studies. For example, it's probably a bad idea to use the company car for a social outing because it sets the wrong tone. You can also upload infographics to the onboarding software as bite-size memory refreshers.
2. Mobile Tools For Everyday Challenges
Remote workers and extended enterprise participants receive their online training largely on mobile. But just because they can access your employee training LMS, it doesn't mean it's useful. As external partners, they have a unique set of needs. They probably don't need a virtual office tour, for example. Or a guide to surrounding sights, sounds, subways, and sleeping spaces. But they may need help converting product dimensions into local terms and measurements. Or translating brand concepts for their locale. As such, include mobile-friendly JIT resources for everyday scenarios.
3. Networking Features For Enhanced Cohesion
There's been an increasing interest in introversion, but the world is still largely built for extroverts. And regardless of your social persuasion, most human beings have an innate need to belong and feel accepted. Meaning even the introverted remote accountant wants to be part of the team. Build an intranet messaging platform into your onboarding kit. It's a nice way to include workers who aren't physically in the office. Plus, intranet messaging apps make a statement about the corporate attitude towards cohesion. It also protects confidentiality better than group sessions on Facebook or WhatsApp.
4. Gamification For Comparative Assessment
Aside from basic communication and developed familiarity, the staff wants to gauge themselves against the rest. Onboarding may not involve many competitive activities, but it does help to have corporate 'squad goals.' Your new external partners need to know how high the bar is. Then they need the tools to help them reach it. So, include leaderboards for sales and other performance metrics. Issue badges for every completed course or unit. Include avatars and game-scape options for a more immersive training experience.
5. Certifications To Set The Bar
Certifications offer perks to both sides. Your organization can track external partner performance to ensure they are up to par. While partners have the chance to monitor their own progress and show off their achievements. Even consumers can sign up for external partner training certification courses to brush up on product knowledge. Another advantage of purchasing an employee training LMS with certification support is accountability. You have all records in order if you are ever audited and need to prove that everyone is up to standards. Pair each certification with a badge to further fuel the motivation and give them something to show off on their social media profile.
6. Live Events For Frequent Progress Checks
Many employee training LMS platforms feature built-in video conferencing so that you can host live events. Then record them for external partners who couldn't be there 'in-person.' These live events allow them to address concerns or quickly receive company-wide updates. For example, you can tell them about the new compliance regulations that impact their job duties. However, you also have the chance to see how they're performing and if they are in-the-know about company policies. Follow-up with a quick pop quiz that gauges their level of comprehension. Or invite them to join the social media group where they can discuss the event and express their ideas.
7. Compatible Online Training Systems
Your partner online training programs are largely mobile and probably LMS-driven. But not all phones are equal. There's everything from iOs to open source. There are tablets with different screen sizes and smartphones with diverse processing speeds. There are places with over-priced data contracts and others with unreliable Wi-Fi. So just because your external onboarding software exists doesn't mean your employee training participants can enjoy it. Test and check each platform thoroughly and regularly. Your software may have worked with Pie, but that doesn't mean it works with Android One. Test your software on different computer brands, too, with an emphasis on RAM, ROM, multimedia access, wireless capability, and display resolution.
A good portion of the modern staff doesn't come to the office at all. They clock into computer screens or satellite workstations instead. So how can you sign them up for the same onboarding experience as everyone else in the firm? Offer concrete examples of company policy in action, so they can represent you better. Practical task demos are good, too, so fill your JIT library with use-case scenarios. Build your own secure internal social networks to make your external partners feel like part of your corporate family. Triple-check every partner's mobile device for online training compatibility and apply gamification techniques to keep them motivated and involved.
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