Why Employee Training Fails

Have you ever wondered why your employees get stuck like a deer in the headlights when they face a new digital tool?

Nine times out of 10 its because your training isn’t up to par. Antiquated learning models is the No. 1 reason why employee training fails.

When employees are under pressure to adapt, pulling them away from their work to sit through webinars and classroom training becomes a time-consuming source of stress instead of effective mode of training. Moreover, these learning models aren’t enough to help them retain information.

As workplace technology continues to advance, employees expectations for proper training to use it are higher than ever before.

The 2018 Workplace Learning Report found that 58% of employees prefer to learn at their own pace and 49% of employees prefer to learn at the point of need.

Delivering employee training that wins is all about helping employees hit the ground running. The faster they can become meaningful contributors, the better. In this article, we’re going to look at the three most common reasons why employee training fails and ways you can dramatically improve your educational strategy.

Reason #1 – Information overload

A major reason why employee training fails is because of information overload. Jonathan Spira, CEO of Basex and member of the IORG, has estimated that information overload costs the U.S. economy a minimum of $900 billion per year due to compromised employee productivity.

New software bombards employees with information that they need to learn. Unfamiliar processes, platforms, features, and interfaces are just some of the things employees are expected to integrate into their daily work. Hoping employees can retain this information via rote memorization or watching demonstrations is unrealistic and ineffective.

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Reason #2 – Poor productivity

The more time an employee spends scratching their head, the less productive they are. Inadequate training not only slows down the pace at which employees can learn but also leads to work overload. Work overload decreases productivity by 68% in employees who struggle to complete their tasks.

Responsive training will make employees more efficient and reduce their workload. Building up their competency fast will reduce the ramp-up time and speed up the road towards becoming a meaningful contributor.

The model of pulling employees away from their work to complete instructional materials and mentoring won’t help them remember anything. Staying agile in a digital world is only possible by delivering content they are able to retain.

Reason #3 – Lack of real-time support

Learning on the job isn’t just an option, it’s a necessity. It’s one thing to watch a demo or listen to instructions, but it’s quite another to adopt a sophisticated digital platform after one tutorial!

Employees that don’t memorize processes the first time will undoubtedly have to ask coworkers for help (or flood IT with support tickets). Asking other employees basic questions can quickly slow down a team’s progress.

Automating real-time support is critical for ensuring employees have the information they need to move forward swiftly and efficiently.

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Reason #4 – Not offering contextual guidance

Using a digital adoption platform can help with “learning in the flow of work.” A digital adoption platform provides contextual guidance, which uses algorithms to analyze the context of the actions the user is taking and provide navigational instructions in real-time.

For example, when learning how to use a new tool like a CRM solution, the user would see prompts that gave them real-time directions on what to do as they interacted with the software. Contextual learning analyzes each user’s activity and provides personalized support as they use the program to create or manage an account.

The main advantage here is that the user has on-demand and proactive support to progress independently. Allowing each employee to learn at the right pace and in the moment of need ensures a faster time-to-competency.

The reason why employee training fails is crystal clear

Most employee training fails because it is outdated and not fit for purpose. Any enterprise that wants to digitize its processes needs digital learning solutions. Digital transformations can’t take place without software-based learning that takes place on the job.

Digital adoption solutions are ideal for breaking away from the limitations of coach-based training and tutorials.

Contextual guidance provides support on demand and builds employee competency fast enough to keep pace with the rate of change in the digital workplace.

By WalkMe Team

WalkMe pioneered the Digital Adoption Platform (DAP) for organizations to utilize the full potential of their digital assets. Using artificial intelligence, machine learning and contextual guidance, WalkMe adds a dynamic user interface layer to raise the digital literacy of all users.