As the COVID-19 pandemic first took hold, online learning served an obvious purpose in allowing workers to undertake the professional development training they needed without exposing themselves to the risk of COVID-19 infection.
According to one statistic shared in a Safety & Health Practitioner article, the global eLearning market is expected to surpass $370 billion in value by 2026 – a more than three-fold increase on the 2019 figure of $101 billion.
One particularly useful format for training remotely-based workers is the webinar. So, what purposes could it serve for businesses in the here and now?
Facilitate two-way communication between the trainer and trainee
CBS News cites the word ‘webinar’ as combining the words ‘web’ and ‘seminar’ – as, indeed, a webinar effectively constitutes an online seminar.
Furthermore, just like its in-person equivalent, a webinar can foster interactivity between the person holding the webinar and whoever happens to be receiving it.
In using a multifunctional platform to deliver a webinar, a business can incorporate the likes of live chat and polls – and, in this way, invite real-time feedback from trainees.
Let individuals learn at their own paces
In an in-person classroom setting, there is the question of how to make sure fast learners are suitably challenged without slower learners in the same room feeling as though they have been left in the lurch.
It’s therefore convenient that, rather than attempt to deliver the entire content of a course through just one webinar, businesses could separate this content across multiple webinars. These could then be posted as ‘on-demand’ pieces, allowing trainees to watch each one as and when they feel ready.
Give trainees more time to digest information
While some people might actually thrive with the all-you-can-eat approach to learning, others could understandably struggle with processing a large amount of information if they have been fed it in the space of just one two-hour session, for example.
Hence, in regularly holding short-and-snappy webinars, businesses can give their employees the time they need to cement information in their brain after initially learning it.
Save trainees time
Many workers’ schedules might be packed like sardine tins – but, often, there remain little slivers of time these people could use for training purposes.
When knowing exactly where these slivers of time fall during a workday, businesses could schedule webinars for these times. Alternatively, these webinars could be held in evenings and at weekends, when many workers likely won’t be preoccupied with their usual work routines.
Give employees access to training opportunities where and when they can capitalize on them
Statistics have revealed that, in the UK, 84% of adults own a smartphone – and that, after introducing online learning to their workplace, 42% of organizations have seen an increase in income.
These are strong incentives for businesses to provide webinars not only regularly but also on an ‘on-demand’ basis. These companies can never be entirely certain when a given member of their workforce might have just the right time to start taking advantage of a webinar intended to fuel their professional development.
