Hiring new employees is generally good news for your company. It means your customer base is growing and you need to ramp up staffing to meet demand. Additionally, it means that your potential revenue and maximum cap for client intake can be increased.
Hiring new employees is also an investment - recruitment, interviews and background checks all take time, money as well as manpower. In fact, according to the Society for Human Resources Management, the average cost per hire is about $4,000.
Once you have made the hire, your new employee must be trained and that takes time. Training new employees requires creating and maintaining employee handbooks, reviewing standard operating procedures, and instruction on how to use equipment and software. During this time, employees are not able to fully contribute to revenue generating activities for your company and take time away from the more seasoned employees in your teams.
However, what if you could cut the amount of time it takes to get new employees up to speed? Companies may want to turn to online solutions to harnesses the power of digital technology to reduce the time it takes new employees to learn and retain information they need to succeed.
Here are some of the benefits of online training.
Benefits of Online Training for New Employees
Online training can shorten the learning curve for new employees by delivering training using technology that is already familiar to today's workforce. Most employees live on their laptops and smartphones. An online training platform that delivers instruction via mobile device makes it easy for employees to access and consume training materials on demand, no matter the time of day or their location. As such, integration into standard outlets like mobile devices is a function that can significantly improve the quality of training for new hires.
Online training also allows employees to get the information they need to do their jobs in ways that match their learning styles. This includes both written materials, videos and group collaboration. Online group collaboration facilitates training through lightning fast file sharing and communication tools. For example, employees can ask questions of their supervisors, mentors and peers without having to wait for a face-to-face meeting.
How Online Training Benefits Employers
Using an online training platform can also be beneficial for employers, human resources managers and department supervisors. Training managers can easily set up courses and instantly upload educational content in any format. They can use a variety of materials including manuals and video to instruct and engage employees. Not only does this reduce the time it takes to implement a program, but it also reduces the cost of printing and producing physical materials.
An online training program also enables training managers to personalize course suggestions based on the skills and performance of employees. Experienced leaders can share real-world examples with employees, initiate a group discussion on a topic, and then give an assessment to see how well the employee has absorbed the information. Once an employee completes a training module and assessment, supervisors can measure how new skills are applied in the work environment.
Plus, using an online training platform makes accountability easier. For example, company leaders can measure how employee training correlates with key performance indicators (KPIs), and impacts company profitability.
Proper training can make the difference between a high performer who stays at your company and high turnover that drains your resources.
About the Author
Sean Gordon, CEO of Hirenami, has firsthand experience recruiting, hiring, training and building teams. This inspired him to found Hirenami to find quick and effective for these problems.
