As an employer, you understand the importance of employee training. Not only does training help to ensure that your employees are up-to-date on the latest industry standards and practices, but it can also help to boost morale and increase retention rates. However, you may not have the luxury of providing lengthy training sessions for your employees. If you find yourself in this situation, don’t despair! There are still ways that you can maximize a brief employee training session. Here’s how:

Improve Your Facilitation Skills

As a workshop facilitator, your job is to ensure that participants can engage in the training session productively and efficiently. So you must be well-prepared for the session. This means you should clearly understand the session’s objectives and the material that will be covered. However, simply being knowledgeable about the topic wouldn’t be enough.

You also need to be able to engage participants and keep your discussion flow going. This can be a challenging task, especially if you’re dealing with a large group. If you find it difficult to keep participants engaged, consider investing in your training. Doing so will not only help you in the future but can also make a big difference in the quality of your current session. You can attend facilitators training workshops that can help you hone your skills and learn new techniques. Having a growth mindset can not only help improve your training session but also reflect positively on you as a professional.

Keep it Focused

When you only have a limited time for training, it’s important to ensure that the session is focused and free of distractions. At the start of the session, let your employees know the topics and what they can expect to learn. This will help to keep them engaged and on track. If possible, try to avoid introducing new topics or tangents midway through the session; stick to the original plan as much as possible. For example, if you’re training employees on how to use a new software program, don’t spend time discussing other uses for the software. Instead, focus on teaching them the specific skills and knowledge they need to know to use it effectively. In addition, you can also tell participants to save their questions towards the end of the session so that the discussion can stay focused.

Make it Interactive

Simply doing a lecture for the duration of the training session is not likely to be very effective. Instead, try to make the session interactive by incorporating activities or exercises to get them thinking and involved. For example, you could use role-playing exercises to teach customer service skills or have employees work in small groups to come up with solutions to problems they might encounter on the job. You can also encourage them to ask questions and offer their own insights. This will help them to stay engaged and absorb more information than if they were just passively listening.

Repeat Key Points

When you’re trying to cram a lot of information into a short amount of time, repeating key points can help ensure that your employees remember what they’ve learned. However, ensure you aren’t repetitive in doing so. A good way to avoid this is to provide different examples or perspectives each time you repeat a point. This will help to keep employees’ attention and ensure they’re getting something new out of each repetition. Moreover, at the end of each section, take a minute or two to summarize the main points covered. You might even want to have employees repeat key points to you or have them take a quick test to ensure they fully understand them.

Use Technology

In today’s business world, getting the most out of your employee training sessions is more important than ever. Technology can help you do just that. By using a computer-based training program, you can deliver information in various ways that will maximize your employees’ retention and understanding. For example, you can use audio and visuals to supplement your lectures, or create interactive exercises that employees can complete at their own pace. You can also use online tools to provide employees with access to resources they can use for continued learning after the session. Best of all, by using technology in your employee training, you can ensure that your employees receive consistent, up-to-date information that will help them succeed in their jobs.

Employee training is an important part of being an employer, but sometimes you may not have the luxury of providing lengthy training sessions for your employees. When this is the case, maximize available resources to ensure the session is effective and informative.