3 reasons why your training programs aren’t working

One of the greatest challenges facing training providers for professional certifications is ensuring all learners progress through programs from start to finish.

This requires course content to be relevant, engaging and constantly refined to suit the needs of individual learners and the working environments they are training for – tick these boxes, and your programs will work well, and fulfil their objectives.

If your certification courses are not delivering what is required, and learners are not progressing through them as planned, then a rethink is required. The first step is asking the question ‘why?’.

Here, we have outlined three key factors which could help to explain any shortcomings:

1 – The one-size-fits-all problem

Many issues to do with training programs can be boiled down to the fact that they do not adequately consider the needs of each individual learner.

This is usually caused by a linear, one-size-fits-all approach to creating and implementing courses that are simply unable to scale with and adapt to the rapidly increasing and ever-changing volume of information that organisations need to manage.

Why is this a problem? The most common issues stemming from linear learning models include the creation of irrelevant content, leading to a rehashing of skills that people already possess. Put simply, they fail to provide the specialised training required for employees to excel in their roles and industries.

Crucially, this not only wastes time but also reduces enthusiasm towards the learning process.

2 – Pre-programmed fixed decision trees

A common feature of linear approaches to e-learning is the fact they are often structured around pre-programmed fixed decision trees.

These can lead to multiple problems. The first is that they require manual input, consuming valuable time, as well as opening the door to high levels of subjectivity which can lead to inconsistent decision-making.

Furthermore, these types of decision trees also disregard variability between learners and therefore reduce the ability to create personalised and adaptable training programs.

3 – Lack of analytics and insight

The best e-learning courses will evolve over time based on data feedback from learners. Most, however, poorly assess critical metrics such as knowledge uptake and ignore user confidence levels. Just because a learner gets a question right, it does not translate to complete understanding. Individuals must be confident in their decisions, not just take a wild guess.

This information is vital, and should underpin important decisions on how to shape and deliver course material.

Where analytics are in place, all too often they are limited to a few very basic inputs, the most common among them being seen/unseen, correct/incorrect and pass/fail.

Adopting an adaptive learning system is a way of overcoming these pitfalls and developing a learning program that is fit for the ever-evolving world we live in.

Utilising AI-powered platforms such as OBRIZUM, which are grounded in data and constant feedback cycles, will enable training providers to create bespoke and relevant training programs with ease and at speed. This will not only benefit those participating in certification training, but also the enterprises investing in their skills base.