Did you know that the average employee uses more than 9 technology applications to do their job every single day? From their inbox to a CRM, data analytics to collaboration platforms, modern workers are using ever more apps.
Being able to use all these specialized programs can make your staff extra productive. However, one drawback of having so many apps is that people may not understand how to use the tech to its full potential. What’s more, if they primarily use cloud-based apps like Microsoft 365, these tools are being continually updated with new features. Unfortunately, this means that some staff end up feeling confused by the changes.
This leaves human resources and training managers with a dilemma: which technology apps should they prioritize for training? It would be impractical to create learning modules for every single application, so it is essential to choose the apps where training will have the greatest impact
Let’s look at how you can do this.
Here are some simple steps you can take to decide which business technology to prioritize for training:
First up, you need to get a clear picture of what technology your staff are actually using and which apps they struggle with. If you are using Microsoft technology, you can easily create a SharePoint questionnaire that you send to all staff. If not, you might prefer to use an online survey platform.
Ask your end users which apps they use every day (including ‘shadow IT’), how difficult they find them to use, how much time they spend in each app, and how often they have troubles using it. Analysis of your survey results will provide a good indicator of where staff need extra support.
Most business technology apps provide the administrator with usage statistics. For instance if you use Microsoft 365 you can review your usage analytics dashboard to figure out how much time is spent in each app, and how sophisticated usage actually is.
This might, for example, reveal that many employees are only using Microsoft Teams for video calls and barely ever share or edit files within the environment. That can then tell you where you should be providing training.
It might at first seem logical to direct your training budget to the apps which are being used most often. At many businesses this would likely be an email application. However, this would probably not be the most best place to spend your training budget - apps that people currently spend most time in probably require little additional support.
Instead, pinpoint the applications which are business critical, yet which are not being utilized as much as you would expect.
Learn more: Why is online tech training more important than ever?
Your organization’s IT helpdesk is on the frontline when it comes to speaking with staff who are struggling with business technology. Talk to the helpdesk to get more of an idea about which apps people raise most tickets for support with.
Some business apps are fairly stable - new features are rarely introduced and this gives staff a lot of time to get used to them. Other apps (and especially those based in the cloud) are being continually updated with new features. This is positive in many ways but too much change can really confuse people. It is therefore best to prioritize training for these kinds of tools.
Once you have learned more about the apps that your employees are struggling with, you can create a shortlist of those that you will prioritize training for.
Technology-based training provides your users with learning either within the app itself, or on your learning management system. It is reported that technology-based training boosts learning retention by up to 60% compared to more traditional classroom learning, while also being 90% less expensive.
Learning modules can appear as pop ups, announcements or help boxes which provide more information about how to use specific features of an app within the same page. At VisualSP we call this contextual microlearning. It is about providing training at the moment of need and means that users get their questions answered immediately.
Learn more: What is contextual microlearning?
If you are looking to boost user adoption of your business technology, it is essential to decide which apps you will focus your training on. Going through the process to find out where your teams are struggling will mean that your training is relevant, useful and genuinely helps staff.
And the impact of this kind of targeted training is enormous. It will help employees get more out of your technology, increase their productivity and boost satisfaction too.
VisualSP provides ready-made training for major business apps like Microsoft 365, Teams and Salesforce, as well as customizable training tools you can use for any browser-based business app.
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