Delivering Impactful Induction Training through Social Tools – Some Practical Tips

Social learning is part of the organizational atmosphere – with the aid of technology, it can bring about closer interactions, which can be recorded and further utilized by learners and instructors alike. There are various ways that social learning technology is consumed by modern learners within the organizational structure.  Utilizing them, new recruits can be brought up to speed quicker. In addition to formal training sessions or online induction courses, social learning can help re-enforce the impact of training and most importantly – make the new recruit at ease with his or her role in the organization.

• Social platforms can help new recruits build connections across the organization. With the help of technology, people who are not directly involved with induction trainings can also be brought-in to inspire or teach the new learners. For instance, senior management can share an inspirational audio or video clip that can be viewed on the LMS – at the beginning or end of the induction course. This proves to be an extra push for learners to perform and show results.

• Social learning platforms like wikis or blogs can be utilized as a platform of discussing and reflecting on new knowledge or skills gained. New recruits can be assigned topics to write on and then the entries discussed. For larger groups, however, these exercises can prove to be long winded and extensive. For them, a ‘reading list’ can be prepared on the blog or wiki to read up. A discussion can be undertaken on the assigned topic – in the classroom or on the social platform itself through chat or audio-video conferencing.

• Older employees who have a huge worth of experience in the same area of work can be a part of the social learning circle of the new recruits. They can be encouraged to share their experiences, tips and accomplishments on the social platform. Most modern LMS nowadays have built-in social platforms, making sure that the information shared is safe and secure. Moreover, LMSs also support various formats – word documents, excel sheets, PDF, PPTs and so on. They also have built in media players to play audio or video files. This makes sure that the veteran experts can share the knowledge in a variety of ways – as per their ease within the secure perimeter of the LMS.

• One of the main concerns for a majority of new recruits is ‘Who is going to answer my queries?’ Even the most accomplished trainers are not able to take in the queries of the entire learner group. Also, within the corporate structure, time spent on induction training is far too less for new recruits to ponder and come up with queries right away. Many queries and doubts come up while the new recruit is taking the first few steps into work and requires a lot of hand-holding at that stage. Social tools like discussion boards can be dedicated to address the queries of new inductees for the first few months. Live chat sessions can be conducted with experts or trainers that the learners can join in for an interactive session to thrash out difficult concepts. Alternatively, a dedicated ID can be created within the LMS to which all queries can be directed. A trainer or a team of experts can be assigned to address these queries within a stipulated time – ensuring that all queries are answered and fruitfully utilized by the learner.

The impact of good induction training is reflected in the quality of work exhibited by the new recruits. With social learning, its impact is heightened and can be sustained for a longer period of time. For more of our experiences with social learning, write to in**@gc**********.net