The COVID-19 pandemic has changed how this world functions. Every step of our life, from the way we work, shop, and learn, has been altered. This has killed the idea of in-person training. The L&D or Learning and development industry has been forced to evolve, in order to combat these changes.

Leaders need to understand the fact that employees are trying to maintain the flow of their regular work, on top of dealing with the external pressure brought by this pandemic. In such situations, it can be easy to ignore learning. But, with every kind of industry trying to evolve during this pandemic, it becomes important for organizations to discover new watts of learning.

Some organizations, which have seen a shift in learner preferences, have already invested in reworking their online training prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the organizations that have yet to make effective and interactive remote learning, now is the time to do so. 

Here are some strategies for organizations looking to create an effective online learning experience.

Micro-lessons: It has been observed that in recent decades the human attention span has decreased considerably. Factors such as anxiety and stress are having a significant impact on a person’s ability to absorb information. Keeping these factors in mind, organizations must transform long-form learning sessions into a more digestible format. Micro-lessons or short learning sessions are a great way to make virtual training more understandable and easy to absorb.

Interactive technology: Since the social distancing norms will not be ending in the foreseeable future, organizations need to become creative with their learning programs. This would be challenging since there are industries where the hands-on approach is a more effective learning strategy. Incorporating interactive technology in your online learning is a great way to engage learners and make them more receptive to the training. This is also a safe way to conduct the training. Some organizations have even gone to the extent of leveraging cutting-edge 3D technology and simulation tech, in their e-learning programs. Interactive simulation especially may be the future of virtual learning.

Online boot camps: There is definitely no approach to learning that can satisfy everyone’s requirements. Each individual has to absorb and retain information, in a different way. It is possible that some of your employees may not be able to keep up with the online training. Instead of leaving them to themselves. Include them in an instructor-led “Bootcamp”. Here there are only a small group of learners, who are supervised by an instructor. The difference between a typical online training and an online Bootcamp is that an online Bootcamp goes more in-depth into the subject, at a pace that is suitable for the struggling learner. This makes sure that none of the participants of the online training is left behind.

Even when this pandemic ends, it is unlikely that L&D companies will completely abandon their online services. In fact, the success of L&D during this crisis may have made online training a much bigger part of their future strategies.