Here at YES! Your Human Resources Solution, we know a thing or two about HR training. And we know that mandatory HR training rarely incites enthusiasm. Yet trainers are still required to give legally or company mandated trainings on topics like emergency response and sexual harassment awareness, and trainees are still required to listen. So why not maximize positive impact and takeaway with a training style that is motivational and entertaining?

Try these steps to make your HR trainings more engaging:

• Plan ahead. You’ll quickly lose your audience unless you liven up topics like FMLA, employee handbooks, and safety practices. Develop a game plan for your training that doesn’t involve reading aloud any policy or codified law. Think engaging: audio-visuals, such as videos, pictures, and cartoons; real-life examples or testimonials; a group task; discussion time; and a session for questions and answers.
• Choose a knowledgeable trainer. If you’re giving the training internally, come armed with stories and examples that the audience can relate to the real world, even if you have to research them online. You can also invite a guest speaker to share a personal story, or go the extra step to bring in a trainer with the first-hand skills and experience to teach the topic.
• Suggest follow-up materials. One training session might not give your team the confidence it needs to properly apply the learning to the workplace. This is especially important when the leadership team is on the hook to address harassment, performance and behavior issues, and employee grievances. Keep the training topic alive by suggesting follow-up programs or readings that reinforce and expand upon the subject. Also be ready with any personal support or answers for leaders who might be questioning their application of the learning.
• Train in non-mandatory topics. One way to make the mandatory training more palatable is to offer a variety of innately more fun, optional trainings. Offer to train staff in a new skill or program. Host a lunch that showcases a motivational guest speaker. The more training opportunities you offer your team, the more they’ll be willing to embrace new learning, especially if the process is fun. And since you have to offer mandatory training anyway, why not make it more enjoyable for everyone?

Could your company use a helping hand to craft engaging and informative training? Whether it’s Supervisor 101 Training, how to write job descriptions, or another HR training area, YES! Your Human Resources Solution offers efficient solutions customized for your company and its employees. Just look at what we did for this multi-industry company:

Challenge: A multi-industry company reviewed its positions and discovered that its job descriptions were outdated and inconsistently formatted. The company managers did not have the required skills to create effective job descriptions.

YES! Solution: Developed in-person and web-based training programs to teach management how to write effective job descriptions. Provided easy-to-follow job description outlines and initiated a train-the-trainer program with the company’s HR team.

Backed by over 20 years of Human Resources experience, we pride ourselves on our ability to connect your business initiatives with employee needs to achieve strategic objectives. We’ll give you that extra push to keep your business running at its best! For more information on our comprehensive HR-consulting services, contact us for a free consultation.