Employee development training is critical to the long term success of any organization. Making plans to help employees keep up with and fully utilize technology is part of any sound strategic plan. It’s also necessary for business leaders to identify employees who have the potential to grow with the organization and develop them to fill critical roles that are likely to become available in the future.

Practicalities of Employee Training
However, it’s one thing to know that employee training is important and quite another to find the time to incorporate a comprehensive training program into already busy scheduled. The day-to-day challenges of running a successful business often take precedence over implementation of cross training, succession planning, and other things necessary to fulfill long term strategic goals.

Finding a way to balance the need for employee development and current work demands is a real challenge for many businesses. It’s becoming more and more common for companies to look toward non-traditional options for providing training to employees. Providing blended learning opportunities for employees is one way that companies are rising to the challenge of finding time to fit needed training into the busy work day.

What is Blended Learning?
As companies are finding it more difficult to schedule groups of employees to attend training sessions during the day, many are turning to solutions that provide a more flexible means of delivery. Blended learning is often described as hybrid learning. This increasingly popular approach to employee training combines online learning and face-to-face instructor led training.

Utilizing a blended approach to employee training involves making both traditional employee training classes and opportunities for online learning available to employees. Some companies that utilize a blended approach to employee training offer basic skill classes via instructor-led training, and then make advanced classes available on an online format. Others combine elements of both types of training into the same classes, thus reducing the number of hours that employees spend in classroom training without sacrificing course content.

Benefits of Blended Learning
There are many benefits of using blended learning for employee training. Combining live instruction with online training ensures that trainees have the benefit of the latest training instructional technology paired with the time-tested benefits of traditional instructional delivery.

The online components of a blended learning system can be very convenient for both trainers and trainees. Training can be delivered and completed from any location at any time. This reduces the need for travel for specialized training. It also makes it possible to complete class work when each employees workload allows time to do so, rather than requiring attendance at particular times.

Keeping a face-to-face component keeps the richness of live instruction in the process of employee development. Learners and trainers are able to interact in person, which can be a very important part of the training and assessment process.

Adopting a blended approach to employee development training can be both cost effective and efficient. Workers have an opportunity to participate in a greater range of skill and knowledge development activities. Companies can save money while still making training opportunities available to employees. When companies implement a blended approach to employee training, everyone can benefit.