As the end of the year looms, 2016 is in sight and with it comes developments in technology which could possibly change the way we conduct and manage training. We’ve put together the top three training trends to watch in 2016. It’s no surprises that each of these is driven by technology and its increasing availability.
Without further ado...
Video becomes the standard
Video streaming has been around since the mid-to-late 90’s, widely popularised by YouTube. But, the new millennium has seen a boom in the online streaming space, with YouTube becoming the second largest search engine, next to Google.
Greater network bandwidth and easier access to the internet will see businesses stream content more easily, making video-based training more accessible to employees in 2016.
Working in parallel to this has been the rise of tools for video creation. iPhone’s, Go-Pro’s, Web Cam’s. With smartphones outselling digital cameras ten-to-one, everyone’s got at least one form of technology that allows them to record quality video.
And, with a little help from the guys at Wistia, free editing tools such as iMovie, WeVideo, and Movie Maker (...if you’re into Windows) empower the average person to become directors and producers of their own videos.
Customisation goes deep
Customisation comes in many different shapes and sizes, but as the eLearning industry grows, 2016 will see customisation evolve into personalisation.
While large-scale customisation of learning platforms for enterprise becomes the norm, learners will expect a deeper level of customisation, from the look-and-feel right down to the content. Learners want to be delivered training that’s personalised and relevant to them.
There are already clear benefits to customising retail training to your business, including using branding and specific language or adding relevant examples. These changes result in better cut-through and retention, but also demonstrate your investment in your team's learning.
A big shift in corporate training will see user-centric content and adaptive learning come to the fore, where trainees are delivered courses that are specific to their role, or mapped to their desired career progression within the business.
Having a clearly defined learning pathway which maps out how an employee can and will progress through a company will also see growth in staff retention.
Augmented reality becomes augmented learning
Although practical applications for augmented reality (AR) are seeing exciting growth in New Zealand. Companies like MTech Games have developed AR applications for training and clinical rehabilitation, but the Internet of Things will see a move to the broader concept of Augmented Learning (AL) in 2016.
In AL, the environment will become a part of the online learning experience. While 2015 focused on how Internet of Things applies to the customer in a retail, 2016 will see this technology applied to other aspects of business, such as training.
According to Google’s Ngram Viewer, the ‘Internet of Things’ first rose to popularity in 2008, and over the years has seen many different applications. 2015 is widely accepted as the year of the consumer, where businesses really began to realise the importance of the customer experience. Given our reliance on technology, the Internet of Things introduced a new way for businesses to differentiate themselves and engage better with customers.
