Ways A Knowledge Base Can Cut Employee Training Time - Workology

Ways A Knowledge Base Can Cut Employee Training Time - Workology Don’t Let Training Drain Your Revenues Training new employees to tap their highest potential is essential for business success. As success of any organization is directly tied to employee skill and performance, gaps in training can prove detrimental. No matter how seasoned your new hire is, they need a certain level of training to get accustomed to the routine tasks and processes, and organizations face multiple challenges in striking a balance between training quality and costs. In fact, there are organizations infusing hundreds to thousands of dollars into onboarding new hires. Reports even suggest that training costs can go beyond a staggering $13 million dollars for large organizations. Ever-growing training costs is something that keeps hiring managers awake and restless at night. Now, is there a way out? Luckily, Yes. A knowledge base a bank of ready-to-go information, fact sheets and other assets for trainers and other employees can help you train your new hires, without spending months and sacrificing the quality of information. While knowledge bases are common in large organizations, few small businesses spend the time and money to develop one. Heres why you should consider a knowledge base for your small business.   1. Provides First Hand Information Onboarding a new hire can take more than a few weeks, especially in the case of extensive training programs. Many organizations conduct classroom trainings for new hires, expecting them to understand and remember every detail. Although classroom instruction is still popular, it has a number of downsides such as: Inconsistency in level of engagement Inability to grasp information in single go Information gaps in delivery Introducing a knowledge base can solve both these problems for organizations by streamlining the training program.  New hires can easily access information in a few clicks and consume information from anywhere and everywhere. All they need to do is to click on the relevant link and start consuming the training material. Most KB tools also offer context-sensitive help to facilitate better understanding, in case the user is unfamiliar about a term and needs more detailed understanding of it. 2. Reduces Information Overload New hires can get lost in an ocean of information, especially during those lengthy, never ending training sessions. If the instructor needs to repeat something over and over for the sake of clarity, it can be frustrating for both parties. When you document training information in a knowledge base, you already have a fair idea about what to cover and what not. You know whats been successful in the past and as you plan training material in advance, you can eliminate the fluff and put forward ideas that are succinct and easy to consume. Simply create short manuals, articles and How To’s for the new hires, so that they consume only what’s required to do the job and leave the rest. 3. Promotes Internal Collaboration Incorporating a knowledge base not only streamlines employee training, but also fosters internal collaboration. New hires can undergo training right from their workstations. Moreover, they can go through the entire training program before firing off questions to the instructor, something that can disrupt classroom sessions. When new hires have readymade access to training information, managers need not allocate separate bandwidth for conducting sessions. And being better prepared, new hires can let go of their apprehensions in attending live classroom sessions, making them more enjoyable and fruitful. 4. Allows Location Independence Location freedom has a direct correlation with employee training time. Every employee in an organization has different learning preferences. While some are comfortable learning in the office, many millennials expect learning on the go, sometimes from the comfort of their homes. Now, if your goal is to shorten training time theres no harm in a new hire completing their training from a beach or riverside. A knowledge base ensures that new hires can get hands on training anywhere. All they need is a computer or phone, internet and the KB link. They’re good to go. 5. Minimizes Errors Hiring never stops. Every time someone joins an organization the onboarding process starts again. Conducting the same training sessions over and over can be emotionally and financially draining. Because of this the odds of miscommunicating important information during live training sessions is quite high. Investing in a knowledge base can save time and energy while reducing the probability of inadvertent errors. As a knowledge base gives real-time visibility to training information, it can be constantly refreshed to meet the diverse requirements of new hires. Your knowledge management never gets obsolete and at the same time, the probability of committing mistakes in training is reduced to a minimal. Don’t Let Training Drain Your Revenues Training new employees is an activity that’s never going to stop. But the costs associated can be minimized. If you havent started to consider the importance of knowledge management for small business, you should start today. Documenting training information means that hiring managers never need to scramble through their drawers to find training material it resides safely in your knowledge base. You can also ensure that every employee is trained on the essential skillsets they are supposed to have. And finally, harnessing knowledge management allows you to build a learning environment, one where employees believe in sharing knowledge rather than keeping it to themselves.