In-person versus online training
I carried out a poll in December 2021 on LinkedIn to see which delivery of the training was most popular; in-person or online. While I was surprised with the results let’s look at each delivery style first.
In-person Training
Known also as the traditional method of training it provides a hands-on training experience usually delivered in a training room (hotel). I find there is more engagement when you are standing in front of the participants. Also, you can see the reactions to questions/subjects. Role-plays are better in-person too as well as group work. The layout of the training room and location can add to the training. This can be overlooked by training providers and clients.
There are benefits to hiring a training room in a hotel as they look after everything for you. You can give them your preferred room layout, which gives you extra time to set up. Also, they will provide paper, pens, water and sometimes sweets for all your participants. In addition, they look after the tea breaks delivering the teas and coffees, with lovely biscuits to your participants. If you find a great hotel the best ones give you a coffee when you arrive – it’s worth gold in the morning to me!
Online Training
A safer option due to Covid. Online training allows participants from a wide geographical area to join the training without moving from their location. Online training is dependent on WiFi coverage. I find breakout rooms and polls are great for engaging with participants. I use Answer Garden to ask questions from time to time. You can also use the word cloud it creates as an image for social media later. From a learner’s perspective, learners can turn off their camera and with a second screen be working on something else. For tutors (or hosts) if you save the chat you can read the private messages sent throughout your training – that comes with a health warning!!!
The poll results
It was close between in-person training scoring 56% and online training 44%. I was surprised to see in-person training scoring so high with the covid numbers rising however if this was repeated at a different time the results could change.
For your training needs, in-person or online, email us at hello@conlontalent.ie
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