What is the point of further training if just a few weeks later, nothing from it is implemented in daily work? Unlike traditional seminars, the Blended Learning method excels here: Trainers can support employees intensively over a longer period. In this article, I will show you three practical examples where Blended Learning is successfully implemented in companies!
Continuing Education 2018: Good Content – Lack of Transfer Performance
What does continuing education look like in your company? In the DACH region, company-sponsored training is an important factor for the success of a company. Professionally and sustainably training employees strengthens the company from the inside out. The topics are diverse, and the offerings of training and coaching are usually very good.
But how long does what is learned remain in memory? Learning transfer is essential for the success of a training: If what is learned “puffs away” after just a few weeks, the training was a waste of time and money. For the content to be applied in daily work, your company needs continuing education that is implemented as practically as possible.
Blended Learning in Companies
More and more HR departments in companies are recognizing the opportunity that Blended Learning offers: They combine traditional (in-person) seminars with online support. The Blended Learning method is particularly strong in securing transfer for the following reasons:
High focus on the participant and their needs
Location-independent learning allows for frequent practice
Greatly extended training due to online support
There are more and more success stories from practice advocating for the effectiveness of Blended Learning. Below, I will introduce you to three example projects that have found a way to achieve high learning transfer with Blended Learning.
Examples from Practice: Successful Blended Learning Projects
The three examples below are significant because they are very differently structured and yet all rely on the Blended Learning concept. All three projects have already been successfully implemented in practice.
The HR Performance Campus
Productivity Increase with Peoplebuilding
The Trainee Camp for the Savings Bank Day 2016 by agateno
Find out in the following sections how each example of Blended Learning works and for whom it is suitable.
1. Example Blended Learning: The HR Performance Campus
Here’s how it works:
The HR Performance Campus relies on a mix of analysis, communicative exchange, and reflection tasks. If the topic of a training aims at improved employee management, it typically includes several leaders from the company.
At the beginning, each leader conducts a potential analysis for themselves to get to know the methodology. Subsequently, all leaders meet in an in-person event to exchange experiences and receive new input from the trainer. Finally, the leaders apply what they’ve learned to their own employees and are supported online by the trainer over several weeks.
The Blended Learning model of the HR Performance Campus visually represented:
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Blended Learning model of the HR Performance Campus: Each leader in the training begins with a potential analysis. Afterwards, they all meet again in an in-person seminar. After this kickoff, the online phase begins, which occurs alongside everyday work.
It is suitable for:
The trainings at the HR Performance Campus are suitable for companies that want to educate their leaders so they can better understand their employees. The potential analysis at the beginning of Blended Learning aims to develop a sense of people’s motivations.
Practical example of the online support of the HR Performance Campus:
Screenshot from a demo course of the HR Performance Campus with the blink.it software: The green units have been viewed by the participant, the purple ones have not yet been accessed. Even before the kickoff event, some units were already unlocked. Following the kickoff units, there are further online impulses (not visible in the screenshot).
2. Example Blended Learning: Peoplebuilding with Zach Davis
Here’s how it works:
Trainer Zach Davis offers training on topics such as time management and productivity with Peoplebuilding. He always starts with an in-person event, which serves as an important kickoff for the entire training. The leaders of the participants and other relevant individuals are also involved from the outset – after all, they are the ones who can support employees in the long term. This ensures that all participants receive optimal training from the beginning.
After the kickoff event, each participant engages with the content individually. This occurs a) online and b) in small bites over several weeks. Each participant can work on the individual units at their own pace. A unit usually consists of a realization or exercise for daily work or a subsequent reflection task. The Blended Learning model at Peoplebuilding is based on the following rough model:
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The Blended Learning model “Heron”: The training begins with an in-person event (e.g., a seminar) and then continues online over an extended period parallel to daily work.
It is suitable for:
The Blended Learning trainings from Zach Davis or Peoplebuilding are generally suitable for all goals that seek to achieve a long-term change in employees. Zach Davis’ experience shows that through the extended online support, participants have internalized significantly more content after 6 months than they would in a traditional one- or two-day seminar.
Practical example of online support at Peoplebuilding:
Screenshot from a course by Zach Davis / Peoplebuilding with the blink.it software: It shows an overview of the first units from a Blended Learning course. The yellow marked units have not been viewed by the participant, while the gray ones will be unlocked later.
3. Example Blended Learning: The Trainee Camp for the Savings Bank Day 2016
Here’s how it works:
The Trainee Camp was a major event of the Savings Bank in April 2016, where trainee participants communicated strongly among themselves and learned together in advance. The aim was to discuss the question of the future of savings banks. The motto was: to provide room for interactions – online as well as offline. The concept was developed by agateno, implemented with the blink.it software.
The Blended Learning surrounding the Trainee Camp of the Savings Bank also began with a kickoff event, here in the form of a webinar. Even here, the trainees were divided into small groups and assigned mentors. This was followed by a longer online phase during which the small groups received and created video impulses, among other things. The Trainee Camp fits the Blended Learning model “Sandwich”: Both at the beginning and at the end, the participants meet live (first in the webinar, later at the major event). In between, there is an online phase with impulses and tasks in small groups:
The Blended Learning model “Sandwich”: The start and end occur live, and in between, the participants work with online impulses.
It is suitable for:
The Trainee Camp is a good example of successful Blended Learning measures that target a single event and are suitable for large groups of participants. The high online interactivity allowed participants to discuss, learn from each other, and be brought to a common level by their mentors, even over larger distances.
Practical example of online support:
Screenshot: An excerpt from the online support from agateno for the Trainee Camp at the Savings Bank Day 2016.
Learn more about this project in the article "The Best of Both Worlds: Savings Bank Links Offline and Online with blink.it" by my colleague Hans Peter!
Concrete examples of successful projects from practice provide you with a good insight but are usually very specific. Therefore, we have created a sample course for Blended Learning where you can click through the individual units yourself. Test now how it feels from a participant's perspective to do online support with blink.it!
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