This is a guest blog post by Victor Rosado, Senior Consultant, 'Salesforce Change Management and Training' at Valintry360
The most effective digital transformation training doesn't focus on the cool features of new technologies. It focuses on how people can use technology to support seamless business processes — and do their jobs better. What do you need to know?
1. Buy-in is key
Digital transformation impacts everyone in an organization, from interns and new hires, all the way up to the C-suite. With so many stakeholders involved, the effectiveness of your digital transformation training will largely depend on the level of buy-in that you have from your clients.
Without organizational buy-in, you could get halfway through training and realize that one of your key business units isn’t on board, or that you’ve lost faith from leadership. Unfortunately, this outcome is fairly common. In fact, 70% of digital transformation projects fail, mainly due to hitting roadblocks or running out of steam.
As a trainer, make sure the people you're supposed to train — and their superiors — aren't, themselves the roadblocks. To ensure they're bought in:
- Align digital transformation training with other organizational strategies and goals
- Craft a common narrative for how digital transformation will advance the organization
- Provide proof of concepts to demonstrate the value of digital transformation
With these three efforts to increase buy-in, you can bolster the chances any particular digital transformation effort will prove successful.
2. Goals come first, digital processes come second
With the rising importance of data and technology — and so many digital solutions to choose from — it’s easy for companies to start implementing change for the sake of change. This is a recipe for failed implementation.
As a digital transformation trainer, you’ll want to make sure that your digital transformation projects are actually helping your clients meet their goals — whether that means better service, more deals, or faster product rollouts. The easiest way to identify these goals is to start asking questions, including:
- What inefficiencies, challenges, or roadblocks are employees facing with their current solution?
- What are the the overarching goals, strategies, and changes the organization is prioritizing now and in the future?
The answers to these questions will help you identify the end goal of your digital transformation training. With this goal in mind, you can craft your training to deliver the most powerful, relevant information.
3. Train clients how to train themselves
Hear us out: in a world where every answer you could possibly need is only a Google search away, why should digital transformation training be any different?
Instead of focusing your training efforts on teaching individuals everything they need to know to do their jobs, you’re much better off teaching them how to find the answers they need as problems arise. The key to this process is establishing airtight documentation.
Most trainers (and clients) probably already have documentation — and lots of it. But this information is usually decentralized across word documents, slide decks and videos. To make all of these resources more accessible, we recommend compiling them in a searchable online knowledge base.
With a solid knowledge base in place, you can start focusing your training efforts on empowering your clients to problem-solve on their own — increasing adoption in the long run.
4. Build bridges with scenario-based training
After you’ve identified gaps in your clients’ business processes, it’s time to start bridging those gaps with digital solutions. But remember — bridges are about movement, from one place to another.
If your current digital transformation training is a one-way information dump, you're just pointing out that the digital bridges exist, not inviting anyone to cross them.
If you really want to make your training stick, you’ll need to implement scenario-based training.
During scenario-based training, you present your trainees with real-world situations, and encourage them to seek out the solutions for themselves. Your role in this situation shifts from teacher to advisor, empowering trainees with the confidence to problem-solve on their own.
Remember that knowledge base we mentioned earlier? Scenario-based training is where knowledge bases shine, providing trainees all of the answers they need.
With a combination of a strong knowledge base and scenario-based training, your clients will be able to continue their digital transformation training long after your training session has ended.
Putting it all together
In an increasingly connected and data-driven world, digital transformation training has become crucial for businesses that want to become — or remain – industry leaders.
For trainers, this means you’ll need to devise strategies and tools that help create a more consistent, scalable, impactful training experience.
Interested in learning more about how to build out your employee training resources? Download a free checklist from the ScreenSteps team today.