Outside of my day job, anytime people mention training, it’s negative. Online training? Yuck. Boring. It’s a checkbox in an email from their manager. Something to endure, not enjoy.
But in my work world, I hear stakeholders rave about our learning experiences, “Beautiful course!” “ Love the job aid!” They’re thrilled. So… what gives?
Are we building something extraordinary, or are stakeholders just as disengaged as the learners they serve? Are they just checking their own boxes, or is there a deeper misunderstanding of what’s actually needed? Maybe they do know, but urgency and limited budgets nudge them towards the easiest path.
Here’s a simple exercise: ask your stakeholders what success looks like after the training. If the answer isn’t behavior change or business outcomes, you may be chasing the wrong solution.
Maybe the real problem is this: we’re still designing training, when what people actually want are systems. Not courses, but co-pilots. Not compliance but help in context. Something that is available when it’s needed, not a one-and-done training that they can’t find later. People don’t need more content. They need help.
One of our clients, a large restaurant group, used to deliver quarterly refresher training across locations, often with mixed results. When they introduced simple QR codes in kitchens that linked to short, task-specific videos, engagement soared – and so did performance consistency. Staff stopped asking for more training and started using what was already there.
What if we created systems that provided support before someone even realizes they needed it? What if a company’s LMS could serve up answers as seamlessly as Netflix recommends your next show?
It’s not fantasy, it’s what AI, behavioral science, and intentional instructional design can make possible together.
So, how do we close the gap? How do we make learning as natural as scrolling social media, and help people perform better?
It starts with educating stakeholders. Our clients. The people who want to make a difference and not just check a box. We can lay out the vision and the bridge to get there. We can start small and show the value by just trying one small step to experiment with. Once they see results, they will be excited about the possibilities.
In one of our recent projects, retiring energy grid maintenance and dispatch controllers had decades of critical knowledge no manual could capture. By interviewing them and creating a curated learning journey for new controllers, the organization now delivers multi-year upskilling that guides each new class of recruits- preserving legacy insight while building future capability through a growing and well-supported workforce.
Let’s stop settling for training people tolerate. Let’s start building systems people actually use, and maybe even love. Let’s get those stakeholders thinking about just one small shift they can make today.
Ready to take that first step? Schedule a free consulting call with Evolve Solutions Group to tailor smart, scalable change and training solutions to your unique business needs.