It’s a pretty common scenario—you’ve gone through the motions of training, but the participants didn’t pay much attention. That’s a real problem with HR subjects, because the stakes are high. Today, with a nod to our sister publication Safety Daily Advisor, we’ll offer tips for getting—and holding—your audience’s attention.
What’s the attention span of your trainees? According to studies of adult learners, your trainees are paying a lot less attention to vital training than you think. Most studies suggest that for most adults the outer limit of adult attention spans is about 20 minutes. And the longer a session continues, the shorter the attention span.
One study indicates that after an hour of uninterrupted lecture, attention spans can drop to 3 or 4 minutes, punctuated by long periods of inattention.
You have to wonder—and worry—about what trainees might have missed during those lapses in attention. Was it the essential piece of information that could have prevented a lawsuit?
How to Keep Trainees’ Attention
So what can you do to maintain focus? Training experts suggest the following:
- Plan training sessions in reasonably small bits and bites. Say you’re going to train on sexual harassment—what it is, how to respond, and how to report. Rather than delivering information about all three points in one continuous stream, break it up into three chunks.
Yes, you do have the budget and time to train managers and supervisors with BLR’s 10-Minute HR Trainer. Try it at no cost or risk. Read more.
- Include interactivity when you lecture. Try these suggestions:
- Talk for a bit and then discuss what you’ve just covered, encouraging lots of trainee participation.
- Have a question and answer period between training points.
- Divide large training groups into small groups to discuss issues or complete training exercises.
- Use quizzes and problem-solving exercises to challenge trainees and make them think about what they’re learning.
- Give trainees a chance to practice what they’ve learned for a few minutes before proceeding to the next point.
- Take age into account. Realize that the younger your trainees are, the more you need to take attention span into account.
- Use a combination of training techniques. For instance, give a brief 5-minute introduction, show a short training video, have a discussion about key points, give a quiz, and then provide a handout and have a short review.
- Allow rest breaks during long training sessions. Give trainees a chance to get up and move around, have some coffee, and refresh themselves for the next round.
Training—meaningful training—is more critical than ever. And that’s especially true for supervisors who are new to the job. They don’t know how to handle basic tasks like hiring and firing, let alone intermittent leave, harassment, or accommodating a disability.
It’s not their fault—you didn’t hire them for their HR knowledge—and you can’t expect them to act appropriately right out of the box. But you can train them to do it.
To train effectively, you need a program that’s easy for you to deliver and that requires little time from busy schedules. Also, if you’re like most companies in these tight budget days, you need a program that’s reasonable in cost.
Train your line managers with BLR’s 10-Minute HR Trainer. There won’t be time for classroom boredom. Try it for free.
We asked our editors what they recommend for training supervisors in a minimum amount of time with maximum effect. They came back with BLR’s unique 10-Minute HR Trainer.
As its name implies, it trains managers and supervisors in critical HR skills in as little as 10 minutes for each topic. 10-Minute HR Trainer offers these features:
- Trains in 50 key HR topics, including manager and supervisor responsibilities under all major employment laws and how to legally carry out managerial actions from hiring to termination. (See a complete list of topics, below.)
- Uses the same teaching sequence master teachers use. Every training unit includes an overview, bullet points on key lessons, a quiz, and a handout to reinforce the lesson later.
- Completely prewritten and self-contained. Each unit comes as a set of reproducible documents. Just make copies or turn them into overheads, and you’re done. (Take a look at a sample lesson, below.)
- Updated continually. As laws change, your training needs do as well. 10-Minute HR Trainer provides new lessons and updated information every 90 days, along with a monthly Training Forum newsletter, for as long as you are in the program.
- Works fast. Each session is so focused that there’s not a second’s waste of time. Your managers are in and out almost before they can look at the clock. Yet they remember small details even months later.
Evaluate It at No Cost for 30 Days
We’ve arranged to make 10-Minute HR Trainer available to our readers for a 30-day, in-office, no-cost trial. Review it at your own pace and try some lessons with your colleagues. If it’s not for you, return it at our expense. Click here and we’ll set you up with 10-Minute HR Trainer.
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