01 Apr With multiple players in the corporate training industry, how to ensure your firm’s success?

The Corporate Training Industry employs industry experts who inculcate the demanded skills in corporate employees, addressing specific customized needs. This improves the overall morale and skillset of the employees, thus making the organisation more efficient.

It is important to note that the line between Ed-tech companies and corporate training companies have blurred, and most companies look to target both working professionals as well as students. There are companies in this sector who provide different types of services and possess different business models: There are those who provide direct training to their clients, the ones who act as aggregators between traditional educational institutes or trainers and trainees, or the ones who just provide curated content. The training mode could comprise both an online and an offline model. The barriers to entry are extremely low, which has enabled individuals, specialised platforms and even corporate entities, for whom it is generally more of a strategic decision, to become trainers.

It is safe to say that the overall industry has seen a surge since the pandemic fueled a series of lock-downs. This is of course barring those companies which have not made a switch to online platforms and those who provide training in batches to their corporate clients. Online courses and webinars have become all the rage. Working professionals found a good opportunity to up-skill themselves during the lock-down, whereas students tried to get every possible advantage through courses. The FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) factor also played a role in this.

Many companies strived for rapid change and quickly started providing their offerings through online mediums so that they don’t miss out on the once in a lifetime bumper harvest. One way to do it is through recorded videos, where the user sits through the video, clicks on the Next button, answers a few MCQs (Multiple Choice Questions) and voila, the course is completed. Another way is a more interactive one, where there is a two-way communication and practical application. Players should try to route themselves towards the latter one, otherwise, they are just another player in this industry. There are platforms which are much more established and do this better.

There are various platforms and means of disseminating information and engaging with the audience, through podcasts, live projects, virtual internships, strong visuals, content curation, newsletters, webinars, AR (Augmented Reality), VR (Virtual Reality) and so on. Students are on-boarded through a campus ambassador program, or by adopting a freemium model. Before introducing a new offering, the trends have to be understood as per the target audience. For example, if your user base comprises of Generation X, then expensive alternatives like AR and VR may turn out to be unfruitful.

Collaboration has always been the go-to strategy for companies when it becomes difficult to fly high in turbulence. Companies have the options of colluding with their direct and indirect competitors, corporate clients, educational institutions and the government.  The Skill India Program of Government of India works on a PPP (Public-Private Partnership), and the focus here is on imparting entry-level training to increase the employability of the workforce.

Quality Rubric is a road less traveled and has the ability to transform a provided course. It provides for eight general standards to cover all aspects of a high-quality course. These standards include clarity in overall design, description of learning objectives and competencies, assessment strategies, instruction material, course activities, course technologies, accessibility and usability, and support services. Paying attention to them can help in providing a serious offering which stands out in the highly crowded market.

Do not lose focus and always align a course with strategic competencies. This is extremely important for any type of player, a traditional training firm, a technology-driven firm or for corporates where subject matter experts are the trainers. If an accounting firm provides a course on audit, or an investment bank provides a course on valuation, if an analytics firm provides a course on big data, it immediately becomes more attractive and credible.

This reaffirms one age-old fact; change is constant and one must always be ready to adapt. However, lean innovation becomes critical, especially given the current testing times. The heavy investment must be done only where necessary. If we are talking on the lines of change, the content of courses is another aspect where light is to be shed. Many courses teach the learner how to work a machine or application, which is totally alright given the needs, but in some instances, this may become obsolete over a period of time. Instead, teach them adaptability, give them the ability to go to the right source whenever they want any appropriate content. This will shape their future, help them take something back, making the program more connected, which may help shape long term success.

Let’s end this with a simple yet powerful quote, “Change is the only constant”.