Employee training is the lifeblood of a thriving organization. You wouldn’t expect a garden to flourish without consistent nurturing and the right tools—water, sunlight, fertilizer—and your people are no different. They need the right employee training techniques to grow, adapt, and contribute their absolute best.
Why is employee training so important? Because it’s directly linked to business success. McKinsey data reveals that companies with a strong learning culture are a staggering 25% more likely to outperform their competitors in terms of innovation, revenue growth, and profitability. But the benefits extend far beyond the bottom line.
A solid employee training program can also boost employee engagement, leading to higher retention rates and a more motivated workforce. It equips your team with the skills they need to tackle new challenges, adapt to evolving market demands, and drive your business forward. When employee training and development are so closely tied to the success of your business and the satisfaction of your employees, why wouldn’t you invest in it?
Here, we’ll explore the diverse world of employee training types, offering a smorgasbord of skills to cultivate within your team. We’ll also touch upon different employee training techniques, because let’s face it, how you deliver the training is just as important as what you teach.
Types of employee training: from onboarding to expertise
Let’s stick with the gardening metaphor here: each plant is unique, and so is their care! There’s no single type of employee training that works for every situation. So, here’s a look at some common categories:
Employee training type #1: Onboarding and orientation
This is your “welcome to the team” crash course. It covers company policies, culture, and all the basics employees need to know to get started. Basically, you’re giving new hires the lay of the land and setting the stage for their success. Glassdoor finds that organizations with a robust onboarding process can improve new hire retention by 82%. A well-structured onboarding program not only reduces early attrition but also accelerates time-to-productivity.
Employee training type #2: Technical skills training
This is where you equip employees with the job-specific skills they need to excel. Whether it’s mastering a new software, learning a specialized process, or becoming proficient in data analytics, targeted technical skills training is what keeps your team at the cutting edge.
Employee training type #3: Soft skills training
These are the people skills that make teamwork, communication, and leadership possible (and the ones that are harder for AI to replicate!). Think collaboration, problem-solving, and emotional intelligence. Soft skills training is a must for creating a positive and productive work environment. In fact, a study by Wiley finds that 63% of employees who received soft skills training say it positively impacted their performance.
Employee training type #4: Compliance training
This is the non-negotiable stuff! It covers regulations, safety protocols, and industry standards (ie. healthcare professionals completing mandatory training on HIPAA regulations). By prioritizing security and compliance training, you keep employees safe and ensure that your organization stays on the right side of the law. Thus, it is important that compliance training is consistently improved.
Employee training type #5: Product and service training
Essential for customer-facing roles, this type of training dives deep into your company’s offerings. Let’s say a sales team undergoes comprehensive training on a new product launch; they learn about the features, benefits, and target audience, enabling them to effectively sell the product to customers. (Hint, hint: an LMS like Learn365 offers training solutions for your external partners and customers, too).
Did you know?
A study by Kahoot! found that 93% of frontline workers want more learning and skill development opportunities. As luck would have it, Zensai’s Flow365 is a solution uniquely designed to deliver training to frontline workers when, where, and however it’s needed.
Employee training techniques: how to deliver the goods
Now, let’s talk about how you deliver these different types of training. The right delivery method can make all the difference between a training program that’s embraced and one that’s completely ignored.
According to a survey from HR Dive, nearly 98% of workers believe training is important for their role, with two-thirds agreeing that professional development has given them a competitive edge. Here are some popular techniques, each with its own strengths:
Classroom training
Ah, in-person session. It’s a classic for a reason! For instance, it can be fantastic for interactive learning, team building, and complex topics that require in-depth discussion. Studies show that face-to-face interaction in a classroom setting often helps you remember things better, especially for tricky subjects that require active engagement and complex understanding. This is because you get feedback straight away, can see how others are reacting, and have things explained instantly. However, it might not be the most flexible option for geographically dispersed teams or employees with busy schedules. Which leads us to…
E-Learning and online courses
Research suggests that 93% of businesses worldwide are planning to adopt e-learning in 2025. Perfect for self-paced learning and accessibility, e-learning offers unparalleled flexibility and convenience. It’s a great option for reaching employees who are spread out everywhere, letting them learn at their own pace and on their own time. What’s more, virtual instructor-led training (VILT) takes the core parts of in-person training and makes it happen online. This type of virtual training can cover a bunch of important company policies, like employee onboarding, skill-building courses, and compliance training.
On-the-job training (OJT)
Learning by doing! This hands-on approach lets employees get real-world experience under the guidance of a mentor or supervisor. On-the-job training (OJT) is especially good for developing job-specific skills and building confidence in real-life situations. For example, a new customer service rep might shadow an experienced colleague to see how they handle customer questions, solve problems, and use the company’s CRM system. This direct observation and hands-on experience speed up their learning and get them ready to work independently.
Employee training videos
According to Forrester Research, employees are 75% more likely to watch a video than to read documents, emails, or web articles. Engaging and versatile, videos can be used for everything from product demos to soft skills training. Additionally, they cater to visual learners and can be easily accessed and rewatched—making them a valuable resource for reinforcing key concepts.
Workshops and seminars
Group learning is where everyone gets to talk, share what they know, and meet others. Where workshops are often more hands-on and focused on developing specific skills, seminars tend to be more informational. Example: a group of managers participate in a workshop on effective performance management, learning how to set goals, provide feedback, and conduct performance reviews. The interactive format allows them to share best practices and learn from each other’s experiences.
Gamification
Who says you can’t turn learning into a game? Adding gamification to your learning structure involves using elements like points, badges, leaderboards, and challenges to motivate learners and make employee training more fun and engaging. Games allow us the ability to choose a path, feel competent, and be demonstrably effective. Also, Zippia study finds 90% of employees say gamification makes them more productive at work. Game on!
Choosing the right mix of employee training types: a recipe for success
How do you decide which training types and techniques are right for your organization? It’s all about finding your recipe. Firstly, begin by assessing your organizational goals and employee needs. What skills are essential for your team’s success? What are your employees’ learning preferences? Then, consider your budget, scalability needs, and how to maximize engagement. Just like your people need the right tools, a savvy L&D professional needs the right LMS—and Learn365 can be the key to bringing all these elements together seamlessly.
Want a couple of real-world examples?
- Warrior Centric Health is a healthcare organization with a mission to ensure everyone, including veterans, has access to top-notch care. They needed a secure, easy-to-use LMS integrated with Microsoft 365 to deliver crucial training to healthcare professionals, including those in the Department of Defense. Warrior Centric Health faced a common challenge: complicated training and reporting. Their old LMS just wasn’t cutting it—it lacked security, was hard to use, and made reporting a nightmare.
Then, Learn365 swooped in to save the day, seamlessly integrating with their existing Microsoft 365 environment. Suddenly, course creation became a breeze, deploying training into the highly secure DOD space was no problem, and they could easily reach their 300+ users anytime, anywhere, via SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, and a mobile app. Even better? The platform was so user-friendly that even non-technical staff could manage it. - As Germany’s largest private university, IU International University of Applied Sciences is a higher education powerhouse with over 130,000 students. With rapid growth came the need for standardized staff learning. They were on the hunt for a scalable, centralized LMS that could support their diverse global workforce and drive efficiency without sacrificing engagement.
Learn365 showed up and delivered. IU now offers role-based professional training, boosting its brand and giving employees opportunities for growth. Seamless integration with Microsoft 365, high adoption rates, a wide range of courses (from sales skills to AI!), and the ability for 120+ key users to create and manage their own content—their recipe is clearly working wonders. Integration with Power BI for super-smart reporting and tracking is just the cherry on top!
Altogether, these case studies show how important it is to match training solutions with what your company needs. Using a learning system like Learn365 can help make your training dreams a reality.
So, what have we learned today?
Clearly, employee training is far from a one-time event; it may start with onboarding, but it’s an ongoing journey. For example, just like a garden needs constant care, your team needs continuous development to be their best.
Furthermore, by understanding the different types of training—from onboarding and technical skills to soft skills, compliance, and product knowledge—and mastering the various techniques (classroom training, e-learning, on-the-job training, videos, workshops, and gamification) you can create a well-rounded learning and development program that truly supports your employees.
Ready to take your training to the next level? Explore Zensai’s Learn365 LMS to see how you can effectively implement diverse training programs and much, much more. Don’t just train your employees; empower them!
