SPARKS! Blog

A well-executed training program does more than just impart knowledge — it ignites passion, boosts confidence, and cultivates a growth mindset. 

When employees experience high-quality training, they're inspired to apply their new skills, share insights with colleagues, and buy into your mission and culture.

The magic lies in creating an environment where learning feels natural and exciting. In part one of our go-to training blueprint series, we outlined the steps for planning an in-person employee training program. Now it's time to act. As we used to say at Walt Disney World, you're "show ready."

The Ultimate Training Blueprint: Program Implementation

• Set the tone for learning and your expectations at the start of the event.

• To encourage participation, you need high-quality learning materials and an active, action-focused learning environment with several teaching methods.

• Active listening, building rapport, and asking probing questions increase engagement and retention.

When preparing to launch your training event, keep one word in mind: Relevance. Does the program contain real-world applications that inspire learning and offer actionable strategies for improvement? 

Program Implementation Event Framework:

1. Kick off with a high-energy "welcome"

• Excite learners and set the tone for learning.

Imagine walking into a training room buzzing with energy. The instructor greets you with a warm smile and a quick, fun icebreaker that gets everyone laughing and interacting. Music plays in the background as you're invited to share your expectations on a colorful wall of sticky notes. Now you're engaged, curious, and ready to dive in.

A high-energy welcome instantly sparks curiosity and engagement, setting the stage for an impactful learning experience.

Brainstorm ways to kick off your event that break down barriers and create connections. When employees feel energized and valued from the start, they're more likely to actively participate, retain information, and apply their new skills back on the job.

2. Set your expectations at the start

• Establish expectations quickly and refer to them regularly.

Refer back to the parameters for success and the most immediate needs you defined in the pre-planning stage to tell learners what they can expect from your workshop. These statements should be specific and actionable — "Today you will learn three strategies for creating "awesome arrivals," and why using these behaviors consistently is key to defining the customer experience and improving our service culture."

These phrases can help you set clear, realistic, and measurable training objectives:

1. "By the end of today, you will…"
2. "The purpose of this workshop is to introduce you to…"
3. "We invited you to this training to address…"

Communicate these objectives in your learning materials and the title of your training (as opposed to something generic, like "The Donnelly Group Employee Training 2024").

To help keep learners focused, we create agendas guests can refer back to that clearly state the expectations, training topics, and recommended follow-up actions. More on post-training follow-up in part three of this series.

3. Teach using high-quality materials

• Mix up activities and use multiple modes of delivery.

As you dive into the heart of your workshop, ensure learners have access to top-quality materials. Humans process visual images better, so it's important to create an engaging and relevant mixed-media curriculum that allows learners to visualize and participate in activities.

Again, training should feel like a special event rather than a college lecture. Leverage technology to help differentiate your programs from other lackluster trainings you've attended in the past. This could include interactive presentations, online polls, or even virtual reality simulations for certain types of training.

Depending on the workshop topic, we supplement learning materials with agendas, notebooks, interactive worksheets, and more so that each participant can follow along in a method that works for them.

4. Lead with examples and build rapport

• Lessons should have practical applications that make it easy for learners to take action.

If your lessons are focused solely on education and theories, you won't successfully get participants to take action. Instead, center your teaching on real-world applications so learners can easily see how this training will impact or improve their work.

1. Introduce group work (round table setups help support this). For example, we might ask the crowd to identify remedial observable behaviors to make guests feel welcome, cared for, and appreciated.
2. Leverage the power of storytelling. Connect training to your organization's past, present, and future to make a stronger emotional connection with team members.
3. Show scenarios that mirror real-world issues (positive and negative) using case studies or videos.

Finding ways to incorporate practical scenarios in your training curriculum helps trainees recognize applicable scenarios in the real world and connect them to the proper response.

Finally, encourage discussion and build rapport. Follow a training blueprint for focus purposes, but don't be afraid to go off script as participation demands. Go with the flow as they ask questions, contribute ideas, or raise awareness of a related problem.

When you build rapport with your audience, your presentation has more effect because the audience is on your side. Remember, most people want you to succeed; they have buy-in to what you're teaching and have a stake in the outcomes.

Inspiring Action and Driving Meaningful Change

Successful employee training workshops require careful preparation and thoughtful design. Focus on creating an engaging curriculum and crafting interactive activities that bring learning to life. However, driving meaningful change hinges on our ability to retain what we've learned long-term and apply it to our daily work.

Next, we'll wrap up our training blueprint series with a plan for post-training reinforcement. Subscribe to the Sparks! blog, so we can notify you when the article goes live.

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Mike Donnelly is a recognized expert, keynote speaker, facilitator and consultant in customer service and leadership development. Leveraging 20+ years of experience from The Walt Disney Company, he and his team help destination location clients and clients in various customer-facing industries create customer loyalty to achieve positive business results. Learn more at www.DonnellyEffect.com.