Before the Covid19 lockdowns I delivered most training in face-to-face workshops. Whether it was mobile video, social media or journalism, online learning was seen as a last resort or poor substitute. With lockdowns all that changed. There was no other option but to use platforms like Zoom for live training, as well as learning platforms for recorded training video courses.

What has been interesting is the changing attitude towards online learning. Naturally it poses some challenges, but it also creates amazing opportunities. No longer did we have to find a venue for international participants to fly into, with all the cost, time and commitment that requires. Instead, we could run a training session that people could log into wherever they were. Sometimes we ran the same training multiple times on different days to make it even more convenient for people with busy diaries.

The other benefit of online learning was that we could offer laser focused, specific topics. Some training sessions only need to be an hour or two. Others need to run over multiple days. Online training gives us that flexibility. We could also offer a mix of webinars, recorded training videos and one-to-one follow-ups. This mixed economy of online learning seems to work best.

So in summary, there are lots of benefits to online learning. Even when things go “back to normal”….live and recorded training needs to be a bigger part of the mix. – Mark Egan, Purple Bridge Media