Jen Nikolaeva
Corporate training solutions · 10 MIN · 15.11.2024
Manufacturing training programmes
In a fast-paced manufacturing environment, training programmes are key to sustaining good operational efficiency, meeting standards and maintaining product quality. There are certain challenges companies face today when it comes to training employees: lack of time for employees to train, differences in workers’ experience and background, and measuring the training effectiveness.
The solution to these challenges is blended learning. By dividing theory and practice, where you conduct theory training on an LMS (Learning Management System) and hands-on practice on-site, you maximise the effectiveness of the training and save time for both the employees and the training team. Let’s dive deeper into the steps of creating manufacturing training.
The solution to these challenges is blended learning. By dividing theory and practice, where you conduct theory training on an LMS (Learning Management System) and hands-on practice on-site, you maximise the effectiveness of the training and save time for both the employees and the training team. Let’s dive deeper into the steps of creating manufacturing training.
Pre-development phase
Target audience
Find out who your training is for and clarify their roles, skill levels and training requirements.
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Collaborate with key stakeholders and team leads to understand business goals and needs. Gather data on employees’ roles, responsibilities, current skills and experience. Identify the segmentation for your course: based on roles, expertise or skill gaps. If there are several segments, you must tailor your learning materials accordingly.
For example, for new hires and entry-level machinery operators, you’ll have a training that segments employees by a role, their skill level at operating machinery would be minimal, and their training would require materials on safety protocols, machinery operation fundamentals, and hands-on practice.
Surveys
Before starting outlining the course, conduct a little research with the help of surveys.
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Identify employees' knowledge gaps and training needs. You can also use such tools as interviews and focus groups to help you understand the main gaps in your audience. The key question topics might include technical skills for the role, safety protocol knowledge or soft skills.
For example, you can ask our new hires from the previous example, whether they had prior experience in operating certain machinery (and if yes, what kind), how familiar they are with safety protocols and measures, what topics they would like to have in their training, and how much time they can dedicate to learning. The time question will help you plan out learning activities according to their schedule.
Set goals and objectives
Understand what your goals and objectives are for the training and make sure they align with the company’s goals.
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You’ll need to make sure that by the time they finish their training, they acquire the needed knowledge and skills to effectively perform at their job.
For our new hires training, your goals might look like:
- Equip new hires with knowledge and skills to maintain a safe working environment.
- Train employees to perform their daily tasks correctly.
- Build foundational skills in operating machinery and the company’s manufacturing pipeline.
- Equip employees with knowledge of workplace rules, regulations, safety measures and standard operating procedures.
- Help new hires adapt to the company's environment, culture, mission, values and teams.
Find SMEs (Subject Matter Experts)
Find people (usually working at your company) who can give you their expertise for the training.
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Your SMEs will help you with the content for the training itself. They will provide expert knowledge, making sure your materials are accurate and aligned with industry standards, develop practical exercises and support assessment development. They can also serve as instructors during hands-on practice.
Map out the course
Decide what can be taught online and what needs hands-on practice.
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It’s better to put all the theory online on LMS and plan practice on-site. It’s easy to give theoretical information such as guides, instructions, and documents in text and video formats to allow your learners to take a look at them at their own pace. That way when it comes to practice all the necessary theory will be already familiar.
Choose an LMS
Choosing the right LMS for your training needs is highly important.
Besides the looks, the LMS platform needs to be intuitive to use not only for employees on the training but also for the training development team. It needs to have all the necessary features you plan to add to your training, such as video and file upload, assessments and tests.
For example, Seturon LMS is a great example of an LMS with all the important features for online learning. It has a mobile version, so it’s easier for your learners to access the training, and adaptive paths, so even in group training you can plan personalised learning activities to increase engagement. Also, you can add different types of content to ensure your learners understand the topic.
Development phase
Create course outline with SMEs
With all your goals in place, team up with your SME and plan the structure of your training. Before going into each module and lesson, you need to see the bigger picture first, to ensure you’re on the right track. At this point, you can map out places where you’ll need certain types of content.
Fill in the modules
Again, with the help of SMEs create the training content. Structure each module and try to give information piece by piece so as not to overwhelm your learners and help them take breaks while studying. Give strong instruction on when and where the hands-on practice will take place (if you plan to have one).
Prepare tests and assessment
Put together knowledge-checking activities to help your learners understand their weak spots. Guide them to the point in the training they need to revisit to understand certain topics better. Tests and assessments will also give you a clear understanding of how your training is helping your company employees in acquiring the necessary knowledge.
Create and add feedback forms to the training
To understand how the training went you’ll need feedback straight from your learners. Ask them several times during the course whether the information is clear or needs correction. Be open to suggestions – they will help you improve your training courses in the future.
Upload all the content and test the training
Put together all the content you’ve created and test the training on the LMS. You can gather a team who will volunteer as QA for your course, or just click through the whole thing yourself to see if you catch any bugs or typos.
Launch
Conduct the training.
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Set deadlines for your online learning activities to be completed, especially if you plan on conducting in-person training. Make sure employees participating in the training understand the whole schedule and are well-informed on the format.
Post-launch
Gather feedback
Gather all the feedback forms your learners have filled in during the training and analyse them. Based on the data you get you will be able to improve your current training and take notes for future ones.
Gather metrics and analyse them
The most important goal of the training would be measurable results that can show the effectiveness of the conducted training. Ask team leads to help you measure the change in performance of the employees trained. Based on the data analysis, understand if you succeeded in your set goals and objectives.
With the help of technology, it became easier for manufacturing companies to conduct training for their employees. Blended learning with its helpful tools such as LMS comes in handy when the need for upskilling current workers or teaching new hires arises. It can not only help you effectively conduct the training itself but also help you measure the outcomes of it.
FAQ
Training is crucial in manufacturing to maintain operational efficiency, meet safety and quality standards, and ensure employees are skilled and knowledgeable in their roles.
Manufacturing companies face challenges like lack of time for employees to train, diverse experience levels among workers, and difficulties in measuring training effectiveness.
Blended learning combines online theoretical training through a Learning Management System (LMS) with hands-on practice on-site, making the training process more efficient and effective.
An LMS allows employees to learn theory at their own pace, provides easy access to resources, supports assessments, and helps track progress. It also saves time for both employees and trainers.
- Pre-development phase: Identify the target audience, set goals, find SMEs, and choose an LMS.
- Development phase: Create a course outline, develop content, prepare assessments, and add feedback mechanisms.
- Launch and post-launch: Conduct training, gather feedback, and analyze metrics for improvement.
Understanding the audience helps tailor training to their roles, skill levels, and needs, ensuring the content is relevant and engaging.
Surveys identify knowledge gaps and training needs, while feedback from participants helps refine training content and delivery for better results.
SMEs provide expert knowledge, help develop content and practical exercises, and ensure training aligns with industry standards.
Theory, such as guides and instructions, is best taught online, while hands-on skills and practical application are conducted on-site.
An LMS should be user-friendly, support diverse content formats, include assessment tools, and offer features like adaptive learning paths and mobile accessibility.
Effectiveness can be measured through employee performance metrics, assessments, feedback forms, and alignment with business goals.
Feedback helps identify areas of improvement in the training process, ensuring future programs are more effective and aligned with employee needs.
Metrics include employee performance improvement, completion rates, assessment scores, and qualitative feedback from participants and team leads.
By teaching theory online, employees spend less time in classrooms and more time applying their skills on-site, streamlining the overall process.
Assessments identify weak spots in knowledge, provide learners with focused guidance, and demonstrate the training’s impact on skill development.
- Jen NikolaevaLearning Experience Designer and EdTech Producer
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