There’s probably never been a year where we spent so much time at home.
Our kitchens doubled up as our offices, and our living rooms and bedrooms became classrooms.
But as restrictions slowly lift and more of us gradually return to the office, will training courses continue to be beamed into our homes through Zoom and Teams?
Or will there be a resurgence of face-to-face training? And what will that training focus on?
To answer these questions, I sat down with someone who is well placed to spot the training trends for the year ahead.
As the managing director of Media First, James White leads a team that provides media training, crisis communication training, presentation skills, social media and writing skills courses to 40 of the FTSE100.
And he is also the managing director of the BCF group, which has been providing business coaching, management skills and interpersonal skills training to organisations of all shapes and sizes for the past 25 years.
Soft skills
His conversations with learning and development managers, communication directors and HR leaders show a continued focus on soft skills over the next 12 months.
These are sometimes referred to as interpersonal skills or people skills and are founded on good communication.
A recent survey by Bookboon Learning found “whether teams continue to work remotely, or begin to return to the office, effective communication will remain the most important skill of 2021.”
Its research also shows 75 per cent of companies are experiencing a soft-skills gap and 50 per cent of the learning and development professionals it spoke to regard soft skills as being more crucial than ever before.
It said: “For many of us, 2020 flipped the switch on what is truly important. And, according to the leaders we spoke to, for the business world, it took the coronavirus pandemic to truly highlight the importance of soft skills.”
These skills can be developed and honed through focused interpersonal skills training courses. But many delegates on our media training courses tell us the the techniques and tips they learn during that training also helps them to better communicate in other areas of their works, such as in meetings and when talking to team members.
Blended training
So, if we know where the focus is going to be, how is the training going to be delivered?
Remote training came to the rescue last year and allowed people to continue to develop and refresh their skills when we were not allowed to leave our homes.
Although those restrictions are easing, there is likely to be a reliance on remote training this year.
The Bookboon Learning survey found that 77 per cent of companies will rely on digital learning for their corporate training needs in 2021.
James agrees with these findings but believes there will be a gradual shift back to more face-to-face training.
“If you had said to me two years ago that you would be delivering more than 50 courses a month online through Zoom, Teams or videoconferencing, I’d have said that you were crazy,” he said.
“And I also would have said that it is not the best way of doing training, particularly media training, which needs to be as realistic as possible to the real thing.
“But that realistic bit has changed, and now the most realistic interview format is down-the-line on video conferencing software.
“I think it will change again, and there will be a move back to face-to-face training. And that is important because there are a lot of nuances in all communication training that often come across better in a room.
“But I think what we will be looking at is a blended approach, taking the best of virtual and face-to-face training, perhaps on the same course. For example, we may need to include virtual media interviews on a face-to-face media training course.”
This blended approach could also see some delegates on the same training courses take part remotely, while some of their colleagues are in the classroom.
This could work well when some delegates would have long distances to travel for face-to-face training, or when there are delegates who feel anxious about being trained alongside their colleagues.
James said: “I think we are in a position now where training will not just be tailored to the objectives and needs of the delegates, but also their personalities and characters.
“Some people thrive in the classroom environment being surrounded by their peers. But it can be daunting for others.
“For those who are more introverted and may not be comfortable training in front of their colleagues, online is potentially a more comfortable and relaxed option.”
Modular training
Another trend James is noticing at both Media First and the BCF group is a move to more modular training. Traditionally, Media First’s courses and many BCF courses have been delivered through one intense day of training.
But there is now a demand for training to be delivered over several weeks using different channels.
For example, Media First has recently prepared media training and writing skills courses where the training begins with an online self-taught course delegates can work through at their own pace.
This is then followed by a practical session on Zoom or Teams with an expert tutor.
The delegate then receives feedback from the tutor on how they have performed ahead of a face-to-face session where they can hone their skills and put what they have learnt to the test.
The delegate then receives further feedback and can use the online course they began their training with to revise and stay on top of their new skills.
James said: “Partitioning training into smaller sections is a growing trend, and I think it is something we are going to see more of.
“The great benefit of this approach to training is it offers a gentler learning curve.
“It enables those who are completing the training to reflect on how they are getting on and assess their performance ahead of the next stage of the course.
“We also know that it can be challenging for our most senior delegates to block out a whole day in their diaries for a training course. But by breaking the training down into chunks and spreading them out over a few weeks, we remove that hurdle.”
Bite-sized learning
The other key trend is a continued focus on bite-sized learning where those taking part just need to free up an hour or so to improve their skills.
The tricky balance here is to ensure that speed does not sacrifice quality.
James said: “We saw a real demand last year for training options that people could access whenever and wherever they wanted, and that did not involve a considerable time commitment.
“We began to develop a series of interactive online training courses that can typically take around an hour to complete, and that gives people all the theory they need to produce better media interviews or deliver more impactful presentations, to give a couple of examples.
“What we have done with all these courses is to also develop a ‘bolt-on’ option enabling delegates to put what they have learnt to the test in a practical session with one of our tutors.
“We are continuing to see a demand for these courses, and we will continue to evolve and develop our options in these areas over the coming year.”
The BCF group been helping organisations develop their talent, inspire their people and overcome obstacles and challenges for the past 25 years. You can find out more about their training here.
Media First are media and communications training specialists with more than 35 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers.
