If knowledge was power, Team Teleport’s Emma Ayris Rogers would be the *undisputed* leader of the world. The hype is well-earned as many of us have relied on Emma, AnywhereWorks UK’s Learning & Development Coordinator, to help us find our feet when we began our jobs. We sat down with her (over Teleport, of course!) to learn how video conferencing has revolutionised online training. Find out why Emma recommends using video chat to welcome newbies, streamline important training and more.
1. Save time with video training sessions
“The main thing that I do is onboard new hires and go through a training process with them,” Emma begins. “For some people it’s a short one to two days; for others it can be up to two weeks. I also work to develop the training that we do as we’re a very fast-paced company!”
It’s no surprise that making the most of her time is a priority for Emma. As a trainer, you’ll run multiple sessions a day and want to ensure they stick to schedule. If hosting training in traditional office spaces, sessions can be held up by latecomers, and travelling from one venue to the next could mean you book less sessions.
Video calling has enabled Emma to create a more efficient training process. With Teleport, participants can join calls in their browsers (with no downloads or installations required ?), making it easy for you to maximise your hours and offer more courses.
“I can do a lot more when I need to have quite a few people within one day,” the training pro tells us. “It’s easier to jump in and out of calls and work with them on an individual basis.”
2. Make training more inclusive and accessible
A day in the life of a trainer is never the same, as there’s no such thing as one-size-fits-all training. Sometimes, Emma will host mini hour-long introductory sessions, but for more specialist roles, training can last seven hours a day. Sidenote: We salute all trainers that can keep people engaged throughout the day. The phrase ‘not all heroes wear capes’ has never rang truer.
In-person training can mean you have to repeat sessions if a participant isn’t able to attend. It also puts limits on who can learn if people have to travel to take part.
Video conferencing training is a flexible solution to these concerns. “Teleport’s definitely made training more accessible,” Emma tells us. “It’s just a case of sending a link in an email and saying, ‘Hey, click this and join.’”
No exaggeration. Just copy your unique meeting room URL, share it with your invitees (e.g. by email, chat or in your calendar invite), and everyone hits the link to start. No fuss, no muss.
There’s no need to hunt for an empty office room, as you have a secure, dedicated online space. Trainers and participants don’t have to worry about commute times and costly travel because they can join from Anywhere, using any device. And, if your team is distributed, everyone has the same access to learn and seek coaching.
3. Share your screen for presentations and demonstrations
With online training, you can keep your eyes on your attendees and foster better discussions through a face-to-face connection. Emma points out this is a far-cry from classrooms where you’d have to turn your back to the room to write on a board,
With Teleport’s ShareScreen feature, you can remain visible to your participants, even when leading them through a presentation. “Screen sharing is very important when it comes to training classes or teaching someone a new skill,” says our trainer. “If you just talk someone through something and hope they’re clicking through it on their own, it’s really difficult. But when you screen share, you can show them visually, ‘Hey, it’s here.’
There aren’t any hold-ups in your session and everyone stays on the same page. “I find it helps resolve any issues if someone is misunderstanding you,” Emma says of having attendees follow her screen. “It really speeds up your day and makes the learning more valuable. I don’t know what I would do without it.”
[80s game show presenter voice] And that’s not all! Your participants can refer back to your session when you record your training with Teleport. Enhance their notes with a supplementary recording and share your session with anyone unable to attend. Nobody misses out.
4. Encourage conversation and team bonding
The cherry on top of this software sundae? You can help your team bond and collaborate more with video conferencing apps for learning. In particular, it helps new starters interact with coworkers from the get-go. “Teleport training definitely helps new people get to know each other,” says Emma. “You get to see where they are [and] you get to know more about their personality.”
“Everyone is more relaxed; the bond is so much better than any traditional training environment. I know people who’ve made really great friends and they’ve never met [in-person], and it’s absolutely amazing to see!”
Of course, our Learning & Development Coordinator is quick to add that video calling goes beyond work chat. It can be an invaluable tool to help remote teams connect with each other from Anywhere. She suggests, “Have a meeting where you’re all together, having your favourite hot drink. Have a karaoke session! It’s the sort of thing that helps you create bonds.”
Training + Teleport = ?
From opening up training sessions to teams around the world, to making it straightforward to lead participants through files, video conferencing has a heap of benefits for online learning. We already know what Emma’s MVP video calling app is… ?But, why would she encourage other leading trainers to adopt Teleport?
“The single biggest reason I would recommend Teleport is connecting. The connections that you make through Teleport are absolutely valuable. There are people I work with every day all over the world, and I have some really great friendships off the back of that. There are colleagues I’ve never met and I feel really close to, and you also get to learn more about people and about other cultures.”
Cheers for the lesson, Emma!
Learn more about Teleport’s features and find a plan that’s right for your business’ online training.
