With COVID now seemingly waning in virulence, it might be time for your company to consider going back to in-person or face-to-face training.
Yes, Zoom and Teams and Google and Skype and [insert tech of your choice] have served us well during the pandemic and will continue to do so as businesses continue to become even more digitalised, global, and accustomed to home/remote working patterns.
But isn’t there something refreshing about being in a classroom with colleagues and fellow professionals, acquiring unique skills and tools, processing new knowledge, and maybe even building upon these relationships over refreshments after the course?
The fact is companies have started showing signs of coming out of their (cyber)nation and have started booking in-person courses for their employees again.
Indeed, here at LGCA for instance, we have already had a number of London-based banks and financial service providers reach out to us to set up face-to-face training events on a number of topics such as financial crime (including AML, KYC/CDD), SMCR, Vulnerable Customer Management, and more.
Not only is it so encouraging to see the confidence in face-to-face activities growing again as everyone starts to move away from the restrictions of the past two years, but this revitalised interest also addresses some of the concerns shown by the FCA in relation to staff training.
Figures show that 45% of FCA Enforcement actions since 2020 related to deficiencies in firms’ training programmes. More specifically, it is believed that these deficiencies were found in the generic level of training delivered by online courses. Of course, if these were off-the-shelf e-learning courses, then a level of generalisation should be expected. However, this is something that face-to-face training just cannot be replaced at.
Training being delivered by a person onsite, who can enhance learning for your staff by answering questions and placing laws and regulations into the context of your firm is something that e-learning can very rarely achieve, if at all.
With all that said, below are some of our other favourite reasons why in-person or face-to-face training events and seminars are the way to go.
Keep Your Eye on the Ball!
When you’re studying remotely, whether from the comfort of your bed or office, distractions abound.
Parcels at the door. Demanding children. Hungry pets. Meetings with the bosses. Donuts in the kitchen. Parcels at the door (again!). That latest Netflix series you want to binge. Parcels at the door (yes, there is a third one!) A phone ringing incessantly in the background. You name it.
Something will always draw your attention away from the course, forcing you to turn off your camera or hit pause, and move onto another activity, thus disrupting the flow of the course and the learning process.
When you’re taking a class in-person, this rarely happens.
The facilitator/trainer and your classmates have your undivided attention, making it simpler for you to be productive, focus on the task at hand, and thoroughly digest all the information that is being conveyed.
Yes, you might have to step out at points to take a phone call or handle an urgent matter but, generally, when you’re in class, you really are in class.
Plus, given this dearth of distractions, being in class leads to much greater levels of engagement from everyone involved, which in turn makes the learning experience more pleasurable, rewarding, and with little delay.
As Flexible as a Yogi
Whether we like it or not, there are technological and methodological limitations to studying online.
Taking a class in-person combines the best of both worlds, matching the use of technology (laptops, tablets, or mobile phones) with face-to-face instruction.
This flexibility allows trainers/facilitators to cater to all types of students, whether they prefer audio, visual, hands-on, group work, or some other kind of learning methodology.
In class, a trainer/facilitator can adopt and use all of these different strategies, keeping the teaching fresh, interesting, and engaging for everyone.
For example, many students enjoy working on case studies or problem-solving exercises as a group. Having students sit right next to each other to discuss potential solutions is harder to do via an online platform.
The same applies to hands-on projects where a trainer/facilitator has to manually demonstrate how something is done and learners have to mimic said procedure to learn how to do it well.
Relationships Make the World Go Round
As an industry professional, one important reason why you attend seminars, conferences, workshops, and other similar training events is for networking.
Let’s face it, meeting new people and establishing new relations with like-minded professionals is paramount to a business’ growth and success.
Coffee and lunch breaks, group projects, and the ubiquitous beer session after an in-person or face-to-face class can be used to build professional relations, discuss industry trends, exchange ideas and opinions, and ultimately boost your business.
Yes, this can also be done online.
But like with virtual dating sites, there will always be that need for physical proximity and face-to-face interaction to gauge the relationship’s potential, build much needed trust, and ultimately seal the deal.
If you’re interested in setting up an in-person or face-to-face course for your team, get in touch at info@lgca.uk.