Ask for input. Consider surveying staff on their learning preferences (Laptop or smartphone? Online learning or instructor-led training?) as part of the early communication strategy so you can plan and budget for training methods accordingly.

Train in phases. Schedule a round of instructor-led department training within a week of deployment so lessons will still be fresh on go-day. After installation, continue training for several weeks to catch those who haven’t yet absorbed what they need and for those who missed the primary instruction.

Make it fun. At the American Society of Interior Designers, Membership Vice President DJ Johnson, CAE, and his team put on a skit during an all-staff meeting to demonstrate how a new app interface would improve customer-service communications. “Some of our team members were working remotely that day, so using our app allowed them to be seen and heard and showed off the tool while also adding some humor as we pretended to be flight attendants and pilots,” he says.

Perform a post-training assessment. You can do this in the form of a short quiz. It shows that the organization considers this training a priority and helps learners retain more information.

Don’t forget SOPs. Compile any resources used during training, including screen grabs and specific instructions for common tasks, into a standard operating procedures document that can live on the network and be used as a refresher or an onboarding resource for new employees.

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