When bringing new talent on board, or introducing your team to new technologies, operation strategies, and systems, training is key. Proper and effective training can determine the success of the warehouse team and of the business. Not everyone learns and retains information the same way, and not everyone is always welcoming or encouraged to new strategies. For that reason, it is imperative to implement training strategies that are inclusive and engaging. 

Here are some of the top trends for training the warehouse team, either during onboarding or as continuing education for current employees.

Gamification 

Training is only successful if the trainee actually retains and fully understands the information. One of the best strategies to ensure retention and engagement is gamification. This brings the game theory into the workplace to motivate employees. Adding games or a competitive component to training can incentivize new workers and help retain current members. It has been proven that gamification is not only effective in training but also in increasing production, and retaining employees by offering opportunities to be more engaged outside their daily tasks, and rewarded for their efforts. 

According to research, Gamification is successful because “people want to know what’s expected of them, they are good at what they do and they have autonomy over what they do. 

However, as research shows, when implementing gamification as a training tool, it is important to ensure that the system is not taking a toll on the employees and causing more harm than benefits. 

Team Building Activities 

Teamwork is essential in the warehouse, and activities that build strong relationships among peers and supervisors can also be great for training and retaining talent. 

High turnover can critically affect the organization and productivity. According to research, one of the main reasons for employees to leave a job is a lack of connection with management. Team building activities can help train the staff, build relationships with each other, and show any room for improvement. This is also a great way to identify strong candidates who demonstrate potential and passion to continue to grow within the company. 

Digital Training 

Digital training gives the opportunity to offer customized, relevant, and indispensable training to new and current warehouse teams. Not only is digital training effective and convenient, but also cost-efficient. From Virtual Reality (VR) to Augmented Reality (AR), digital training can get incredibly sophisticated and “real” for the trainee in a safe environment without the need for real-world equipment. 

Video learning and Virtual Instructor-Led Training (VILT) are also great digital training sources designed to keep learners engaged, ensure training is consistent throughout the organization, and allow learners to access the content at any time from anywhere. 

Hands-On Opportunities and Visual Aids

To ensure new and existing employees fully understand the processes, technologies, and systems that take place at the warehouse, it is important to tap into one of the best ways to learn – hands-on. 

A classroom setting is very usual in the training process of onboarding a new employee or training current employees on new systems. “Hands-on” training certainly takes place to ensure they clearly understand the warehouse functions. However, it is not always possible to do so at the production systems and potentially affect live operations. With that in mind, mock-up scenarios have become a very useful training tool. This gives the employees the opportunity to learn by seeing it and doing it, but production is not affected. 

Yes, building a mock-up of production systems, and maintaining it, could require an additional extensive investment. However, when putting into perspective the quality of training the team receives, the mistakes that can be avoided, and the uninterrupted production systems, it becomes clear that it is an important training source. A hands-on training environment gives trainees the opportunity to interact and fully understand the process expectations. 

Educational Forums 

With the intent to make room for the warehouse team to ask questions, be involved, and better understand warehouse systems and operations, many companies are implementing in-house forums and messaging boards. A lot of training comes down to conversations, and this strategy cultivates an environment for education where employees are able to discuss training takeaways with peers, directly ask questions to supervisors, and perhaps learn from others’ questions and answers in better understanding the operations of the warehouse. 

Shadowing and Certified Trainers on the Floor 

The human element will always be an essential part of training. It is the perfect complement to technologies, digital training, hands-on experiences, and other training sources. The ability to have another person to resource to on the floor is crucial, especially for onboarding warehouse employees. It is important that they have someone who they trust and can go to with questions as they arise. Investing time and money in training the best candidates on the floor, and deputizing them to be a resource for the team as Certified Trainers. Being accessible, and on the floor with the team gives them the opportunity to see processes in action, get guidance and learn from hiccups along the way, and set a positive example of expectations.