Online Training vs. Live Classroom Training

First a disclaimer: As most of you know, I am a big fan of live, in person, classroom training. I almost always recommend it and I enjoy teaching class as much as I enjoy attending a class. Maybe it’s because I am one of those people who learns better when I am actively engaged, hands on and face to face with an instructor. Maybe it’s because we know customers who tell us what a great job we have done and/or say they love the software are the ones who have attended a live class. Maybe it’s because dissatisfied customers almost always have not attended class. Either way, I’ll admit, my opinion may be biased.

So…over the Thanksgiving weekend I cracked open one of Sage’s Anytime Learning Courses. I have to admit, it is put together well, really well. So well that about 5 minutes into it I began to question my recent investment in a classroom training facility in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex (more to come on this facility and an open house we are planning in a future blog entry). I said to myself, this is so easy and so clear, why would anyone want to take a day and come to a class?

Then it hit me…about 15 minutes into the class I started dozing off...seriously dozing off. I tried standing, even kneeling in front of my PC to stay alert. Got some caffeine. At best I found I could press through 30 to 40 minutes before my skin began to crawl and I quickly realized that I was NOT going to get through a day’s worth of material in a day, much less the less than a day I was hoping for. In addition, not being in the room with an instructor started to begin to take it’s toll.

I found more questions were being created than resolved. Information I already understood well came across well. Information that was new to me however, generated questions for which there was no relief, in the training manual or in the product. You know, the questions that usually start like “What would happen if you set this condition to A but performed a transaction like B. There were simplistic “real world” examples and shortened hands on activities, but they pale in comparison to the type of problem solving and “what if” scenarios we experience in the classroom environment.

My final take is that online type learning courses are great if you need an introduction into a limited topic area but are mind numbing and not well suited to learn a broad area. The spirited discussions in a live training environment as well as the ability to explore various what if scenarios tend to keep me more engaged. Even as an instructor, I don’t believe I have ever completed a live training class without learning something new, thanks to the challenging questions posed by the students as well as my own curiosity.

I am curious as well to what you think. Please take our survey linked below. 

Click Here to take survey

If you are in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, please look for our Open House invitation to our new Sage Training Center in Dallas. My hope is many of you, like me, get a lot out of a live training environment.

Mike DeRosa
www.derosamangold.com