In my last post, I shared my plan for creating an “ecourse” about your business. I suggested you think about your systems in terms of “lessons” and organize them into business areas, i.e., modules. This way you can simply identify the systems you currently use, put together simple documentation for them, and fill in the gaps in a manner that makes the most sense for you and your business.
(If you missed it, you’ll want to go back and check it out. 🙂
But what if you didn’t stop there? What if you actually created a real ecourse and systematized your onboarding process so that everyone on your team understood your vision, values, and the processes you use in your business? You could use a course like that for all kinds of things – training new team members, organizing processes, reference, communicating your vision, etc.
It’s an interesting idea, isn’t it? And if you’ve taken action on my past posts you’ve already begun the process. 🙂
So – let’s take a few minutes and explore the benefits of a company ecourse and how you can use one to take your team (and your business) to a whole new level of success.
Set a standard of excellence.
Systemizing your onboarding process with a company ecourse creates a professional first impression for team members and sets a standard of excellence for your organization. The entire training experience serves as an example of quality and sets the tone for the type of work you do across your organization.
An ecourse like this makes your expectations clear to everyone, and ensures there are no skipped bits of training or rushed moments where important tasks aren’t fully explained. Best of all, the experience is consistent for each member of the team and you can be confident that everyone has received the same training and instruction.
Invest in team member success.
Often training and onboarding feels haphazard. Honestly, we are so busy that often we just throw someone new into the mix and train them as we go. As we’ve discussed in earlier posts in this series, this is a recipe for disaster. No matter how talented your new team member is, he will struggle to fit in and will likely question his decision to work with you.
He simply won’t feel welcome. She just won’t feel supported or encouraged.
A company training ecourse creates a completely different dynamic. Sure, you’ll need time and resources to create this experience, but you’re actually investing in the success of your team. Rather than fixing mistakes and going through the hiring process multiple times in order to find a good fit, you’ll give each person you hire exactly what he or she needs to be happy and successful in their role.
Multiple uses, multiple points of reference.
But, I’m missing something here. I’m referring to your ecourse as a tool for onboarding and training. Of course it is this…and I don’t want to minimize the value this brings to your organization. But there’s a huge point of value we haven’t discussed yet – ongoing reference.
As your business grows and changes (or as things just simply get busy) both you and your team will benefit from a systems guide you can refer to over and over again.
- Confused about a process? Look it up.
- Wondering how to handle a new challenge? See what the reference says about it.
- Not sure about a client question? Go to the guide to find the answers.
Your “ecourse” is much more than a training and onboarding tool. When created properly, it’s a reference center for everyone in your organization. Rather than coming to you with questions and asking you for direction, people can look here for the answers they need – leaving you to do more of the creative work you love.
What if you could take the pain and time suck out of hiring and training? What if onboarding was just another efficient, effective, repeatable process in your business?
I’m working on a service to help you create your company ecourse – complete with the systems, team communication components, and company values modules you need to be successful. This service is currently being developed. Stay tuned for more information about it.
