Obsidian Blog
News and updates from our team of learning and technology professionals. Topics range from elearning tools and resources, to instructional design and the science of learning.
Customize New Hire Training: 5 Reasons to Partner Up With a Vendor for Your Onboarding Program
Posted Mar 17, 2021 by Amanda Costa
Your employees might not have the time or specialized skills to convert an existing inperson onboarding program to a virtual one, or to create such a program from scratch. Partnering with a talented vendor might be your best bet for designing a customized program that reflects the culture and values of your organization.
Skilling Up Virtual Team Managers and Supervisors: 3 Essential Upboarding Tips
Posted Mar 10, 2021 by Shelly Immel
New managers and supervisors have more than ever to learn if they are stepping up to manage a virtual team. Great upboarding can have a tremendous impact on their success, and on the productivity and satisfaction of the virtual teams they lead.
Back to the Workplace: 5 Things to Consider When Reboarding Returning Employees
Posted Mar 3, 2021 by Amanda Costa
Though times are uncertain, it seems likely that organizations will be seeking to rehire former employees as the economic climate stabilizes. Reboarding—bringing former employees back up to speed—is different from onboarding and should be designed as such.
5 Ways Social Learning Can Lead to an Effective Remote Onboarding Process
Posted Feb 24, 2021 by Monica Savage
Social learning is key to the integration of new employees. Focusing on social learning elements during a remote onboarding process will ensure that new hires more quickly transform into fully functional employees.
How to Develop a Sustainable Remote Onboarding Program for Your Virtual Teams
Posted Feb 17, 2021 by Lubos Janoska
Virtual onboarding of new talent in your organization should achieve all the objectives of classic in-person onboarding. However, purely remote, digital, or fully virtual onboarding does add an interesting layer of complexity.
Make Onboarding Remote Employees a Success With These Blended Learning Strategies
Posted Feb 10, 2021 by Shannon Hart
What do you need to consider when onboarding remote employees? Read on to learn about 6 blended learning strategies that will support your exceptional onboarding program.
3 Benefits a Blended Virtual Onboarding Plan Brings to Your In-House and Remote Workers
Posted Feb 3, 2021 by Lubos Janoska
Blended learning is a highly effective instructional strategy. In the past, virtual learning assets (microlearning, video, etc.) were embedded as one aspect of a broader blended learning program. As we look forward, such assets will be the essential pillars of blended virtual onboarding. How will your in-house and remote workers benefit from this shift?
5 Onboarding Training Challenges and 5 Opportunities Today’s Workforce Faces
Posted Jan 27, 2021 by Shannon Hart
Virtual onboarding, though not without challenges, provides many exciting opportunities that benefit your learners as well as your organization.
How To Train Remote Employees In A Virtual Learning Environment
Posted Oct 7, 2020 by Lubos Janoska
Through the prism of the 10 Principles of Customer Strategy, this article examines the question of how to train remote employees in a virtual learning environment.
8 Innovative Virtual Learning Design Tips To Engage Your Remote Teams
Posted Sep 25, 2020 by Shannon Hart
Virtual learning is an essential component in the learning and development toolkit, and it is widely used for training and educational purposes. It is not, however, always high quality or effective. Here are some design tips from the instructional and visual perspectives to give your virtual learning a real boost.
5 Implicit Signs That Your Virtual Classroom Is Set Up To Fail
Posted Sep 15, 2020 by Amanda Costa
Is your organization prepared to make the leap to virtual training? This article highlights the warning signs that can indicate your virtual training is headed for less than successful outcomes. Know what to look for so you can get your virtual learning back on track!
How To Transform Your Remote Workforce Into A Virtual Learning Community
Posted Sep 2, 2020 by Lubos Janoska
Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person community building has hit a roadblock, and the future appears to be leading in the direction of increased virtual interaction. In this article, we’ll look at the process of creating a virtual learning community at your organization.
4 Virtual Learning Needs To Consider In A Remote Working Environment
Posted Aug 27, 2020 by Amanda Costa
Functional performance support, focused learning, effective means of training delivery, and organizational support are key to ensuring employee engagement. How can organizations support these learning needs in remote working environments?
Why Virtual Learning Is More Than Just VILT: Myths And Truths
Posted Aug 21, 2020 by Shannon Hart
Virtual learning includes any form of learning that occurs with the assistance of computer technology. Although in this context we often think of virtual classrooms with a live instructor teaching somewhere at a distance, virtual learning is much more than that. It is synonymous with eLearning.
Training is Critical to Implementing Successful Safety Response Plans.
Posted Jun 29, 2020 by Shelly Immel
Training and communication form the bridge between a company’s safety plan and its execution. That bridge can make the difference between effective behavior change and a nice idea that doesn’t go anywhere, or worse, is implemented badly and results in injury and increased liability.
OSHA Guidance: Reopening for Business – How Do You Identify and Isolate Sick People?
Posted Jun 23, 2020 by Monica Savage
The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us many things but has also introduced a lot of uncertainty to our work environments. It is clear that we need to make changes to our policies and processes, and ultimately shift our behavior.
Turning OSHA Guidance into Learning Deliverables: A Case Study in Effective Communication
Posted Jun 9, 2020 by Shannon Hart
As businesses navigate the uncertainty of re-opening during a global pandemic, effective communication and training around key infection prevention measures are crucial. Preview some examples of impactful deliverables and learn about things to consider when teaching your employees some important new ways of working.
Adapting Learning to the New Normal
Posted Jun 4, 2020 by Amanda Costa
Faced with the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations are having to pivot quickly to educate their employees in many previously unaddressed domains. The need for enhanced communication and education is heightened, as is the need for speed. As a learning and development organization, Obsidian Learning is uniquely positioned to help businesses quickly transform their messaging and learning assets into high-impact deliverables.
Reopening Your Business? Obsidian Learning’s Free eLearning Course Can Help.
Posted Jun 3, 2020 by Lubos Janoska
The responsibility to keep people safe while reopening all or part of a business location can feel daunting in these pandemic times. There’s so much to think about, layered with the financial pressure to make every dollar count.
The New Normal
Posted Apr 13, 2020 by Monica Savage
The Coronavirus crisis is not even close to be over. If and when businesses will get “back to normal”, it will to a “new normal” many of us have not expected. Here are the top five things we will be focusing on.
Communicating During Crisis
Posted Apr 8, 2020 by Monica Savage
In this time of global crisis, communication is more important than ever. Crisis communication should be part of all emergency preparedness and business continuity plans. Here, we are sharing a few tips your organization can use.
Stay Home, Work Safe - COVID-19 Houston, Week 1
Posted Apr 7, 2020 by Monica Savage
'Stay Home. Work Safe' order has been issued for Houston area. At the end of the first week, we are checking in and sharing a bit of our experience.
Measuring the Impact of Video Learning on Your Corporate Training ROI
Posted Mar 31, 2020 by Amanda Costa
Return on investment, applied to learning, can be a tricky concept. Theoretically, we know how to do it, but all too often, we just…don’t. Which is really too bad, because how can you know if the learning deliverables you’re creating are effective, if there’s no system in place for measurement?
Family and household management
Posted Mar 26, 2020 by Adam Lowry
As part of our series of blogs on working from home, Obsidian Learning employees are sharing their personal experiences to provide insight on the challenges they are facing and how they are addressing them. Program Manager Adam Lowry, father to two small children, gives us a window into how he and his wife are managing to balance family and work commitments.
Working from Home: Obsidian Learning’s Guide to Thrive
Posted Mar 25, 2020 by Amanda Costa
In an effort to comply with CDC and WHO recommendations regarding social distancing and, more recently, local authorities’ stay at home orders, all Obsidian Learning employees are currently working from home, and we thought it might be useful to share our experience in this domain with those of you facing this as a new reality.
Essential Criteria for Choosing the Right Video-Based Learning Model
Posted Mar 24, 2020 by Monica Savage
Video-based learning is a powerful learning tool. The medium is endowed with unique features that make it an effective learning method, able to enhance traditional instructor-led learning approaches and change the way we learn and the way we teach.
7 Dos and Don’ts to Design and Deliver Successful Video-Based Learning
Posted Mar 17, 2020 by Tom Stell
In Steven Presfield’s classic on writing Do the Work he recommends you put a post-it note on your computer that reads “What’s the theme?”. As we look to create compelling training videos, what would you put on your trusty laptop to keep you on track and heading for success?
Schools Face Rapid Transition to Virtual Learning, But There is Help Experts Say. A Press Release.
Posted Mar 15, 2020 by Monica Savage
More than 150 K-12 schools in the Houston Metro area are shuttered because of worries about spreading the coronavirus, affecting at least a million students, most of whom will be asked to shift to online learning.
6 Tips for Helping Learners Stay Engaged Remotely
Posted Mar 14, 2020 by Shannon Hart
Whether you are an educator in a school, an office worker, or a keynote speaker at next month’s conference, you are likely currently feeling the pressure of shifting to working remotely. How will you have the same impact teaching/learning/working from a distance?
5 Vital Steps to Create Appealing Corporate Training Videos
Posted Mar 10, 2020 by Timothy Spencer
When creating corporate training videos, sparking real interest instead of the usual jaw-breaking yawns is a challenge. In this chapter we’re going to provide you with some general tips for drawing your learners in and getting them not only to pay attention to your corporate training videos…but to want to pay attention.
5 Integral Elements of Emotionally and Socially Engaging Learning Videos
Posted Mar 3, 2020 by Timothy Spencer
Video can be an extremely efficient and impactful tool to convey important messages and learn new skills. Not all videos are created equally, however. If you’re looking for videos that engage employees both emotionally and socially, you need to put in place the right strategies to provoke the specific reaction, behavior change, or skill acquisition/enhancement.
4 Applications of Corporate Training Videos That Can Transform Your Workforce
Posted Feb 25, 2020 by Lubos Janoska
At Obsidian Learning we’ve created hundreds of animations, instructional videos, infomercials, explainer videos, and eClips. Based on our experience, here are four specific examples of applications of corporate training videos that led to workforce transformation.
3 Key Benefits of Video-Based Learning You Should Not Ignore
Posted Feb 18, 2020 by Shannon Hart
Video-based learning is an important tool in the learning arsenal. Whether as part of an instructor-led offering, embedded in an online course, or as a stand-alone learning asset, videos can be leveraged in many ways and with great impact.
How Video-Based Learning Impacts the Future of Corporate Training
Posted Feb 13, 2020 by Shelly Immel
Outside the firewall, the future of video-based learning is already here. How will the future arrive in your company? Here’s what you need to know to chart a successful path forward with video-based learning.
4 Secrets No One Will Tell You When Choosing Your Microlearning Platform
Posted Dec 31, 2019 by Shelly Immel
When trying to determine what’s most important and where to start, you might look first at your microlearning platform. These four secrets can shed light on your best path forward.
4 Essential Employee Satisfaction KPIs To Evaluate Your Microlearning Strategy
Posted Dec 24, 2019 by Monica Savage
Using KPIs to measure the success of learning programs means continually evaluating job goals, employee performance, and the organization overall.
5 Ways Microlearning Can Boost Your Corporate Training ROI
Posted Dec 17, 2019 by Amanda Costa
In lean times, corporate training is often the first area where budgets are trimmed. Organizations cut down on travel, lodging, and per diem costs, and often put the brakes on developing new training.
8 Benefits of Creating Microlearning Videos Based on Social Learning Elements
Posted Dec 10, 2019 by Shannon Hart
Social learning is powerful. We learn by watching others. Short learning videos, known as microlearning videos, can be a great addition to your blended learning solutions, especially when they have social learning elements.
How to Adapt Your Microcontent to Your Employees’ Social Needs
Posted Dec 3, 2019 by Shannon Hart
We intentionally address social needs in the hopes of fostering employee loyalty, increasing productivity, reducing turnover, and even increasing innovation.
5 Vital Elements of Engaging Microcontent
Posted Nov 26, 2019 by Shelly Immel
Microcontent has been lauded as a quick cure-all, and its potential is indeed vast. But like any other training, there’s good microcontent and then there’s the rest.
5 Ways Microlearning Increases Employee Satisfaction And Knowledge Retention
Posted Nov 19, 2019 by Lubos Janoska
At Obsidian Learning, we completely reject this model. The learning experiences we strive to create for our clients include couple of simple, non-negotiable criteria.
What is Microlearning and How Does it Drive Employee Engagement?
Posted Nov 11, 2019 by Lubos Janoska
Though most contemporary microlearnings are in digital form, there is more than enough evidence from our experience that microlearnings come in all different shapes and small sizes.
The Role of Memory in Learning: Encoding
Posted May 22, 2018 by Monica Savage
As we discussed in the previous blog article in this series, there are three main steps in the memory process: encoding, storing and retrieving. Here, we will take a closer look at the first step – encoding – and its role in learning.
Learning with Pareto
Posted Apr 24, 2018 by Monica Savage
In 1896, in his first paper, the economist Vilfredo Pareto demonstrated that approximately 80% of the land in Italy was owned by about 20% of the population. Thought many of us might have suspected that life is not “fair”, this idea quantified that principle. Things are not distributed evenly, every employee does not contribute the same amount, and every feature is not equally loved by users. These observations were generalized by Joseph Juran into what we call today the Pareto Principle or the 80:20 rule: “80% of the results originate from 20% of the effort.”
3 Cognitive Theories for Transforming Learning
Posted Apr 4, 2018 by Stephen Victor
In this article, we will take a look at some cognitive theories for transforming learning experiences.
The Role of Memory in Learning
Posted Mar 26, 2018 by Monica Savage
The human brain has fascinated me since I was a child. Understanding how one thinks, remembers, and acts is extremely complex. As a learning professional, I rely on brain science to ensure the efficiency of the programs I design. This blog series addresses some of the more basic concepts of memory and learning, and their application in real life learning design.
7 Knowledge Retention Techniques For eLearning
Posted Mar 15, 2016 by Christopher Pappas
They say that knowledge is power, but it’s only powerful if your learners are able to effectively retain and recall the information when the need arises. In this article, I’ll share 7 techniques to enhance knowledge retention techniques you can take into account in your next eLearning course design.
6 Best Practices for Applying Spaced Learning in Online Training
Posted Mar 1, 2016 by Christopher Pappas
Are you concerned about cognitive overload undermining the effectiveness of your online training program? In this article, I'll highlight the best practices for applying Spaced Learning in your online training strategy, so that you can improve knowledge retention and recall among your staff members.
The Science of Learning: Thoughts From The Experts
Posted Jun 6, 2015 by Monica Savage
The first session I attended at ATD ICE after the Opening Session was a panel on the Science of Learning. The panel was facilitated by Justin Brusino (@atdSciLearn, @atdLearnTech) and included Sebastian Bailey (@DrSebBailey), Julie Dirksen (@usablelearning), Karl Kapp (@kkapp), Alice Kim (@AliceSNKim), and Art Kohn.
Making Connections: Trends in Social Learning
Posted Mar 11, 2015 by Stephen Victor
As instructional designers, we're aware of various theories about how and why people learn. And, of course, we've heard about social learning. As mobile technology advances, learning has moved from the classroom and the desktop computer, to the world. And just as technology has advanced, learning theory has advanced. So, where are we going with learning theory in the 21st century? Here are some possibilities.
That’s Not My Style: Learning Preferences and Instructional Design
Posted Mar 5, 2015 by Stephen Victor
Why do we still speak of people (or ourselves) as having a "visual" or "auditory" (or "tactile" and so on) learning style? Let's take a look at what the research literature has to say on "learning styles" and how they apply to instruction.
Adult Learning Theory and Training Design
Posted Feb 20, 2015 by Stephen Victor
In this article, we'll take a look at the assumptions of adult learning theory and explore ways in which to apply it to the design of corporate eLearning.
What Are You Doing to Support Your Online Learners
Posted Feb 13, 2015 by Stephen Victor
We all know that online learning is on the rise. But what are we doing to support learners in the online environment?