Engagement is critical for the learning process. If the material or approach do not capture the attention of your employees, your safety training will not be as effective. This could result in knowledge gaps, injuries, or worse, simply because your team was not giving the training their full attention.

Finding ways to make your safety training engaging is essential if you want to protect your workers and the company. If you do not know where to begin, here are some tips.

Your training program should align with your safety priorities. Often, this requires a full risk assessment, ensuring you understand your biggest threats as well as which employees are most at risk.

Examine workspaces, tasks, equipment, processes, and anything else that can shine a light on potential issues within your company. As you perform your review, also look at any near misses that could indicate a problem even when there is not an actual injury associated with the event.

Then, you can target these points specifically during your training, ideally at the beginning of the session when everyone is most alert. This increases the odds your priorities will be addressed at a time when recall and retention capabilities are at their peak.

Using the best training approach based on your employees’ preferences is a must. While some workers may be able to tolerate a long lecture, others will start to tune out fairly quickly, so it might not be the best option if you want to increase engagement. Similarly, not everyone thrives if you use computer solutions for independent learning, especially if they are distracted by their duties, face constant interruptions, or are not particularly tech-savvy.

Research different training options and see which one (or ones) best align with your company goals and your workers’ preferred learning styles. That way, you can select an approach that is more likely to engage your staff, increasing their recall and retention.

When workplace safety is an aspect of your culture, you do not have to rely on formal training to increase learning. Instead, make every accident, near miss, or issue a training opportunity, encouraging people to explore solutions and learn how they can avoid the problem in the future.

Inadvertently, this approach also promotes bite-sized training, which may be more digestible. Instead of long sessions, you are focusing on single topics for a short period, making it easier for employees to stay engaged during the discussion.

While this may not substitute for formal training, it can increase safety awareness quickly and efficiently, ensuring your workforce always has safety on their mind.

If you would like to know more about effective safety training options, the professionals at The Advance Group can help. Contact us for a free staffing consultation and see how our workplace safety expertise can benefit you.