Why E-learning Works Best For Product Training In The Pharma Industry

ELearning is gaining ground across the world as a preferred method for training and ongoing performance support. It is quickly being embraced within the pharmaceutical sector as well. The pharmaceutical industry faces its share of challenges when it comes to training its employees. Considering the constant amendments to the regulations of the pharmaceutical industry, the exact nature of products, speed of research, and different go-to-showcase models, training is in a constant state of flux. Given the changing face of the pharma industry and its need for rapid training solutions, eLearning has become increasingly popular today and more and more organizations are hopping on board!

This blog looks at how eLearning is ideal for product training within the Pharmaceutical industry. By eLearning, I am referring to the utilization of any technology-based delivery of content. In addition, it also includes tests and ongoing evaluation and administration of learning content.

Presents a Consistent Message

One of the biggest drawbacks of classroom training is the possibility of various instructors emphasizing or conveying varying information. eLearning has the advantage of giving a consistent message to everybody. eLearning is especially viable where the same information needs to be conveyed to a big group of learners, for instance, in the case of product training for a global workforce.

When your audience is geographically dispersed, and you have to disseminate product information to all the employees, eLearning works best. When all the learners are given the same content, there is consistency and the message is spread evenly. On the other hand, when there are multiple instructors handling the same subject, the content taught is not consistent. For instance, instructor A might quote examples that are pertinent to his region, while instructor B might quote other examples and some important information can also slip through the cracks. With eLearning, such inconsistencies and situations can be avoided.

Is Flexible and Rapid in Delivery

eLearning truncates the time required in the classroom, with learners not having to invest as much time away from their work. By shifting training to the virtual domain, travel costs are also drastically cut down, leading to expanded profitability. Take for example, a two-week classroom training for sales reps. With eLearning, training can be spread out into four two-hour eLearning sessions, interspersed with time in the field and a one-day session in a classroom. This approach would have reduced the training time and learners would have sufficient energy and time to review and consolidate their learning. This is a more practical approach for training staff than a 100% face-to-face approach.

Supplements Other Learning

According to research, learners require four or five exposures to information to assimilate it, so eLearning is the ideal supplement to course readings, clinical papers, and classroom sessions. Also, eLearning is especially powerful for simple, self-check tests that help learners test their learning. With online training, sales reps and healthcare professionals have the benefit of receiving supplementary training also at any time, from anywhere, on any device, and on the go, thereby reducing time away from work and improving productivity. Additionally, having all the relevant content available through an LMS is of great support in pharma product training because it can provide just-in-time product information to reps interacting with customers. Also, videos can be used in product training to help learners understand better.

Assists in Record-Keeping

With the kind of regulations and ongoing amendments in the pharmaceutical industry, it’s not surprising that retaining training records is highly important. This feature tops the list of advantages offered by eLearning. eLearning administration frameworks enable organizations to maintain training records and encapsulate data about learners’ accomplishments. The capacity to record and print scores of eLearning courses for evaluation during appraisals is of great help for training managers. Through training deployed on an LMS, you can also analyze the results of learners to understand where they lag behind and where they need assistance.

It is clear that eLearning is a winning solution when it comes to training employees in the pharmaceutical industry. However, this doesn’t mean that eLearning has to be the only solution, rather, that it can be a significant part of the solution. You should weigh all available options and then decide on the best mode of training for your employees. What are the challenges that you faced when implementing training programs for your pharma staff? What mode of training did you choose? We would love to hear it.