Training Industry Magazine - Spring 2023 - 46

connect. For example, maybe you have
a wonderful leadership development
program and a robust technical learning
series. Perhaps it would be beneficial to
create an experiential workshop that can
combine the practice of these skills to
reinforce the topics discussed in those
sessions and foster employee fellowship.
Keep it simple and practice facilitating:
Providing these opportunities can be
fun and a great way to have a " change
of pace " within your L&D initiatives.
Keep in mind that facilitating experiential
programs can become extremely
complex very quickly. One of the
benefits of an experiential opportunity,
of course, is having flexible and organic
sessions. With that come scenarios and
reflections that take unexpected turns.
The spontaneity of the program can
easily get out of hand: The challenge
might be approached in ways that are
out of the facilitators' wheelhouse - or
a debrief question during the reflection
can open the door for answers that
the facilitator is now unsure how to
connect back to the objectives. Starting
with small groups and small objectives,
building confidence with facilitation and
expanding slowly as facilitation skills
increase is the fool-proof way to get
your feet wet.
Design opportunities in sequence:
As participants move from experience
to experience, the objectives (and
the necessary skills) should be tiered
appropriately. We never want to set
our participants up for failure; however,
or
Experiential
learning is a
wonderful
framework to
combine human
and performance
skills practice
into one program.
pre-recorded experience
is
not
the same as doing it live. Just as we
know the difference between going to
a concert in-person versus watching
the recording afterward, much of the
impact comes from the synchronous,
in-person nature of the experience. To
be adaptable and to meet the needs
of the participants' circumstances,
facilitation should be live. This takes
time and availability - things that many
training departments are struggling
to find.
we do want them to be challenged.
Matching challenges and objectives to
groups and the individuals within each
group appropriately, we can create
opportunities that build off what the
group already knows while still allowing
them to learn more. Opportunities with
challenges that are too advanced or
too simplistic will frustrate or bore the
participants. To engage learners and
allow them to struggle,
it's crucial to
find challenges that have components
that they have and have not quite yet
mastered. Think of this as pushing a
participant or group out of their comfort
zone but not pushing them too far into
their danger zone. Look for the right
challenge for the right person.
Synchronous formatting: Experiential
learning cannot be done without
experience. Trying to create a canned
Experiential learning is a wonderful
framework to combine human and
performance skills practice into one
program, exercising the intersection
of these two approaches. Within our
traditional L&D programs, experiential
opportunities are best used in conjunction
with other training as an ideal option for
reinforcing and tweaking both technical
and interpersonal skills. Facilitating and
guiding participants through dynamic
learning challenges is not a simple skill,
but over time and with practice, it can
result in teams that are more confident
and better able to address our strategic
business needs.
Benji Wittman, MBA, is the support training
and operations supervisor at Sweetwater
Sound. Before stepping into the corporate
training world, Benji was an outdoor
educator and facilitator - using the basis
of experiential learning to develop groups'
trust, planning, communication, problemsolving,
leadership, self-esteem, decisionmaking
and teamwork skills. Email Benji.
MATCHING THE RIGHT CHALLENGE TO THE RIGHT PERSON THE RIGHT PERSON
TCHING THE RIGHT CHALLENGE
Creating experiences to challenge and facilitate learning on an experiential basis is not as simple
as creating a " one-size-fits-all " experience. Everyone has their own strengths, weaknesses and
experiences that may affect their response. An experience that is too easy may be perceived as a
waste of time or menial. On the contrary, a challenge that is too difficult, or out of scope, may
lower self-confidence and/or cause unnecessary discouragement. Each person will have a
different threshold for challenges outside their comfort zone. Challenges should be designed
within this window, just outside their comfort zone. With each new additional challenge, the
individual and the team continue to scale and grow.
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Training Industry Magazine - Spring 2023

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