In 2014, our Executive Leadership Team challenged us to redesign our New Agent Sales Training Program to provide significant cost savings to the organization. We were tasked with modifying a 10-Day instructor-led course into a 5-Day instructor-led course that would meet the same objectives.

Designed a robust, Virtual Training platform to provide quality, activity-based education, delivered by our L&D Facilitation team to our New Agents across the country.

To do this, we needed to develop a blended approach to our education, which included:

• Pre-class Phase
• Sales School Phase
• Virtual Product Training Phase
• Post Sales School online Courses Phase

One of our biggest challenges was to develop a post-sales school education strategy for 3000 agents annually, to provide quality, activity-based product training that included role-play and met the objective of getting them “field ready” for each product.

• Obtaining support and adoption of our Virtual Training program requires pushing the limits on standard webcasting practices and a commitment to the consistent improvement of the design and delivery of the program.
• A clear and effective change management strategy must be designed and executed to make Virtual Training a standard component of an Education model. This means everyone involved; Sr. Leadership, Field Partners, L&D, Administration, etc. Everyone needs to be on board!
• The cement can never dry – being on the “cutting edge” requires “staying on the cutting edge,” we cannot get comfortable or complacent with our current model.