Organizational Training Modalities: Investigating the Impact of Learner Preference on Performance

Employee training is a strategic business investment, a manifestation of firms’ commitment to improve service, operations, career development, and employee performance. Traditionally, training has been delivered in a face-to-face format. However, new training modalities of e-learning and mobile learning have emerged.  Managers and workforce training professionals often face the challenge of selecting training modes that are economical, convenient, effective, and in the format preferred by the employees. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether learner preference for a training modality impacts the learners’ training performance. A group of 103 study participants completed a workforce training module in one of three training modalities, face-to-face, e-learning, and mobile learning. Study participants completed a four-step experiment, which included a pre-assessment, training intervention, post-assessment, and survey.  The research showed that although there was an interaction between training preference and training method on post-assessment performance, there was no significant difference in the training performance of learners who were trained in their preferred method versus those who not trained in their preferred method. This indicates that organizational training and development professionals should base their decision on other factors. Keywords: training, e-learning, mobile learning, workforce development, preference, organizational training, employee training, human resource development