Two years ago, Delotte LLP an audit, financial advisory, tax and consulting firm, set out to offer the best possible staff training to their 186,000 employees and partners from 154 countries worldwide. They studied the "bricks versus clicks" options and what they settled on was a $300 million, 5 story training center solution. 

"We wanted to do something special and different," said Bill Pelster, Principal at Deloitte Consulting. "We had a great debate: Do we want to develop our talent in a physical or virtual environment? No matter how we sliced it, people wanted to a physical facility." 

Based on an article in the June edition of PCMA Convene magazine, here is a summary of how Delotte conducts their training sessions, what conference service organizers can learn from this process, and how interactive technology tool rentals can help. 

Deloitte Discovery #1: Virtual is Not Free. 

When Deloitte considered virtual learning as an option, they realized creating the right digital environment would require a huge capital investment. In interviewing their cross-generational employees, their request overwhelming was face-to-face training. 

Deloitte Discovery #2: Training Went from Lecture to Experimental. 

By dividing the classroom up into small teams of 5 individuals, Deloitte is able to deliver effective training through simulations, case studies, and analysis to solve complex corporate problems. Less talking and more doing. 

Deloitte Discovery #3: History has its Value. 

Having one location where the deep company history could be captured and taught by Deloitte employees is important to upper management and company stakeholders. Because they were founded in 1845, providing employees with a sampling of the culture can effectively be delivered in a face-to-face training setting. 

Deloitte Discovery #4: Shared Common Experience is Paramount to Training Success. 

Being a large global organization, they want new and existing employees to understand how Deloitte is branded around the world and the complexities of how they do business in other countries. 

Deloitte Discovery #5: Touch Screen Technology Helps Employees Stay Connected.

When an employee registers for a training session, their profile is loaded into the system and attendees can touch a large screen and see who else is attending their training session. 

Here are the Key Training Takeaways from the Delotte Experience:

1. Remember that setting up a virtual training experience can be as expensive as face-to-face training because it demands many service providers, technology options, and additional bandwidth. 
    
2. Rent iPads, wireless Audience Response Systems, and wireless microphones in order to keep your employees engaged and involved. 
    
3. Never underestimate the benefit of sharing company history and values with employees —  especially new hires. 
    
4. Video Wall rentals and touch panel kiosks can help keep attendees and employees engaged with each other and remain knowledgeable about real-time happenings at the conference through social media, video, photos, and the Web. 

AV Event Solutions is your one-stop shopping site for your training and conference needs. Give them a call today at 888.249.4903 to learn more about their training services options!