Back to the Periodic Table

Explore the elements from Brian Washburn’s book
What’s Your Formula? Combine Learning Elements for Impactful Training.

email
Email_Learning

Email

(EE-mALE)

interactive elements
Interactive

What is Email?

Email is a web-based means of communication that allows users to send messages, share information and links, and attach resources.

email as a training tool

Key Properties

The core properties of email are:

  • An electronic form of communication 
  • Allows people to send and receive information in the body of a message or through a file attachment.

Insight for Your INbox

  • "The final element on the periodic table is perhaps the one used most often— every day in all aspects of our lives, both personal and professional. Email is an electronic form of communication that allows people to send and receive information in the body of a message or through a file attachment. It has been commonly used and widely accessible since the early 1990s and hasn’t changed much since then, except maybe that most of us now have access to email everywhere we go through our mobile devices."
  • "Scheduling a series of emails that provide information, content, resources, surveys, and other learning instruments can be a way to transform your program from a standalone event to an ongoing learning experience. Using a tool like MailChimp let’s you enter your learners’ contact information and automate an entire campaign in which your learners receive messaging, information, and even assignments at a regular interval."
  • "Sometimes it’s difficult for trainers to find out just what the learners have chosen to do with their newfound knowledge or skills once a course has been completed (think: Level 3 evaluation). It can be helpful to ask participants to email you with some examples of how they’ve put your content into action. In return, you can respond with a Certificate of Completion (after all, the course isn’t really complete until the learner applies key learnings in real life, right?) or small giveaways like a book on the topic or even a $5 gift card for coffee."
Whats Your Formula book
Order your copy to learn more about email as a learning tool and all of the related elements.

Elements You Might Find Attached to Email

supervisor supportSupervisor Support

Making sure a supervisor is included in your participant’s course of learning is the best way to support the transfer of knowledge into real world application. Emailing resources—such as a course outline, goals, how it can help participants, or a goal setting template—to help make sure the right people are attending and that participants and supervisors are on the same page when it comes to value and learning outcomes can be incredibly helpful.

follow upFollow-up

Once a learning program has finished, there are lots of reasons you can send an email to follow up and keep the content front-of-mind for your participant. Level 1 and Level 2 evaluations; photos of flipcharts that were taken during the session; sending resources, links, or folders from SharePoint where more information can be found; attaching the slide deck used in a class; or simply checking in to see what questions people have now that they’ve returned to work are all examples of ways to follow up via email.