The “Compliance cram” habit of ticking completion boxes rather than truly engaging, inhibits learning and retention

It's the day before your team’s compliance training is due for completion, and instead of appearing prepared and motivated, you notice your staff are rushing through it, half-listening, and trying to get through the material as fast as possible.

Everyone’s more focused on ticking completion boxes than truly engaging with the content and educating themselves. This "compliance cram" habit isn't effective for learning or retention.

Why do staff leave training until the last minute, and how can we make it something they actually look forward to?

From the perspective of a staff member, training can often feel tedious: "I’m here to do my job and make money, not sit through hours of boring training videos.”

When material is dry, repetitive, and far removed from their day-to-day tasks, it’s no wonder they leave it until the last minute, prioritising other tasks over mind-numbing slides, videos or classroom training.

Spice Up Your Compliance Training with These Engaging Ideas

Snack-Sized Content: Break down training into short, digestible modules - think minutes, not hours - done over a few weeks instead of one long session, so training can fit into busy schedules, and reduce the temptation to procrastinate.

Have fun with it (even if it’s cringey): Click Up went viral on TikTok recently with this fresh approach to what would normally be a monotonous HR training session. While we can’t say all the dancing was work-appropriate, the comments show how well received a little silliness is in what is usually a pretty dull experience at work!

Don’t let your content go stale: If learners are making fun of outfits and hairstyles (or you’re bringing in the TV trolley and DVD player), it’s time to update your training! Fresh content has a better chance at maintaining attention.

Add a Little Play Time with Challenges and Friendly Competition: Interactive elements help reinforce learning and make the process more enjoyable. Think about how you can incorporate a challenge or role-play scenario into your online learning, maybe even a ‘choose your own adventure’ module! Friendly competition among staff can help create a sense of community ‘we’re in this together’ vibe, making training more fun.

Use media styles people already enjoy consuming: Podcasts, short-form video and interactive polls are all having a moment - where can you include these in your training? Diverse media options help cater to different learning styles.

Procrastination on compliance training is a common issue, but it doesn't have to be. When you make training fun, interactive, and relevant, you can transform it from a tedious last-minute chore to an activity people look forward to.

If you need a hand creating more engaging training for your workplace, get in touch - we’d love to help!

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Want to learn more about intrinsic motivation and how to design learning experiences where the learner’s self-desire is the main motivator? Get in touch.

About the author

Tricia Martin is an FYA Young Social Pioneer and an Australian Women Leading Tech Finalist. She also coached an Under 9’s netball team in her local community, which she thinks is just as impressive. She continually looks for ways to use technology, behavioural science and digital experiences to meet people’s needs and find people-centred solutions to messy problems. She spends her free time reading sci-fi books, scouring thrift stores and watching Buffy for the fifteenth time.