9 Harassment Training Features to Consider

Each year, the Projections team talks with hundreds of professionals, looking for the best training for their employees. Of course, when we talk about preventing bad behavior in the workplace, there are quite a few harassment training features to evaluate. And because so many professionals know our thoughts and feelings on all things “employee communication,” they often ask about competing products so they can get an idea of what’s available.

Considering how crucial it is to prevent any type of harassment, it’s vital for your company to have a quality harassment prevention training program that specifically meets the needs of both your employees and managers. What, however, makes it a quality program?

We’re never ones to shy away from being blatantly honest with respect to competition, and we want every company we work with to be as informed as possible. Here is a list of nine crucial harassment training features to consider, as well as what other providers may offer.

#1: What’s The Training Platform?

How you deliver your harassment prevention training can be nearly as important as the content itself. If you’ve done this training in the past, you know that you can put in a ton of time and effort and still watch the training fail. There are several reasons why this happens, but the underlying cause is often the same: the training platform by which you delivered the knowledge didn’t resonate within your company’s culture.

So what training platform works for you? Harassment training features to look for include multiple ways of delivering information, interactivity and yes, even how entertaining the delivery method is! Those taking the class may also want addition communication options for personal messaging, particularly if you deliver the harassment training in a group setting. Other aspects learners might want in a good training platform include the ability to customize the content and to collaborate with other students or instructors.

According to Gamelearn, there are a few must-have harassment training features. These include quality content, interaction, and adaptability to several different types of learners. No matter what the platform consists of, an ideal training platform integrates seamlessly every feature of the program. Integrated training means it’s not difficult to transition from one part of the training into another, and that it all works effectively together. The following information highlights various aspects of seven different harassment prevention training platforms.

HR Train focuses on other areas such as HIPPA and workplace ethics. Their platform requires learners to keep clicking to progress through each step of the training. Learners can bookmark where they are in the training so they can easily start and stop the process if necessary.

Traliant harassment training features bite-sized increments. They compare it to what an individual would view in a Hulu or Netflix-style episode. The scenarios are together online with a variety of possible outcomes.

Kantola Training Solutions focuses on harassment training as well as health and safety issues. They provide several platforms for users to choose from, including classroom streaming, online training, and DVDs. 

Clear Law Institute offers a wide range of classes and services beyond harassment prevention training. They also offer classes that go toward CLE requirements. They have thousands of classes and webinars on every topic from law and accounting to harassment prevention.

Trainingnow.com offers harassment training and alcohol and food safety training. The programs are mobile-friendly. They also offer it in both English and Spanish.

Compliance Training Group provides sexual harassment training as well as substance abuse and violence in the workplace training. Their programs include e-learning, webinars, train the trainer programs, and on-site training.

#2: How Easy is it to Use?

Ease of use starts by examining the ease of working with the training provider. Is their harassment training clean, clear, and easy to understand? What is the difficulty level of navigation or interactivity? Is the training itself easy to implement, operate, and use for you and your staff? If the company’s website or the training materials are challenging to use, these things can hinder the learning process.

The next feature to look for is the learner’s ability to know where they are and what progress they’ve made. Many times employees (and managers in particular) need or want to take harassment prevention training at their convenience. Finally, are the courses easy to navigate, is there technical support and does the same material easily transition and work well on different devices?

HR Train lists several specific courses on their website, with photos and detailed explanations regarding the course. Potential customers can go through these samples and see which courses – including harassment prevention – might work well for their company.

Traliant provides training in small chunks or episodes and promotes several possible outcomes. They also include gamification with a point system, rewards, puzzles, and other challenges. 

Kantola Training Solutions offers the same variety of delivery methods. Reviews, including names of specific companies, state that the program is very user-friendly.

Clear Law Institute provides access on tablets and mobile, as well as desktop computers. They also offer to assist with any technical support issues that may arise.

Trainingnow.com’s program is also mobile-friendly and is available in both English and Spanish. 

Compliance Training Group promotes a program that is focused on legal compliance and allows individual users to complete the training online at their own pace over the course of a month. 

#3: Is The Training Legally Compliant In the States In Which You Operate?

Compliance is a critically important aspect of running almost any business. Your harassment prevention training program should meet all compliance standards. It’s not worth investing in any program that isn’t compliant with all federal and state guidelines. 

Since laws and regulations are continually changing, it’s crucial to stay current. For example, California SB 1343 takes effect on January 1, 2020. This law requires sexual harassment training for all employees within 6 months of their starting date. It’s for companies with 5 or more employees. It’s also important to note that compliance often differs between managers and employees. A training program must also change and adapt to keep up with all compliance laws and regulations.

HR Train provides a compliance tracking tool. They offer access to a website that provides information about those who go through the training program. They state that the material meets the state and federal criteria for harassment training.

Traliant states that they specifically cover compliance for New York, California, Connecticut, and Illinois. They also provide EEOC training.

Kantola Training Solutions harassment training features a “compliance bundle.” Kantola states on their website that they cover all state and federal requirements.

Clear Law Institute – A former lawyer with the U.S. Department of Justice founded the company. They also have a team of in-house legal experts. They claim to provide compliance in all fifty states.

Trainingnow.com states that they are compliant for California, Connecticut, and New York. They do not explicitly state whether or not their harassment training is compliant in any other states.

Compliance Training Group – The company emphasizes meeting compliance standards at a variety of levels. Compliance Training Group also provides OSHA compliance training and background checks on employees and new hires.

#4: Are There Reporting & Completion Tracking Capabilities?

The truth is that for all the harassment cases we hear about in the news, there are hundreds – even thousands – that go unreported. Excellent harassment prevention training programs help learners see that reporting is the key to prevention. A training program is not ultimately effective if there isn’t a system of reporting both “experienced” and “witnessed” (or bystander) harassment. The training should also instruct managers on how to safeguard the privacy of those reporting harassment, so there isn’t a fear of retaliation.

A quality harassment prevention program also provides administrators with the ability to track employees that go through the training. How many employees take the training? How long is it taking the employees to finish the program? It’s essential for a program that offers independent online learning to provide reporting for management.

HR Train provides the ability for management to track where employees are regarding completing the program.

Traliant – They provide a compliance manager app that can help with reporting. It enables managers to send reminder emails to employees that are late taking the training.

Kantola Training Solutions harassment training features reporting and tracking for completion of all courses, easily accessible by the admin.

Clear Law Institute – They send periodic reports regarding which employees are taking the course.

Trainingnow.com provides compliance tracking. The website doesn’t state whether they offer specific options for management to track when employees complete courses.

Compliance Training Group doesn’t provide the ability to access your reports online but offers emailed progress reports as often as you wish.

#5: How Much Interactivity Does the Program Offer Learners?

People retain 75 percent of what they do and only 5 percent of what they hear. This fact makes role-playing a critical harassment training feature. 

Role-playing scenarios allow employees to work through situations that may occur in the workplace. Even if employees don’t role-play every possible situation they may encounter on the job, engaging in even a few scenarios can help build critical thinking and judgment skills. Some of the training products on the market provide role-playing options; however, most don’t appear to offer this option.

HR Train‘s videos provide specific scenarios from which employees can learn. They don’t appear, however, to provide interactive role-playing scenarios.

Traliant offers interactive elements and gamification as part of their learning process. 

Kantola Training Solutions – They offer simplified learning, which is video content and short quizzes. Their interactive e-learning program is more extensive and engaging. 

Clear Law Institute  harassment training features games such as Jeopardy in their training. They also provide training that is a story approach.

Trainingnow.com – Role-playing is not specifically on the website as part of their program.

Compliance Training Group – This training does not promote any particular role-playing scenarios in any of their program descriptions.

#6: Does The Training Offer Separate Courses for Managers and Employees?

Managers and employees must receive separate harassment prevention training. There are several reasons why this is important. Managers and supervisors need more training than their employees because they’re in leadership positions. It falls on managers to not only recognize, refrain from, and stop various forms of harassment, but to create a healthy work environment that discourages all types of harassment.

Having separate training for managers and employees is just the first step. Each specific group should receive training that caters and fits their specific positions in the organization. Managers not only need to know how to eliminate any undesirable behaviors they may exhibit but must recognize harassment in their employees. They also must respond appropriately and quickly to complaints of harassment.

HR Train also offers separate training for employees and supervisors.

Traliant offers different types of training for both employees and management.

Kantola Training Solutions states that both manager and employee training comes in a single DVD.

Clear Law Institute offers a wide variety of programs for employees and management.

Trainingnow.com harassment training features training for general employees and associates who are not in management positions. Companies must purchase a completely separate course for managers and supervisors.

Compliance Training Group – They state on the home page of their website that they provide learning for employees, supervisors, and executives.

#7: Does The Training Cover Nuanced Situations?

Sometimes real-life situations don’t fit neatly into a specific category. It’s important to tell real stories instead of creating a checklist of do’s and don’ts. Nuanced situations often occur in real life. While addressing every situation that may occur in the workplace isn’t practical in any single training program, it is essential to include at least some examples.

Of course, harassment can be subjective. An employee discussing dates they’ve been on in detail or standing “too” close to another employee can be examples of nuanced situations. These are the types of situations that are often the most confusing to employees. A good harassment training program features scenarios that some employees may not recognize as inappropriate.

HR Train provides a variety of specific situations from which learners can gain understanding. For example, they discuss particular email scenarios that might occur in the workplace and how an employee should handle them.

The Traliant program allows users to choose alternative endings when using their interactive videos.

Kantola Training Solutions harassment training features what they call “micro-learning” and a variety of interactive exercises.

Clear Law Institute states that they focus on the “gray area” of real-life situations.

Trainingnow.com doesn’t specifically address nuanced situations.

Compliance Training Group emphasizes laws and policy over subtleties and subjective judgment. 

#8: What Experience Does The Training Provider Have?

Experience matters in developing a detailed and in-depth training program that works. After years of developing and accessing different training methods, an experienced trainer can put together a more effective harassment prevention program.

It’s important to note that experience isn’t only made up of the number of years a company is in business. Even though a harassment training program has only been around a short time, the individuals running the program may have years of valuable experience.

HR Train began training employees in 1995.

Traliant is the new kid on the block, having put together their harassment prevention program in 2016.

Kantola Training Solutions started in 1985.

Clear Law Institute harassment training features extensive legal experience among its leadership at Clear Law Institute. Most include individuals who are attorneys or have experience in governmental agencies. The company started in 2011.

Trainingnow.com  began in 2004.

Compliance Training Group also began in 2004.

#9: How Much Does It Cost?

Every training manager has a budget and needs to keep costs in mind when purchasing or investing in harassment prevention training. Of course, efficacy is vital, but you’re also looking for a training program that offers reasonable costs. You may even be looking for customization options that fit the specific needs of your organization. There are different pricing options for every budget.

While many harassment prevention programs may give discounts when buying in bulk, they often don’t offer other pricing options. Other options could include having the choice of paying monthly as well as annually. Some trainers also charge different rates for training employees and managers.

Look for simplified pricing options to keep confusion – and surprises – to a minimum.

HR Train states that their costs are lower than live training. (Most online training, however, is usually less costly than a live trainer.) They don’t list actual costs on their website and require companies to fill out a form to receive a specific quote.

Traliant – While an online review states that the prices are reasonable, the company does not list prices on their website.

Kantola Training Solutions – Both Simplified and eLearning program packages require businesses to contact the company for a quote. Their online training, “Diversity and Inclusion – a Step by Step Guide,” sells for $350 for 25 users. This price includes both the manager and employee courses. They also offer a free trial as well as bulk discounts, starting with a minimum of 100 learners.

Clear Law Institute – Costs vary depending on the number of employees and length of training. A business needs to fill out and send an e-form to the company to receive quotes on specific pricing. Most webinars are $199 per person and last for an hour and fifteen minutes. They also offer group discounts.

Trainingnow.com – Your cost for harassment prevention training is $11.95 for each employee for a single online course that is half an hour in length. The cost for each online course for a manager is $15.95. These courses are either an hour and a half or two hours in length, depending on your state’s requirements. There is the option of signing up for a corporate account that adds perks such as customization, specialized learning portals, and access to an account manager.

Compliance Training Group – Several of their courses cost $19.99 for an hour of instruction.

Your decision should be based on the harassment training features you need most. Depending on how you prioritize the training platform and the ease of learner use, you may want to evaluate several harassment-prevention training providers. If legal compliance in the states in which you operate is a top priority, look for a provider that prioritizes it as well, with reporting and tracking capabilities that meet your needs.

You may feel strongly about the effect this harassment prevention training has on your organization. If that’s the case, be sure to look for excellent interactivity and separate courses for managers and employees. You want to make sure the training you choose addresses nuanced situations and that your provider has the experience needed to make a strong impression on your company’s culture. Finally, your harassment prevention training choice may come down to price. Be sure you are clear with your provider and that you won’t find any surprises when you’re invoiced.