TLDR - I think in a post-Covid19 society, virtual training will be the default, but live training will return to office campuses and quarterly onsites.

Training Flipped

The last year threw corporate training for a loop. One week I was wrapping up a wonderful Machine Learning course for my biggest client and the next week they had dropped the dozen classes they had planned for the year.

It is never fun to lose your biggest client, but rather than look back, I doubled down and invested in upping my virtual training skills. I read a lot of material, bought equipment, and the feedback has been wonderful:

I have had many programming teachers who were super knowledgeable but didn't know much about pedagogy or vice versa and it was refreshing to be taught by someone who had both sets of skills.

Over all I think this was an excellent course and worthwhile. I like your teaching style and appreciate your willingness to answer questions, even when you had already explained it once before.

I really enjoyed it and learned a lot, thanks!

Default to Work from Home?

The jury is mixed on what the future of work will look like. Tech titans like Netflix and Google are insisted on a return to the office, while Twitter is leading the way pushing for permanent work from home. Between these extremes are the many companies that can operate remotely, but may do so only part time.

I asked my network on Twitter and LinkedIn and got very mixed results. The only take away is that a small percentage of my contacts will be going to the Netflix/Google model. The question is the degree from which they will work from home.

Where does Training Go?

My feeling is that much of training will remain virtual. However, I'm getting feeders from my network that in-person training is also desired. I suspect much of this may migrate to onsites.

I feel that even with my investment into virtual training, in-person is just a bit better. You get to see people (many are Zoom-shy or just Zoom-exhausted), you can help them easier, and they can help each other easier.

If you are looking for virtual or in-person (I'm vaccinated) training for Python or Data Science, reach out. Happy to help!