In today’s fast-paced digital world, the demand for new skills training is growing at a rapid pace. Because of this, many companies are looking to develop virtual training solutions to help their employees get up to speed as quickly as possible. The popularity of virtual IT labs has increased in recent years due to their ability to provide users with remote, guided, and self-paced instruction, allowing trainees to access resources from any location with internet access. In this blog post, we’ll explore what virtual IT labs are, why they’re important for businesses, and how you can implement them in your organization.

What are Virtual IT Labs?

A virtual IT lab is a hands-on remote lab environment where employees can practice and perform tasks. Virtual IT labs allow organizations to create, manage and deploy virtual machines for training and development that can be accessed remotely. This allows employees to learn more at their own pace, on their own time, and in a secure environment. Virtual IT labs are also known as virtual labs, cloud labs, or desktop services (DaaS). These labs are created and maintained in the cloud by a managed service provider (MSP) such as a virtualization service provider or a software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider.

A virtual IT lab is usually built for collaborative and hands-on activities that are driven by a specific set of virtualized systems. Virtual IT labs are designed to simulate real-world scenarios so employees can practice what they’ve learned in a safe environment. They can be used to train employees at scale, regardless of their geographic location. This is ideal for organizations who have distributed teams and require employees to follow the same process or workflow. 

With virtual labs, organizations can create an environment where everyone can follow the same process and receive the same training no matter where they’re located. This helps minimize the risk of creating issues in customers’ environments. Virtual labs are also useful for organizations that need to comply with regulatory requirements. This is because you can put together all your controls and checklists in the lab environment and then deploy them to customers from there.

How Technology Has Shaped Training Demands

Technology is rapidly changing how we operate as organizations. These changes are not just from the adoption of new software, hardware or processes. It is also about how we use technology and the ecosystems around it to create experiences that go beyond what typical users expect. Technology adoption has forced us to reimagine our processes and adopt new ways of working so we can remain competitive in the market. Technological shifts require a new approach to training and development programs within an organization—particularly because many businesses have been using the same approach for decades. In today’s market, however, many people are unwilling to undergo this type of learning again and again at different companies. As such, virtual IT labs are key to the future of training.

Why is Virtualization Important to the Future of Training?

As the world becomes increasingly virtual, organizations will need to develop greater hybrid environments. This is particularly true when it comes to training and development programs. As such, virtualization is important to the future of training. Virtualization allows for the centralization and management of resources, as well as the scalability and sustainability of training programs. It also allows for the creation of multiple environments that can be utilized for various scenarios, such as testing or implementing new technologies or software. This ensures consistency and accuracy when training, plus a reduction in risk that could occur when administering certain actions on a live system.

How Can Virtual IT Labs Benefit Organizational Change?

The sooner virtual labs are adopted, the sooner organizations can realize the many benefits that come with this technology. However, they can only do so if organizations are willing to make the change from traditional methods. Companies that adopt virtual IT labs can expect to see higher levels of efficiency and effectiveness, as well as greater consistency in training programs. These labs will also allow for the reduction of costs, as organizations do not need to purchase as many servers for training purposes. This is helpful for organizations looking to reduce costs or manage expenses. 

While there are a wide range of benefits associated with virtual labs, the most critical one is the ability to scale or expand training programs as the organization grows. While traditional training programs often result in the need to re-train employees, virtual labs can be easily expanded to include new employees.

Organization-Wide Change Requires Cultural Change

Organizational change is often a painful experience. This is especially true when it comes to changing how employees are trained. The shift toward virtual IT labs and a more hybrid approach to technology will require a cultural change. Employees will need to learn new skills, accept new ways of doing things, and be willing to use new tools and technologies. The best way to create a culture of change is to first understand what is holding employees back. This could include fears, concerns, or misconceptions about certain aspects of the technology. Organizations can then work to address these concerns and move toward a better future.

Employees Need More Effective Training Strategies

The current approach to training employees in many organizations is simply not effective. In fact, it is estimated that only 10% of employees retain information after attending a training workshop. Training methods have not changed much in the past few decades, which is why many businesses are now looking for new ways to train employees. 

Virtual labs offer a number of benefits that make it an ideal solution for training employees. Virtual labs offer a realistic environment for employees to practice and to simulate real scenarios. This is particularly beneficial for fields such as IT, where employees need to be able to practice with certain tools and scenarios. Virtual labs can be used to create exact replicas of production systems with all the appropriate data, which is helpful when practicing with systems that deal with sensitive information. There are many more reasons why you should implement virtual IT labs, however, so keep reading!

Why Implement Virtual IT Labs?

The benefits of implementing virtual labs span across the organization. From training new hires to testing and troubleshooting existing IT infrastructure, there are a number of ways virtual IT labs can be used to benefit your business. 

Easy to Access 

Virtual labs make it easier to train new hires who may be in different locations. They can use these labs to learn how to do their job even if they don’t have easy access to equipment or if there isn’t a convenient location nearby where they can get hands-on experience. The labs can also be used to train employees who are working remotely. 

Easy to Scale 

With virtual labs, organizations can easily scale their training efforts. This can be important for growing businesses because it can be difficult to hire and onboard new employees. In some cases, it can take weeks or months before new hires have the skills and knowledge necessary for their jobs. 

Cost-effectiveness 

It can be expensive to build and maintain a lab that has all the equipment your trainees need to learn. Virtual labs save you money because you can use whatever equipment you have available, regardless of its condition. 

On-Demand Access 

With virtual labs, when employees need training, they can usually get it quickly because it doesn’t require any additional setup. This can be helpful for organizations that need to train new hires quickly, or when existing employees need to practice their skills.

Conclusion

The future of training is all about creating better experiences. While in-person training courses can be helpful, they are often too limited in their ability to provide real-world application. 

Virtual IT labs provide organizations with the opportunity to create immersive, practice-based experiences for employees. Virtual labs can be used to create simulations of production systems, allowing employees to practice with real data. They can also be used to create custom-designed experiences that allow employees to practice skills in more creative ways. In the future, it is expected that more organizations will make the transition toward virtual labs, particularly as technological advances continue.

As the digital landscape grows and evolves, so too must the training and development of employees who work in these fields. Virtual IT labs are an innovative approach to the challenges companies face in providing adequate training on the latest technologies. 

Let’s Talk 

ReadyTech provides a hosted training solution that offers hands-on, self-paced and remote training software to aid employees in practicing job skills. Companies that invest in employee training benefit from reduced attrition rates and hiring costs, better productivity, more knowledgeable employees, and a competitive hiring environment.

ReadyTech provides you with all the software you need for your virtual classroom, and we offer a full-service setup process as well as 24/7 live support. Contact us today.