Converting In-Person Training to Virtual

Redesign a classroom session as live online training that keeps its practice, fits the screen and runs smoothly with a producer.

Who it is for

• Trainers who have been asked to "just run it online."

• Instructional designers converting a course or a whole program.

• HR and L&D staff moving onboarding or required training to live online sessions.

• Managers and owners of small businesses whose staff now work across several sites.

The problem it solves

The usual way to move training online is to share the classroom slides on a video call. The session runs long, quiet people disappear, the role-plays are dropped, and every activity takes longer than planned. This playbook gives you an eight-step redesign method: audit the in-person session, choose the virtual format, re-time the content, swap each activity for an online version with the same purpose, plan engagement checks, rebuild the materials for the screen, hand off to a producer and rehearse, then pilot and revise. It uses the same roles, run sheet and terms as the KA Virtual Training Producer Playbook and the virtual kits in KA courses.

What is inside

• Copyright and License (page 2; 1 page)

• Part 1. What changes and what stays (pages 3 to 4; 2 pages)

• Part 2. Step 1: Audit the in-person session (pages 5 to 7; 3 pages)

• Part 3. Step 2: Choose the virtual format (pages 8 to 10; 3 pages)

• Part 4. Step 3: Re-time the content (pages 11 to 13; 3 pages)

• Part 5. Step 4: Swap the activities (pages 14 to 17; 4 pages)

• Part 6. Step 5: Plan engagement checks (pages 18 to 21; 4 pages)

• Part 7. Step 6: Rebuild the materials (pages 22 to 25; 4 pages)

• Part 8. Step 7: The producer handoff (pages 26 to 29; 4 pages)

• Part 9. Step 8: Pilot, review and revise (pages 30 to 34; 5 pages)

• Part 10. Worked conversion examples (pages 35 to 36; 2 pages)

• Part 11. Variations by setting (page 37; 1 page)

• Part 12. 30-day plan (page 38; 1 page)

• Part 13. Mistakes and FAQ (pages 39 to 40; 2 pages)

• Editable Word version of everything above (39 pages)

How to use it

1. Read Part 1 for what changes online, what must stay the same, and the eight steps.

2. Choose one session you know well and work through Steps 1 to 8. Each step explains what to do, why it matters and how to do it well, then gives you a template and a filled-in example.

3. Follow the worked conversion of a front desk phone skills workshop, and the warehouse and retail examples.

4. Use the 30-day plan to convert and pilot your first session.

Formats and file types

• Printable PDF (40 pages), US Letter.

• Editable Word file (.docx, 39 pages) with every template ready to adapt.

Frequently asked questions