15 December 2025
Heavy workloads and shifting priorities make it easy for compliance modules to sit unread, half‑started or hastily ticked off.
If the modules are rushed or aren’t completed, your firm is left exposed to financial penalties, regulatory action and the kind of reputational damage it’s hard to come back from.
There is a lesser spotted cause behind many low completion rates and that is training that does not match the way people actually learn.
Not everyone learns the same way
There are seven main types of learning styles:
According to the various studies that have been put out over the years, around 65 per cent of people are visual learners.
Auditory learners are estimated at roughly 30 per cent, with a smaller number preferring hands-on, practical learning.
Only a tiny fraction learn best through long blocks of written text alone.
Add to that the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve, which shows that people forget around 50 per cent of new information within an hour and up to 90 per cent within a week if there is no reinforcement.
That cheerful little statistic explains why a one size fits all training approach that some firms love to use often falls flat.
Serving up the same format to everyone is like offering a single coffee option to an entire office. You’ll get some who will be happy to accept it and others will push it politely to one side.
Matching learning style to training reduces risk
Compliance failures rarely happen just because someone wanted to break the rules or couldn’t be bothered.
They happen because someone misunderstood a process or forgot a key step under pressure.
Training that reflects how your team learn makes it far more likely that important information sticks.
Visual learners remember diagrams and scenarios. Auditory learners retain discussions and explanations. Practical learners benefit from interactive examples and real cases.
Providing the right mix of formats gives everyone a fair chance to absorb the material and apply it properly in the real world.
Giving the wrong format does the opposite. It increases the chance of misunderstandings and forgetfulness. Neither of which pairs well with regulatory expectations.
Lucky for you, we’ve got learning materials that accommodate all learning styles on our compliance training platform.
You get:
You can check out our full course list here.
While we’re sure nobody wakes up excited about completing their compliance modules, the right delivery can make all the difference.
Get in touch or book a demo to explore all of our courses tailored to the way your team learn.