Learning And Development 2019 Wishlist

This was originally published on eLearningIndustry.com on December 10, 2018. 

As we move quickly into the holiday season and the end of another year, many of us are looking back on our performance and evaluating ways to improve training and development programs moving forward. You might even be shopping around and making a list of innovations you’d like to implement in the coming year.

Our Training and Development 2019 Wishlist

If you haven’t had the time to explore the latest and greatest in the industry, don’t worry. We’ve done the research for you and have some recommendations. Here, we share a few things on our L&D wishlist, which may provide you with a little inspiration.

On-Demand Learning Tools

In today’s workplace, accelerating technological advances and an increasingly competitive business environment make training more important than ever. But with employees’ short attention spans and tight schedules, where does learning fit? Traditional training is no longer convenient or effective for the modern worker, and they are in desperate need of tools that make it possible to experience learning on-demand.

Gone are the days of relying on lengthy courses or formal training sessions to learn. Today’s workers want continuous accessibility of learning content through a variety of devices, immediate availability of information to provide just-in-time answers and small, digestible training assets that fit into short timeframes. Here are some ways on-demand learning tools are being used to improve learning at your organization today:

• Provide a place where learners can find answers to questions by offering libraries of curated content.
• Offer learner-driven professional development opportunities using MOOCs.
• Promote learning in the flow of work by strategically delivering microlearning content.

Artificial Intelligence

Nowadays, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere. AI is transforming how we experience life, including at our places of work. So, does AI have a role to play in Learning and Development? The answer is yes. With the help of Artificial Intelligence, educators can create responsive training by better understanding learner behaviors and needs. Consider these real-life examples of how AI is being utilized in Learning and Development:

• Improve the employee experience by creating chatbots that can immediately answer frequently-asked employee questions.
• Quickly create customized learning programs, based on insights and data gathered from AI.
• Immediately create active learning experiences from content like text documents, slideshows, or videos.
• Use machine learning algorithms to make personalized learning recommendations for learners.
• Create a safe environment for trial-and-error learning by removing peers and trainers from portions of the learning experience.

Embedded Learning

Experts are shifting their belief that learning happens most effectively in a formal setting. Instead, they are looking toward informal, social, and continuous learning opportunities. This concept, known as embedded learning, is about “the extraction of learning from work rather than the injection of learning activities into work.”

When embedded learning is done effectively, meaning that it brings learning closer to the context, it can create significant change. Research has found that companies that implement this type of informal and social learning are three times more likely to excel in terms of talent development. Bringing context to learning, then, is critical for your company’s success. Here are some examples of embedded learning applications in business:

• Adidas implemented a “New Way of Learning” that blends learning with work and takes advantage of the vast learning opportunities found on-the-job. Their program replaced classroom training with social, interactive, and digital learning experiences, which are open to everybody and accessible 24/7.
• A telecom company built an app to guide employees on their learning journey. After some research, the app was designed to first give people basic information, and work up to social connections, coaching sessions, and videos that help them on the job. It even encourages them to share what they’ve learned.
• Google has created a peer-to-peer training program where about 55% of the company’s Learning and Development needs are met by a network of over 2,000 peer learners. Such a program provides on-demand, informal, and engaging training opportunities for Google employees.

As you get ready for Learning and Development in the upcoming year, consider adding these methods, and other innovations to your list. What else is on your Learning and Development wishlist for 2019? We’d love to hear what you think.