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Designing Powerful Learning Programs for Hybrid Workforces

, | July 11, 2024 | By
A business women smiling
We know the future of work is all about how work will get done over the next decade, influenced by technological, generational, and social shifts.  

 

L&D leaders need to respond to and anticipate these changes so that their organizations can attract, retain, and grow their people. So collectively, we’re tackling big questions, like: 

  • How can organizations respond to the new normal and current pace of change? 
  • With technological, generational, and social shifts, who will work get done over the next decade? 
  • How can organizations anticipate the change to attract, retain and grow our people? 

In this blog post, we’ll share: 

  • The biggest challenges learning leaders face in training virtual and hybrid workforces
  • Best practices to design, deliver and deploy robust learning programs for virtual and hybrid teams
  • Why simulations are the most effective, scalable, and affordable way to deliver powerful learning experiences

Major Trends Impacting L&D

In a recent blog post, we identified six key future of work trends impacting learning and development.

These include: 

 

  • Tech-enabled everything 
  • Remote & hybrid workforces
  • Generational changes 
  • Learning & Innovation 
  • Flexibility & agility 
  • DEI and intentional culture 

To remain competitive in the face of rapid change, organizations of all sizes must continue to reimagine how work gets done – from shifting business models to fully embracing remote and hybrid work.  

And, of course, learning leaders need to respond to and anticipate the changes so that their organizations can attract, retain, and grow their workforce – this is what we call the future of learning.

The Biggest Challenges for Today’s Learning Leaders

So what do these future of work trends mean for us today?

Over the past few years, working side-by-side with learning leaders like you, we’ve identified four imperatives for powerful learning program design: 

 

  • Train people faster 
  • Train more people (with similar budgets)
  • Deliver innovative learning experiences 
  • Meet learners where they are (and how they want to learn) 

 

Train People Faster

We already know that upskilling is significantly faster than recruiting and training new hires and that business success depends on people learning and doing more quickly. 

To address the strategic needs of their business, learning leaders need learning programs that are easily created, managed, and deployed.

Business leaders need affordable solutions with lower learning solution costs per person. This need shifts training from in-person deliveries to virtual delivery formats – or from two-week-long experiences to hybrid ones.

Either way, a lower upfront cost means the ability to reach more people and even better satisfy that need for scalability and further the company’s cultural mantra toward equity and inclusion.

 

Train More People

Growth and development have always been powerful levers for attracting and retaining talent. In this post-COVID “Great Resignation” moment in history, organizations need to do everything in their power to retain talent.

Not only do we need to train people faster, but we also need to train more of them.  Leveraging best-in-class training methods like simulations enables learning leaders to scale programs accessible to any number of people in any location.

Scale is a critical consideration because intentional growth and development must be geared toward everyone at all levels of the organization (not just the high potential talent).

 

Deliver innovative learning experiences

Innovative and forward-thinking is required as companies work to stay ahead of their competitors. Businesses prioritize increasing innovation, but what does this mean, and how is it achieved? 

The best learning programs align with the organization’s mission, vision, and strategy.  Through this alignment, learning leaders can map a clear pathway and process for accomplishing strategic goals and building competency in the skills and behaviors required by the organization. 

Great learning programs elevate innovation and advance strategic business policies to align learners with company priorities and objectives. Innovation boils down to new ideas, which can only happen in step with learning. 

Meet learners where they are (and how they want to learn)

 

For many CEOs, the Great Resignation is likely the No. 1 concern—and with good reason; it can cost one-half to two times an employee’s salary to replace them.

So how can learning leaders provide a personalized approach to learning where employees are at the center?

This consideration is essential for remote and hybrid workforces who can find it challenging to feel connected to and valued by the company. 

Pew Research Centre found that 57% of those who quit their jobs did so because they felt disrespected at work. A further 63% quit because they saw no opportunity for advancement.

With a human-centered approach, designed learning considers human psychology and the various ways individuals learn best. This approach puts the people in the center to meet them where they are, show them they are valued, and give them opportunities to connect as a team.

By placing our colleagues and employees at the center of learning efforts, businesses can rest assured that remote and on-site workers can begin to feel greater ownership of their work and role in the company.Learning leaders know the future of work defines the future of learning and are looking for effective, scalable, and affordable ways of delivering powerful learning experiences for remote and hybrid learning. 

Experiential learning should be a top consideration for learning leaders looking to:

  1. Accelerate the speed at which learners integrate new information;
  2. Offer learning strategies that scale to any number of employees, with flexible delivery formats and flexible pricing;
  3. Offer training that speaks to the current and specific strategies of the company, and;
  4. Tailor learning with a personalized approach that considers where learners are in their learning progress and their different learning styles.

 

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