MicroLearning for Employee Retention

Training and development, talent development, whatever you call it – it’s finally back on the radar.  One of the unfortunate casualties of the past 10 years, or so, has been a focus on a robust training/development program within many corporations. 

In order to save dollars both small and large organizations have significantly trimmed their training budgets.  Of course this doesn’t mean that you have an endless budget, or that you have the resources to design and present full training programs.  What this most likely means is that you have the ability to bring back some of your facilitated programs but need to find ways of supplementing the traditional methods – in order to be cost effective, but also appeal to a wide variety of learners.

One new and “hot” idea in the field is a part of E-learning called mlearning.  What the heck is that you ask — well, basically mlearning is microlearning.  The theory behind microlearning is that you have a very specific idea/competency/message that can be expressed in about 30-60 seconds.  The information is very specific, usually needed in the moment, available when needed and specific to the needs of the person accessing the information.  There are case studies that show quick and specific pieces of information, available when needed, result in a better understanding and “stickiness” of the information. 

This doesn’t mean that you need to throw out all of your facilitated programs.  What you should do is think about the percentage of information absorbed in a facilitated program (about 20%) and also the relevance to the actual work people on the team are doing…point in time.  Using microlearning is a great tool to use when you need very defined information to disseminate.  Additionally, if you enable the information to be mobile your team can review the information at a time that works for them, on a device that they are already used to getting information from on a regular basis.   You won’t need to book a room, book a presenter, send an invite, buy coffee…all you need to do is communicate the need for someone to view the training and allow them to schedule into their calendar.

Mlearning is something interesting to consider as a way to enhance your offering and training effectiveness.  It’s a way to provide just-in-time learning at the right time for the right people.

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Interested in creating a training and development program or would like more information on MicroLearning? Don't worry; when it comes to HR we've got you covered. We'll even give you a two-hour consultation FREE You can schedule your free consultation with me at Mercer PeoplePro, by email at Ruth.Baylis@mercerpeoplepro.com or by visiting PeoplePro — help is just a click away.