The Intersection Of Neuroscience And Technology In Enterprise L&D

New technology is shaping the future of work and learning retention

McKinsey estimates that 75% of the global enterprise learning spend is wasted. That amounts to an annual squandering of $312 billion and in our post-Covid environment, organizations need to protect their bottom line. 

Furthermore, failure to provide employees with a way to accelerate their career development through remote education, is a lose-lose for both employees and employers. The cost of recruiting from the outside, loss of key employees and the inordinate price of turnover can kill companies—especially amid this unique market. 
 

Failure to solve this problem can leave them limping in their quest to secure and retain top talent and unable to access the skills imperative for success. Fortunately, new learning and development (L&D) solutions are leveraging proven science and the latest technology to maximize both training investments and the employee experience. 

How Traditional Training Methods Have Failed

Despite substantial investment in L&D, studies continue to show that corporate L&D initiatives, whether live or virtual, fail to adequately make a lasting impact on the business. Among the numerous reasons that modern learning and development programs fail to create a meaningful contribution to the business, three primary limitations of the human brain are significant factors: 

1. Learning is quickly forgotten
With traditional L&D, employees often attend training sessions where lessons are learned outside of the context of their day-to-day roles. However, German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus pioneered the concept of the “Forgetting Curve,” which found that unless new information is immediately applied, humans will tend to forget 75% of it within six days. 

Since many of the concepts learned during traditional training are not integrated immediately into daily responsibilities, over time they are forgotten and the value is lost. 

2. Learning happens at the wrong time
Similarly, many times training efforts fall when it is convenient for a large number of people to come together, or in the case of eLearning programs, when the individual has a bit of time to spare. This means that learning typically occurs outside of the context of meaningful practice—making it hard for the learner to seamlessly implement their learnings into their day-to-day habits. 

3. Learning is not reinforced over time
When learning is reinforced over time at regular, frequent intervals, recall increases to an enormous 80% of what is learned, even 60 days later. However, traditional enterprise learning methods often have no process in place to reinforce or track a learners’ use of the content outside of the training environment. 

Even with this understanding, traditional corporate L&D programs rarely make accommodations for the limitations of the human mind. Thus, it is no surprise that these programs are met with a general sense of frustration. The workforce has an awareness that time is often better spent on practical work than on learning that is likely to be unmemorable and not useful in the long term. 

Ultimately, increasing recall and encouraging sustainability are two crucial elements needed to create a greater learning impact over time. 

How Science and Technology Have Changed the Corporate Learning Game

The journey to building a learning delivery technology platform that would change behavior and create new habits began by studying the neuroscience of behavior change and habit formation, as well as the core principles of effective adult learning. When science and technology are properly integrated, lasting habit change can be achieved: 
 

• Science: According to neuroscience research, human habits are developed by repetition that creates neural pathways. These pathways are comprised of neurons connected by dendrites, which are created in the brain based on repeated behaviors. The number of dendrites increases as the behavior is performed more frequently. This is important to understand when developing an L&D program, as it underscores the importance and needs for constant reinforcement of learnings to create a lasting behavior change.  

 

• Technology: Modern technology has made it easier to deliver learning when and where the learner needs it. SaaS technology, delivered by iOS, Android and the web, has been able to incorporate some of the central principles of habit formation in a manner that reinforces learning. This includes leveraging a virtual coach for nudge messaging that can continuously emphasize learning over time and provide regular, practical application for the learner that allows them to apply the knowledge in the course of their daily work responsibilities. Artificial intelligence (AI) in the form of machine learning and heuristics coding also provides an opportunity to meet the learner within his or her learning style, rather than forcing the learner to adapt to a pre-established level, depth or method of delivery.

While you might know the old adage “you can’t teach old dogs new tricks,” new enterprise L&D platforms are proving otherwise. By combining science with technology, companies can confidently invest in L&D and bring positive benefits to the individual as well as the organization.

Denise Hummel is the Founder and CEO of RevWork.ai. With a background in organizational psychology, civil rights law, and now as a female tech founder, Denise has built an entrepreneurial career with an eye for changing the future of work. She harnesses technology to enhance business performance. Denise is a nominated Microsoft M12 Female Founder for disrupting Enterprise Learning & Development with RevWork’s enterprise behavior change learning technology.   Connect Denise Hummel