One Year Of Covid-19: Challenges And Trends Ahead For HR And Training

eLearning has enabled L&D to focus on delivering engaging experiences

This time last year, we were just starting to hear rumblings of what would become one of the biggest public health emergencies of our lifetimes, Covid-19. One year on, millions of people are getting vaccinated, and the long road back to “normal” lies ahead.

For businesses, it’s no different, as industry leaders reflect on a grim anniversary and cautiously transition back to at least some form of business as usual. But now, we’re equipped with critical knowledge from our collective experience that we didn’t have before. Much of that knowledge has been learned and applied in HR. In a year’s time, HR and learning and development (L&D) leaders have adapted, reacted, and tried new things to stay afloat during Covid-19. 

With all that, there is now a new challenge in year two of the pandemic. It’s answering the collective question of how to plan for a more sustainable and successful 2021, knowing that the old ways of doing business are gone for good. For instance, we won’t return to the pre-pandemic days of strictly using in-person learning to train employees. A survey conducted by Elucidat shows that only 12% of organizations plan to fully return to face-to-face training. That parallels industry research from Fosway Group, which found that 95% of organizations are saying that their learning will not return to how it was pre-pandemic.   

eLearning has filled a gap, enabling L&D to focus on delivering more engaging experiences, while using less employee time. But as a year passes of life and work in a pandemic, what additional trends will we see in the coming months and years when it comes to training and eLearning’s widening footprint?
 

To be successful and realize the full benefits of eLearning in a post-pandemic training landscape, it shouldn’t be viewed as a catch-all, but instead as part of a blended approach. By doing this, eLearning has the power to offer on-demand training, regular nudges, and on-going support. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from this crisis, a diverse training strategy can not only help companies weather Covid-19 but also position them to thrive when we finally reach the other side.