5 ways to bring learning into the flow of work

Much to the relief of employees everywhere, L&D has realised that plonking someone in front of an hour-long elearning module might not be the most effective way to train someone. Even better, many L&D teams are now trying to do something about it!

If you’re making the switch from lengthy formal learning to more ‘snackable’, bite-sized resources, it’s likely you’re already bringing learning into the flow of work, whether you know it or not.

What is learning in the flow of work?

If long elearning courses or training workshops typically take people away from their day-to-day roles, learning in the flow of work does the opposite. It’s learning your employees can pick up at the point of need, meaning it’s much more likely to make an impact without disrupting their entire work day or ruining their focus.

What are some examples of learning in the flow of work?

Learning in the flow of work looks different in every business, but it could look like:

• A salesperson is about to enter a big pitch, and they watch a one-minute refresher video on their phone to remind themselves of their new product line
• A new manager is preparing for a disciplinary conversation with an employee, and they read a checklist to make sure they’re up to speed on the procedure
• An engineer is using a machine they only use once a year, and they pull up a step-by-step guide to make sure they operate it safely
• A customer support employee is advising a customer on a policy, and they refer to a set of flashcards on their desktop to ensure they get it right
• A zookeeper is awaiting the arrival of a rare species, and they review information about the species via a one-pager to get the enclosure set up properly

Of course, there are many more examples of learning in the flow of work that take place every day without you even realising it. 

1. Microlearning

Gone are the days where corporate training = sitting in a stuffy room for two days watching ancient 80s videos about customer service. Times have moved on, and training times have also drastically shortened, much to the relief of learners.

In contrast, microlearning delivers content in super-short, focused bursts. Examples of microlearning include:

• Short videos
• Infographics
• Checklists
• Quick quizzes
• Explainer gifs
• Digital flashcards

Microlearning makes it significantly easier and more convenient to slot quick bursts of learning into the flow of work. It makes the learning content work for the learner, rather than taking them out of their task immersion, so they can seamlessly switch between learning and working without the disruption of traditional elearning.

2. On-the-job learning

We all know about the 70:20:10 model of learning, right? To recap, 70% of learning is said to come from experience, 20% from working with others and just 10% from formal learning interventions. That means that as much as 90% of what we learn could come from on-the-job learning, where we pick up new skills and knowledge in the course of our regular work.

A key benefit of on-the-job learning is that it happens almost organically. Whether it’s a more experienced colleague showing a new starter a process, an employee applying their transferable skills to solve a problem or a brainstorming session with coworkers, on-the-job learning happens all day, every day, in every workplace around the world.

In some respects, there’s not much for L&D to do here. On-the-job learning will happen no matter what you do, but cultivating a healthy learning culture is one way to make the process as smooth and effective as possible. That means creating a learning culture where people feel safe to ask for help, supported in taking risks and open to learning from their peers. This can’t happen overnight – a good learning culture reveals itself over time through the behaviours and attitudes of business leaders and employees alike, and the only way to find out how yours is performing is to conduct a learning culture audit.

3. Performance support knowledge base

Today’s employees are busier than ever before. They’re constantly being bombarded with content, messages and noise – not helpful when they’re just trying to get their jobs done. 

A performance support knowledge base is a great way to bring learning into the flow of work. Employees can quickly and easily search for the content they need and read expert-sourced resources relating to their topic of interest.

For instance, if your business has a lot of complex policies, SMEs from each department can add articles to the knowledge base to build a bank of user-generated content (UGC) that can be updated over time (find out how Greystar did just that). Think of it as your company’s own mini-Wikipedia, except instead of welcoming contributions from people with unknown levels of knowledge, you can curate assets crafted by your internal experts.

4. On-demand access to content

One of the biggest obstacles to learning in the flow of work is having to jump through hoops to access content. Some organisations require manager signoff or for L&D to facilitate any training activity, which creates unnecessary barriers to learning.

Instead, making on-demand, self-service content available will significantly increase access to learning in the flow of work. Organising content into themed playlists or focused academies, tailored to specific skills, roles, departments or locations, enables everyone to find exactly what they need, when they need it, in just a couple of clicks.

L&D could even go one step further and send nudges to relevant content when it’s likely to be needed. For instance, the week before a department-wide audit, every employee in that department could receive a nudge containing a checklist of what the audit will cover, or a playlist to ensure that everything is up to audit standards.

5. Mobile learning

More and more employees are using their smartphones to learn. It’s especially convenient for workers without ‘desk jobs’ or for employees who tend to be on the move – think manual workers, sales reps, engineers… the list goes on. 

Mobile learning means you can literally put learning in the palm of an employee’s hand, which gives them instant access in the flow of work. If a technician is performing a tricky procedure, instead of leaving the task to log onto a computer and access a step-by-step video, they can simply pull it up on their phone to help them complete the task at hand.

An important thing to note here is that mobile learning isn’t just ‘elearning but smaller’ – you should be designing mobile-specific resources that will still be accessible on a small touchscreen. Think short video clips, checklists and interactive diagrams rather than hour-long elearning modules or 45-minute webinars. Microlearning and mobile learning tend to go hand in hand, so designing quick, accessible mobile content allows you to tick both boxes at once!