Does social learning = a better trained, more informed, and engaged workforce?
In theory, yes. But are organizations doing social?
According to Bersin, 80% of corporate learning occurs through informal approaches, which include coaching, mentoring, communities of practice, the use of expert directories, and (you guessed it!) social networking.
Social networking tools can potentially transform how organizations conduct learning and training by connecting employees and enabling real-time interaction. These tools provide a cost-effective way for organizations to connect groups of individuals, share information, and identify specific skills and resources. With just a few clicks, social technology provides an excellent platform for just-in-time learning, multi-perspective learning, and error-exposure learning. On top of it all, they connect people with other like-minded people naturally and authentically.
But are organizations really harnessing the power of social media? Or are they just sprinkling social features into their social learning strategy to keep up with the latest trends?
A recent blog by the Association for Talent Development (ATD) unveiled a new report, “Learners of the Future: Taking Action Today to Prevent Tomorrow’s Talent Crisis.” The report reports that social learning was used by less than three of the 10 organizations that responded. While we all know social media and social networking will only get bigger, the report demonstrates that organizations either don’t know how to tap into social learning or haven’t done so successfully.
The report states, “A robust 59 percent (of learning professionals) agreed that learning in 2020 will take place in ways we can’t imagine today. Alarmingly, a mere 38 percent of those surveyed felt that their organizational learning functions would be ready to meet learners’ needs five years from now.”
How to avoid the social learning trial by error
While social networking tools can help narrow the gap between learning and knowledge consumption, there is still a learning curve as organizations figure out what does and does not work within their learning strategy. Learning leaders can’t simply throw spaghetti against the wall and see what sticks. Giving learners enhanced chats and forms, gamification, leaderboards, and video recording capabilities are all fantastic ways to get people engaged and interested, but you must have a plan.
Before you get started with adding or reevaluating your social learning strategy, ask yourself these three questions:
- How is information being shared and leveraged? – If you can’t get people onboard, you’ll sink! The foundation of successful informal learning via social networking and collaboration is the willingness of people to share information. Setting up a knowledge-sharing forum without activity wastes energy, so ask yourself exactly how users will be encouraged and willing to collaborate and share information. Not all corporate cultures encourage this level of sharing, which must be addressed before tools are implemented. If you want your teams to get involved, give them a voice and encourage them to do so. Also, think about ways your learning team can populate these forums with information before the launch.
- How can you leverage existing communities? – Research proves that building communities around formal training and topics will increase involvement and participation among end-users and experts. They can share best practices, feedback on formal training, and real-life examples. Think about different ways you can empower and engage these communities of thought-leaders. Often, the top influencers offer sound advice on improving the communities or new topic areas you can cover. Look at what works and isn’t working in popular learning communities and see how to apply some of those lessons to your learning strategy.
- What sort of resources and content are you offering? – If the explosion of Instagram and BuzzFeed has taught us anything, people like consuming and engaging with short, interactive content. Gone are the days of hour-long video segments and 40-page research reports. Populating your learning centers with interesting and relevant articles, videos, and real-world examples can help reinforce learning and expand the knowledge base, but only if the content is sticky and interesting. Consider what people want to know and how you can capture and convey that information.