Big Business Impacts You Can Deliver with Micro-Learning

By Didi D’Errico, Vice President of Brand Advocacy at Saba

Where do you go to learn? Chances are, your answer today starts with a Google search, a favorite app or a direct inquiry on YouTube—all conducted from your mobile phone. This process has become the default for figuring out anything from tips on starting a do-it-yourself weekend project, to developing a new exercise routine, to learning a specific skill—all at the touch of your fingertips.

When it comes to delivering a similar workplace experience as an HR or learning and development professional, it means so much more than giving access to existing learning content on a mobile device.

Moving to mobile will mean learning and development teams need to review their most critical content and streamline or rework it. But, there is a silver lining: training content for mobile learning doesn’t need to—and shouldn’t—come just from the learning and development (L&D) group. Some of the highest impact informal learning can come from peers and subject-matter experts within the organization and can be as easy to share as uploading a video to YouTube.

Here are three examples of how mobile learning is uniquely delivering a different level of agility to organizations large and small and their teams, partners and customers alike.

1. Democratize Learning

Over many years of growth, computer giant Dell had amassed an equally giant collection of training materials about its products: nearly 12 million pages of training documentation. In an effort to improve the impact of its training content and the efficiency, the Dell L&D team created quick troubleshooting videos corresponding to a QR code attached to each piece of Dell equipment. Now, when users scan the tag on their Dell device, they are immediately linked to a short video of how-to’s with access to a host of related links. Mobile learning at Dell is now as easy as: Scan, learn, do.

2. Globalize Learning

Global hotel and hospitality leader Hyatt Hotels took a close look at their mobile content, since the vast majority of their colleagues work outside a dedicated office every day and created mobile image-based content for core tasks required within in a hotel —without words. Their all-visual micro-content covers a range of topics from making a bed, to pouring wine. This image-based mobile learning removes both access and language barriers at once. As a result, Hyatt team members worldwide are better enabled to learn in their work environment and are starting to self-subscribe to more mobile content to extend their skills.

3. Bridge the Generational Gap

Countrywide PLC is a leader in residential real estate property services across the UK. Part of its continued growth in a highly regulated industry is via industry acquisition. As a result, the learning team does quite a bit of new-hire orientation training in addition to regulatory training and skills development. At a recent onboarding session for a newly acquired team, a 78-year-old office worker asked the learning leader how the company preferred expense reports to be filed. He encouraged her to look in the learning system to find the answer. So, she asked to borrow the iPad of the young woman sitting next to her in the conference room, did a quick search on expense reports, found short instructions, filled out the form, and submitted it in a few keystrokes.

At Saba, we are lucky enough to be inspired every day by our customers and their strategic ideas for advancing the potential of learning. We are really jazzed about the potential of predictive analytics technologies to deliver personalized learning nuggets like new contacts, new content and new courses to each person in your organization based on their interests, just like Amazon and Netflix suggest ideas on new shoes and movies based on their unique interests.

Intuitive, irresistible, engaging, always available, and open to all: what’s not to love about mobile learning?