The Future of Workplace Learning – What Lies Ahead?

Artificial intelligence, Augmented reality, Machine learning and Virtual reality are transforming the workplace learning landscape at a pace that was never expected before. Getting stuck with the hype of technology without proper knowledge is quite common nowadays since understanding the complete benefits and drawbacks of technological advancements may require some time. Instructional designers as well as learning leaders should be educated to understand the viability of the course and the potential value for the learners.

Employee performance can only be improved with the help of technology. Technological advancements help advance beyond skill development of the employee to complete performance enhancement. Its use can benefit learners by adding context, personalization and importance to the experience of workplace learning. It brings the learning experience to the next level.

Workplace learning can be simplified using enhanced technologies. The most common example of meddling technology with workplace learning is online workspace wikis. These tools are knowledge bases which have relevant information related to job roles and company functionalities. The employees can access workplace wikis on any device and can be used to help them with workplace chores. Financial forecasters are predicting massive investments for similar technologies in the future years, but the growth and investment will be highly targeted based on outcomes.

How Growth in Knowledge Affects Business Outcomes?

The advancement in technology to deliver learning strategies has made the learning experience unquestionably more explicit, customized and quantifiable than it’s ever been before. The experience can be made more interesting and engaging for the user and the employer can also measure how effectively the learning program is performing. The companies can also leverage the data to customize the programs and make it more convincing and effective for the users.

Consumer knowledge, employee relationships, market database, business environment understanding, organizational memory are some of the basic sources of business knowledge. Improving the knowledge helps in accelerating the productivity and efficiency of the organization. A work culture that feeds off business knowledge makes organizations goal-oriented and innovative. The key here is to create a knowledge-centric work strategy for the organization which can be improved further with the help of advanced technologies. Keep in mind that business knowledge is an important strategic asset which shapes all the activities in and around your business.

AI Virtual Mentors and 3D Immersion

3D immersion in training is not that new but, the adoption of full 3D immersion along with Virtual Reality is becoming the new game-changer. Now a complete training immersion is feasible even without a keyboard or mouse. The tools you need for the job can be virtually put into scenarios through the virtual learning experience. It will be a matter of time before the production and training cost for these technologies comes down and employers will shift to enhanced virtual experiences to provide hands-on training to every employee in the organization.

Experiential learning is ascertained to be more influential in cognition and retention when compared to video or text-based content. Most of the companies these days are utilizing AI mentors or helpers to assist employees in doing day-to-day activities. Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning are being used in almost every sector to enhance learning experiences. The usage curve of these technologies will continue to grow to adapt to technological innovations and changes accordingly. The future of learning management systems (LMS) would bring together all the capabilities of novice technologies like VR and AI. The learning management systems will evolve from being simple webinars or conference models to innovative experience based models.

Enhancing Feedback Experience For Skill Development

Novice learning methods combined with technology will assist organizations to enhance the feedback experience required for skill development. An individual’s ability to improve how they do their job and provide more value to the company relies on numerous factors, such as how fast they receive the feedback and the form of the feedback obtained. Besides, the nature of the feedback is often vague and sketchy. For a better understanding, consider the case of a role-play form which is used in a learning exercise. The employee might have written the learning feedback as “too difficult” on the form. The evaluators might not get an idea about how it happened or what it is about. Voice and facial recognition software comes to rescue in such cases where the technology will automatically identify posture, tone of voice and even a furrowed brow to understand the entirety of the situation. The new age technology can help the evaluator to understand what the comment was about and how to improve the deliverability of the course. Adding employee interaction with VR avatars or characters can even additionally enhance the proximity of the feedback, accelerating self-awareness and skill development in the employees.

New technologies and innovations in learning has launched an era of unprecedented opportunity when it comes to conceiving full potential for employees. Virtual reality and Artificial Intelligence will enable companies to provide more immersive and impactful learning experiences that have not been achievable ever before. Innovative professionals will look at these new tools to solve training problems in new ways and more effectively. Also, the technologies are becoming cheaper and better every day, it’s proven that it will become more prevalent in the workplace soon.

With massive technology disruption, companies should respond to the change in a transformational way. It implies reconsidering how companies approach workforce skills and talent management. When technologies are reshaping the learning trends, it is always better to evolve and grow according to the trend in order to be competitive in the market.

“Technology will not replace great teachers but technology in the hands of great teachers can be transformational”
– George Corous