Effective Employee Upskilling: Top Must Have Features For Online Learning Platforms
Table of Contents
Introduction
An employee’s talents are expanded, and skill gaps are reduced through training programs and professional development opportunities offered as part of the upskilling trend, promoting continual workplace learning. Upskilling concentrates on enhancing the skill sets of present employees, typically through training, so they can progress in their professions and discover new roles and possibilities within the organization.
Because of the severe skills gap issue, 58% of employees require new skills to perform their jobs properly, according to a recent Gartner study. A crucial answer to this problem is upskilling, increasing a worker’s skill set (often by adding to an existing body of knowledge).
And it’s a world problem. The World Economic Forum (WEF) has published a paper outlining the importance of upskilling for the economy. It makes the case that now is a crucial time for businesses to launch an “upskilling revolution” that enables workers everywhere to immerse themselves in the future of work fully, whatever that may involve.
That chance has significant financial ramifications. According to the WEF, a coordinated effort to equip employees with the upskilling they need to boost the economy by trillions of dollars. Businesses that move quickly to upskill their workforce and stay competitive can benefit from a piece of that pie.
If you are looking for a strategy for better L&D outputs, Here’s the complete guide to upskilling & reskilling employees in the IT sector.
Top features to expect in the best online platforms for effective employee upskilling.
Before investing in an employee training platform, it is essential to have a good understanding of the platform’s features and tools, as well as how well it will integrate with your current information technology systems, the level of technical expertise, and infrastructure that would be required to implement the system, and the level of post-implementation support you will receive.
- Adaptable & Customisable Platform
Even though an employee training platform may provide you with access to an extensive collection of content resources, tools, and courses, you will still need to make some adjustments to the software for it to fulfil your requirements. Therefore, the platform must offer an intuitive user interface that enables you to tailor the learning environment of your workforce, such as the employee login page and dashboard. In that case, you could wish to white label it to reflect your company’s image. Consequently, it would be best if you opted for a platform that provides you with these customisation options; otherwise, you could have to work with a programmer to implement these changes. - Relevant & Responsive Content
An ideal platform for training employees should make it possible to create designs that are uncomplicated, straightforward, and aesthetically pleasing; these designs should also be responsive so that they can be viewed on all types of devices, including tablets, laptops, and smartphones; and they should be able to function on a variety of operating systems, including Windows, iOS, and Android. This is of utmost importance for workers who are constantly on the road, have a very packed schedule, and require flexibility to complete a course. - Tools for eContent Development
You should be able to build content for the employee training programme that ranges from plain Microsoft Word papers to highly interactive online classes with the help of an authoring tool that is intuitive to use and features drag-and-drop functionality. A device like this will typically feature pre-built templates, media technologies, tests, and other tools that the user may manipulate to create and edit material while ensuring that it is compliant with eLearning standards such as SCORM (1.2, 2004), HTML5, xAPI/TinCan, AICC, and LTI. - Tools for Monitoring and Data Analysis
It is essential to monitor the progression of employees during a training course, in addition to the efficiency of the training itself. The employee training platform you choose should include tools for training and analytics. These tools should enable you to track employee progress. At the same time, the course is being delivered, analyses outcomes based on predefined metrics, and graphically present readily available data-driven reports for insights and action. In addition to this, check to see if the software enables you to export specialised reports based on datasets. The programme should also give workers the ability to review and get critical feedback on their performance, which is essential for their professional development. - Scenario-based Learning and Gamification Features
Choose a platform for employee training that gives you access to the most advanced digital media technology for creating highly immersive and engaging material. One of the most significant advantages of online learning is the ability to design personalised learning paths that let students move through the material at their own pace while earning badges, points, and other recognitions as they go. This process continues until the student completes a course or module. For example, the content might feature branching scenarios that let workers design their learning routes, hit roadblocks along the way, and then go back and try again until they reach the desired milestone. Another approach to accomplish this is through the gamification of learning, which enables both individuals and teams to compete and improve their abilities.
How these essential features can benefit the organization & employee upskilling
The good news is that you may get assistance with that transformation from tools such as a Learning Experience Platform, which are loaded with the features we outlined above. They can support your development and assist your learners in developing an appreciation for the technology required to employ to perform their tasks more effectively. This is not a made-up story. The time has come for the fundamental shift that learning technology requires.
LXPs connect learning to job responsibilities, skill sets, and job families within a business. LXP enables learners to align their self-directed learning with the skills needed for success by connecting the knowledge to the skills and the business demands and demonstrating the relationship to present and future work responsibilities.
The organisation also learns a great deal about consumption behaviour through detailed analytics that shows which content employees are interacting with and which they are not. The investment in learning can be maximized by using these ideas. Businesses can spend more money on used content and eliminate underused content to improve the return on their L&D investments.
Conclusion
Since its introduction more than ten years ago, online training has become more popular. It offers learners more control over their learning, access to a wealth of materials, and a platform for engagement with peers, thought leaders, and topic experts within the enterprise and across regions, among other benefits. Although many such platforms are on the market, making an ill-informed choice could harm your investment and lose valuable time and other resources. You can use the advice in the article to make an educated decision. One such exceptional learning environment platform that can assist you in upskilling your staff more quickly is Techademy. Book a demo with us to know more!