For decades, instructor-led classroom training has been the most commonly used method to deliver learning in the corporate environment. In 2019, just before the pandemic, 95% of companies in Brandon Hall Group’s Learning & Development Benchmarking Study leveraged ILT to some degree. Even as companies have been exploring more informal and experiential learning, the majority of instruction still took place in the classroom. Then the pandemic took the classroom out of the equation almost overnight, forcing organizations to devise alternatives for a remote workforce.
Without a doubt, there will be more remote workers than there were before the pandemic, despite the gradual shift back to the workplace. This presents L&D teams with a hybrid learning audience that has unique synchronicity, communication, and collaboration challenges. Some employees will be remote, some will be on-site, and some will be both. Remote workers may not keep the same hours as on-site workers, either.
In the course of our research, we not only run surveys, but also explore case studies and interview organizations of all sizes and industries. One clear takeaway from the pandemic is that those organizations that were already leveraging a wider variety of learning experiences — beyond just classes and courses — were in a far better position to adapt to post-pandemic life.
This means a greater embrace of informal and experiential learning opportunities, where learning becomes more closely integrated with how — and where — people are doing their jobs. The switch to remote work introduced a wave of digital and virtual tools for all aspects of employee life. Learning has to balance the utilization of various instructional modalities without overwhelming employees.
As an extension of our research into developing and delivering learning for a hybrid workforce, Brandon Hall Group is partnering with one of our Smartchoice Preferred Providers, Meridian Knowledge Solutions, to host a webinar that looks at strategies and tools for meeting the needs of learners in this new environment. Join us to gain insights and tactics for moving forward.
– David Wentworth, Principal Analyst, Brandon Hall Group
