TalentLearning & Development3 ways COVID-19 is transforming learning and development

3 ways COVID-19 is transforming learning and development

L&D is among the areas most heavily impacted by COVID-19, and as a result, organisations must adapt to the changing times. But the question is, to what extent will we see these adaptations become permanent alterations to the complexion of corporate learning and development?

The world of business as we know it has changed dramatically since the global pandemic began, and many believe that workplace learning has been one of the hardest hit areas.

For instance, in a report published in March earlier this year, management consulting firm Mckinsey found that roughly 50% of learning and development (L&D) plans due to commence between March and June 2020 have been postponed or cancelled in North America.

The report also notes that in parts of Asia and Europe, the figure is closer to 100%.

This in itself presents a fairly dire scenario for modern business. Whilst much of this postponement comes down to both physical and financial capacity, L&D is simply not a disposable aspect of company culture.

“Companies can’t just push the pause button on critical workplace learning,” says the report.

Naturally, organisations will now have to adapt their approach to L&D in order to protect its status as a core aspect of culture. Here are some of the changes we think might occur as a result.

Virtual learning may become the norm

When it comes to the changing business world, one of the most common by-products will undoubtedly be a greater reliance on technology and virtual platforms.

This is commonly held to be the case in areas such as talent acquisition and internal communication, and L&D is unlikely to deviate from this trend.

In fact, there is scope to suggest that L&D may be at the forefront this, with evidence suggesting that countless organisations were planning to invest in learning technologies prior to the onset of the virus.

Research conducted by Training Industry reflects this clearly, showing that 29% of organisations had planned to increase their investment in eLearning during the 2019-20 financial year.

With remote working having become part of the new normal, and many organisations not planning to return to an office space until 2021, this investment in eLearning can only be set to rise across the board.

What's Hot

HRD Roundtable Report: Levelling Up Onboarding for the Hybrid World

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Levelling Up Onboarding for the Hybrid World 5 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Levelling Up Onboarding for...

Attracting new talent is shooting up the priority list, but also proving more difficult than ever. A...

View event
HRD Roundtable Report: Redefining Company Culture in Hybrid Work Environments

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Redefining Company Culture in Hybrid Work Environments 26 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Redefining Company Culture ...

The process of redefining a company culture is a complex one. Culture contributes directly to the da...

View event
Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people

Whitepaper | Talent Development Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people

1y

Learning to win the talent war: how digital market...

This report documents the findings of a Fireside chat held by ClickZ in the first quarter of 2022. I...

View resource
HRD Roundtable Report: Strategies For Re-Engaging The Hybrid Workforce

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Strategies For Re-Engaging The Hybrid Workforce 5 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Strategies For Re-Engaging ...

We know hybrid working is here to stay, forcing many organisations to experiment with innovative and...

View event
HRD Roundtable Report: Making it ‘Worth It’ – What We Need to Reward, Engage and Retain

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Making it ‘Worth It’ – What We Need to Reward, Engage and Retain 3 March 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Making it ‘Worth It’ – What...

We know the pandemic has caused many people to revaluate their careers and relationships with work a...

View event
Dave Ulrich: How can business and HR leaders simplify complexity?

Leadership Development Dave Ulrich: How can business and HR leaders simplify complexity?

1y Dave Ulrich

Dave Ulrich: How can business and HR leaders simpl...

HR thought leader Dave Ulrich outlines ways leaders can deal with complexity in an increasingly busy...

View article
HRD Roundtable Report: Using HR Data to Inform Organisational Decision Making

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Using HR Data to Inform Organisational Decision Making 5 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Using HR Data to Inform Org...

Historically, HR hasn’t been as effective as it could be in sharing and communicating data with wide...

View event
Digital transformation investment grows but critical skills gaps remain - Coursera report

Digital HR Digital transformation investment grows but critical skills gaps remain - Coursera report

1y Leah Belsky

Digital transformation investment grows but critic...

Covid-19 has accelerated the rate of digital learning on a global scale. Coursera's latest report pr...

View article
Wellbeing in the hybrid workplace: how to successfully drive engagement

Employee Engagement Wellbeing in the hybrid workplace: how to successfully drive engagement

1y Alara Basul | Sponsored

Wellbeing in the hybrid workplace: how to successf...

Remote working has impacted the way we communicate as a workforce, but striking the right balance be...

View article
How to create a company culture capable of empowering the modern workforce

Culture How to create a company culture capable of empowering the modern workforce

1y Alara Basul | Sponsored

How to create a company culture capable of empower...

While new working patterns that emerged from the pandemic have earned a permanent spot in the w...

View article
WATCH: Connection and collaboration in a hybrid workplace

Leadership Learnings WATCH: Connection and collaboration in a hybrid workplace

1y Amy Kirkham

WATCH: Connection and collaboration in a hybrid wo...

Alison Noon-Jones, VP of People & Culture at Leidos UK & Europe, shares how crucial employee engagem...

View article
Turbulence ahead: Why it’s time to be bold in your leadership

Leadership Development Turbulence ahead: Why it’s time to be bold in your leadership

1y Terence Mauri

Turbulence ahead: Why it’s time to be bold in your...

HRD thought leader and Hack Future Lab founder Terence Mauri sets out why the biggest risk to leader...

View article

More upskilling and reskilling

Another process being accelerated by the onset of the pandemic is the need to upskill and reskill workforces.

Firstly, and most importantly, the greater reliance on technologies means that employees must be trained to operate them correctly and work alongside them efficiently.

For instance, one report found that as much as 14% of the global workforce would have to switch occupations or acquire new skills by 2030 because of automation and artificial intelligence.

Similarly, another showed that 87% of executives said they were either currently experiencing skill gaps in the workforce or expected them within a few years.

It stands to reason that, given the already considerable magnitude of these trends, COVID-19 will serve to accentuate the issue and thus organisations will need to become much more vigilant in equipping workforces with the relevant skill-sets.

What’s more, with the size of teams shrinking as a result of financial difficulty for organisations, a culture of project-based, collaborative working has become much more common.

With this being the case, a new culture of continual training and learning has become the norm for many organisations, and it is possible that many employees will maintain a hunger for this post-pandemic.

Social learning

One of the key L&D trends that has emerged as a result of coronavirus is a greater emphasis on social learning methods.

In a nutshell, social learning abandons the traditional framework of learning models, and is founded on new behaviours being acquired by observing or imitating others.

In the context of remote working, this ties in heavily with engagement. Organisations are becoming more conscious of dwindling engagement levels among workforces, and thus, traditional methods of learning are beginning to be viewed as ineffective in the circumstances.

As a result, social learning is becoming a much greater part of the agenda, and is thought to be an effective approach.

For instance, one study found that such approaches have a 75:1 ROI ratio when compared with formal, web-based training.

What’s more, it found that 82% of businesses that use social learning tools want to increase their use of them in the future.

Based on this, we can expect to see many organisations adopting such methods throughout their remote working periods, monitoring effectiveness and progress, and adjusting their approach to L&D as the return to work commences.

Subscribe to HRD Connect for daily updates on the future of work, including thought leadership, video interviews, the HRD Live Podcast and more.

Join the conversation on LinkedIn and Twitter with the world’s largest community of senior HR Leaders.

Was this article helpful?

Comments are closed.

What's Hot

HRD Roundtable Report: Levelling Up Onboarding for the Hybrid World

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Levelling Up Onboarding for the Hybrid World 5 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Levelling Up Onboarding for...

Attracting new talent is shooting up the priority list, but also proving more difficult than ever. A...

View event
HRD Roundtable Report: Redefining Company Culture in Hybrid Work Environments

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Redefining Company Culture in Hybrid Work Environments 26 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Redefining Company Culture ...

The process of redefining a company culture is a complex one. Culture contributes directly to the da...

View event
Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people

Whitepaper | Talent Development Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people

1y

Learning to win the talent war: how digital market...

This report documents the findings of a Fireside chat held by ClickZ in the first quarter of 2022. I...

View resource
HRD Roundtable Report: Strategies For Re-Engaging The Hybrid Workforce

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Strategies For Re-Engaging The Hybrid Workforce 5 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Strategies For Re-Engaging ...

We know hybrid working is here to stay, forcing many organisations to experiment with innovative and...

View event
HRD Roundtable Report: Making it ‘Worth It’ – What We Need to Reward, Engage and Retain

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Making it ‘Worth It’ – What We Need to Reward, Engage and Retain 3 March 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Making it ‘Worth It’ – What...

We know the pandemic has caused many people to revaluate their careers and relationships with work a...

View event
Dave Ulrich: How can business and HR leaders simplify complexity?

Leadership Development Dave Ulrich: How can business and HR leaders simplify complexity?

1y Dave Ulrich

Dave Ulrich: How can business and HR leaders simpl...

HR thought leader Dave Ulrich outlines ways leaders can deal with complexity in an increasingly busy...

View article
HRD Roundtable Report: Using HR Data to Inform Organisational Decision Making

Roundtable Report HRD Roundtable Report: Using HR Data to Inform Organisational Decision Making 5 May 2022

1y

HRD Roundtable Report: Using HR Data to Inform Org...

Historically, HR hasn’t been as effective as it could be in sharing and communicating data with wide...

View event
Digital transformation investment grows but critical skills gaps remain - Coursera report

Digital HR Digital transformation investment grows but critical skills gaps remain - Coursera report

1y Leah Belsky

Digital transformation investment grows but critic...

Covid-19 has accelerated the rate of digital learning on a global scale. Coursera's latest report pr...

View article