When it comes to learner experience within a learning platform, a lot can go wrong. If the learner can’t understand the technology, access training or complete upcoming or past due courses, they’ll give up trying to use the platform altogether. Learners ignoring training responsibilities out of frustration will inevitably have trickle down effects for the organization including fines for lack of compliance and regulatory adherence. To ensure the most prepared workforce possible, learner experience must be a top priority in your learning technology. Below we will outline 6 important elements of learner experience every learning platform needs to deliver on.
Friendly user interface
Starting with an obvious component, user interface, or UX/UI. UX/UI refers to how easy it is for the learner to use the technology and navigate the site intuitively. Seems straightforward, but many platforms are outdated and convoluted. This can become apparent in different features such as navigating the dashboard, finding the save button, locating the sign out button. New technology can be intimidating, so it your platform needs to make it easy to launch and move through courses.
Interface also trickles down into accessibility of the platform. Is the platform compatible with any device? Can workers access training via laptop, iPad/tablet, or cellphone? This is particularly important for deskless workers.
Techical capabilities
Beyond the seamless navigability of the platform, there’s a need for the platform to seamlessly load. Thanks to social media, people are used to having information available in the blink of an eye. Slow loading times is a huge deterrent for employee engagement and will quickly annoy your end users. If a page is taking to long to load, it’s easy for the employee to say, “oh I’ll just do this later.” It’s important to deliver quick engaging training that is easy for learners to complete.
Seamless content delivery
Sticking with the “quick engaging training” thought, the content within the platform is just as important as the platform itself. In an LMS, the content drives employee engagement. Content that is accessible and interactive resonates with learners more. An LMS that allows you to create your own content, and either provides content or has a content partner is ideal.
When it comes to content it is also important to consider your workforce. Where they are, how they spend their time, and what time do they have to allocate to training. For many employees, microlearning modules are the most successful. Microlearning sessions refer to short (5-minute) trainings that can be done anywhere. It helps break down long sessions into bite-size pieces. These smaller sessions make it easier for learners to complete assignments on their to-do list. In turn, making training seem a lot less daunting and improve their engagement within the platform.
Promote engagement
Engagement from learners is key for the success of any learning platform. Previously I’ve written to engagement with training modules or the platform itself. But Learning platforms have plenty of engagement features beyond that. Currently in the Learning and Development space, there’s a lot of talk about incorporating community building and gamification in your learning platform.
Gamification can include anything from badges, to simulated games, to company leaderboards or reward systems. The friendly competition amongst teams or the self-gratification of achieving badges can sometimes be enough to inspire engagement within your organization.
Similarly, community building or social interaction within an LMS can mimic a social media platform’s news feed, or a bulletin board that promotes conversation between employees, ultimately building a sense of comradery. These creative avenues for engagement have proven a sense of employee connectedness, but the drawback is you need buy-in from your learners for these engagement tools to be fruitful. That buy-in starts with leadership setting the standard for culture within the organization.
Unmatched support
The quality of technical support for your users will either help or hurt their experience in the platform. If something goes awry in the technology, what support tools does your LMS include? Is there on-demand support through FAQs or tutorials? Is there a person in your organization that helps troubleshoot the technology? Does the LMS have a ticketing system for issues and a quick response rate? These service features should not be overlooked. Your learning platform is a tool for your organization and its learners to succeed.
Personalization features
Speaking of success, it’s not enough for your learning platform to deploy uniformed training, the platform must promote a tailored experience for each individual learner. Personalization can come to fruition through learning paths and succession planning. A platform that offers clear pathways to success for employees allows for an improved L&D experience for the learner. It also helps establish rapport with learners by showing there is a future of growth within the organization. Succession planning supports both the employees and the organization by creating a pipeline of employees who are cross-functionally skilled and ready to move up the ranks.
Bonus feature: Endless integrations
Integrations don’t necessarily directly impact the learner experience, but it is important to mention in the context of the learning platform experience. Your learning platform should act as an all-encompassing learning platform that effortlessly connects all other technologies and delivers them to the end user easily. A learning platform needs to have endless integration capabilities, meaning it can pair with any third-party system, application, web API etc.
Lack of integrations can negatively impact content delivery, UX/UI and engagement. For example, a feature like single-sign on (SSO) may not be available without the right integration capabilities. Many learners do not want multiple passwords and logins for different HR systems. Remember – you've got to keep things simple. One platform, centrally located, for all information.
Learning made easy, for everyone
The bottom line is, not all learning platforms are made equally. As an L&D leader you need to consider the learner experience from day one when they first engage with the platform, throughout their entire tenure in the organization. A consistent and reliable platform that makes learning easy can support employee retention, engagement and company culture. Interested in learning more about how Learnsoft measures up against these features?
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