What the FE and Skills sector can learn from home-schooling

The current pandemic has completely changed our professional and personal lives. With employees being forced to work from home, many individuals have had to balance their workload with educating their children. However, it is not only children that can benefit from a bit of home learning. The difficult times that companies are in call for a great deal of innovation, with having adopted new ways of working for themselves and their colleagues companies are now considering what new technologies and processes they might introduce.

The advancements in technology over recent years have resulted in online learning being easier to access and beneficial to both employees and organisations. With the pace of technological change increasing as a result of the pandemic, it is important that both those working in the IT and technology space and those across the business landscape understand the latest developments in the technology market and how to apply them to their business’ or their customer’s business challenges.

Take your lessons online

With social distancing measures making in-person training courses a thing of the distant future, an increasing number of people at home have been enrolling onto online learning courses. Lockdown and social distancing measures mean that many people are turning to online platforms to deliver training events that would otherwise be in person. The wide availability of online resources can benefit organisations in a number of ways.

A key element in driving employee engagement and productivity within an organisation is providing your employees with the opportunity to grow and develop their skillset. Learning platforms can help companies to reduce the cost, time and resources needed to keep their team’s knowledge sharp, as online learning cuts many of the costs, such as travel or accommodation, that are often associated with training courses.

With online learning, employees can complete tasks at any time they wish from wherever they are located, and it fits around their schedule. For individuals to put aside some time to self-educate makes sense. During this time where many companies find themselves facing new challenges, developing new skills and knowledge can help organisations thrive through the adoption of new business models and it can give people a sense of purpose whilst working from home.

By virtue of the fact that it is more accessible and can be used more regularly, online training can also provide more opportunities for continuous learning and regular feedback. Continuous learning is a must when change is happening at breakneck speeds.

Getting used to the new normal

As we are aware of the benefits of face-to-face training and events, it should be noted that the ability to learn anywhere, anytime, on any device is also extremely valuable. During this time, businesses are under immense pressure to make the most of all of the resources available to them. As businesses become more mobile and conduct their practices remotely or on the move, organisations need to make sure that they are leveraging such platforms to their full potential. By creating learning programmes for employees with regular touchpoints and feedback loops, teams are reassured that they have access to the best resources at any time and that they have the skills and knowledge to help their business and their customers succeed.

For the learning strategies of any organisation, online learning has been an essential part of their efforts to keep their team’s skills sharp and their knowledge at the cutting edge. Whilst adoption has been accelerated by the pandemic, it would seem that the benefits of online learning mean it will be leveraged more often in the future. With a challenging economic future, customers have to balance difficult decisions regarding investments across all areas, and online courses can provide a cost-effective way to make sure employees are at the top of their game. In a sector like technology where constant change requires constant learning, now is not the time to slow up for organisations looking to provide their customers with the advice they need to navigate a challenging future.

Anjali Saraswathyamma, European Training and Partner Enablement Manager, Tech Data