Microlearning is imperative to modern e-learning. But it’s the approach that makes a difference. At the core, the concept relies on the forgetting curve, a theory by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus. The theory says people tend to forget faster when they have too much information to process. Microlearning is how you combat forgetting by creating smaller, digestible chunks of information.

Over the years, micro learning strategies have been adopted across schools, universities, and corporations. Lessons that would last between 30 seconds to 2 minutes were a welcome change. This is in sharp contrast to corporate e-learning lessons, which usually last up to thirty minutes and even more. Thus, Microlearning is a game changer for L&D teams.

A Learning Format Inspired By Life 

Microlearning courses have the highest completion rates (80%). Why? Because it’s designed from life. As humans, we are always looking for answers to our questions. And frankly, no one likes elaborations. 

The majority of microlearning courses are designed to answer things to the point. In a typical corporate scenario, it matters to address a job-based problem. Besides, microlearning promises several perks:

• It uses a learn-with-the-flow approach. So, you will always have prompt answers to the most burning questions. 
• It helps organizations by allowing employees to apply relevant skills and boost engagement.
• It positively impacts employee experience and work culture.
• It is also problem-driven. Employees are expected to complete a task as a part of a microlearning course. Thereby, it stimulates one’s mind to find a solution.
• It comes in handy as a quick refresher on a particular topic to hone skills.
• It comes in multiple formats: videos, podcasts, blogs, and more.
• It uses a learn-in-the-flow approach, which makes it easy for employees to keep up with their schedules. 

Organizations can use microlearning for almost anything. From onboarding to sales training, microlearning courses help save time and money. This is important for certain complex courses like compliance training, where things can be hard to digest for learners.

8 Best Microlearning Strategies For Corporates

Organizations must include microlearning as a part of corporate training. Here are eight compelling ways to embrace microlearning.  

1. Work With The Right LMS

Today, there are multiple learning management software that support microlearning. However, it’s the job of L&D leaders to recognize the right platform. The prerequisites of LMS software are seamless course hosting capability, content sharing options, and tracking participant compilation rate.

2. Always Ask Employees to Create Content

Microlearning isn’t limited to learning alone. It’s also about doing. So, companies can ask passionate employees to create informational content. It could be something as small as a “how-to-do” video for a topic or as significantly major as an entire module. They can easily shoot and share in the LMS. For instance, a property manager who offers free landscaping can choose a similar video to promote his services.

3. Create Specific Guidelines for Creation and Approval

L&D leaders, as well as the stakeholders, must have a guideline in place for developing microlearning content. This, in turn, helps the L&D team to create functional content for in-depth courses. Further, they add to the consistency of digital training. You will also need to create an approval process for sharing content to uphold organizational standards. 

4. Inspire Employees to Focus on Need-Based Learning

Microlearning gives a unique opportunity to learn in small chunks. Therefore, employees can focus on relevant topics alone and skip the rest. Say an employee has a specific query on MS Excel. He can choose a microlearning module dedicated to MS-excel use rather than going through all MS-Suite learning. Thus, L&D teams should encourage employees to focus on learning what is needed. This will help them become more efficient in their roles.

5. Embrace Gamification

Reportedly, users complete over 25% of games that promise a reward. Embracing the idea of microlearning can be beneficial. Award points motivate users to conduct training programs faster and better. Inclusions like leaderboards display the accumulated points that act as motivators. Further, gamification in microlearning significantly helps students absorb new information better by lowering mental barriers. This allows learners to retain key messages from training for a long time. However, L&D teams must ensure gamification in microlearning to be a healthy competition. For example, employees who upload their own informational contact get bonus points. This leads to increased employee participation and thus enhances the spirit of learning. 

6. Say Yes To AI

When choosing an LMS for an organization, make sure it supports artificial intelligence (AI). This will help you gain vital insights from participation data. For example, the number of microlearning courses to be revised. Or the most visited topic, which will help you update existing information. AI can also suggest whether an employee needs to revisit a course or gain extensive info on a topic depending on how good or poor he did with his assignment. It will eventually lead to a culture of continuous learning within the organization. 

7. Ensure Microlearning Courses Are Mobile-friendly

M-learning or mobile learning is indeed the future. That’s why L&D teams must ensure all microlearning courses should be compatible across devices. Today, remote working is the newfound love for the global workforce. Thus, investing in designing mobile-friendly microlearning courses and ensuring active participation across borders makes sense. It also applies to job roles where an individual is on the go for maximum hours of the day.

8. Mix and Match Wins the Day

Undoubtedly, microlearning is the winner. But it doesn’t have to be the only way. The key is to strike a balance between conventional and microlearning models. For example, L&D teams can design a training program to start with an instructor-led scenario. It can move to microlearning modules to reinforce skill development or explain a complex theory in time.

Closing Thoughts

Microlearning has changed the way L&D teams are used to visualize trainer programs. Today, things are fast-paced, and people have a razor-thin attention span. This sets the perfect ground for microlearning. 

But, L&D teams must be careful when designing a microlearning course. The content should be designed in a way that readily attracts learners. They should be able to form a comprehensive idea about a particular topic. Theory shouldn’t be asking for more unless it’s necessary. This will help organizations save huge amounts on large-scale training programs.