Corporate language learning programmes are a great way to help employees advance their career prospects, as well as upskill the business as a whole. However, some programmes are not always a success, this can be down to the company culture not advocating and boosting the training sufficiently or due to a lack of incentives to encourage employee engagement.
As the global workforce changes and Millennials replace older generations (with Generation Z to come soon), having old-school training programmes no longer works. Why? On average, people spend over 4 hours a day on the phone, so if we exclude time for sleep that equals 25% of our day. This means that if you want to communicate something to your employees, you should do it via digital tools. Language learning programmes are not an exception here, so what can be done to help employee learning engagement? We have collated six features to look out for when choosing the right corporate language learning programme for you and your business.
One size does not fit all and this is a rule of thumb when it comes to training programmes. You should find a flexible, digital solution that can be personalised and customised to fit each of your employees’ needs. Rather than passively receiving and reiterating information, today’s learners take an active role in their education and contribute to their own learning.
Language learning programmes accessible on mobile devices appear particularly useful for deskless and Millennial employees who prefer mobile training solutions. It can be difficult to compete with social media updates, mobile games and other regular pings and notifications, but if you can adapt your language training to mobile devices, this will help you get attention from your employees. Even 10 minutes of training per day will result in 5 hours of training per month. If employees can access the training programme from their phones it will be much easier to achieve this.
Another benefit of language learning programmes being accessible on mobile devices is that this can encourage collaboration and cross-communication between colleagues. The advantage of colleagues being able to easily discuss, and share progress and advice via mobile technology means that your teams will be better bonded, helping to improve company culture, whilst also encouraging employee engagement for a more inclusive environment.
Budget Budget allocation becomes more data-driven and requires tangible results, but it can be very tricky to measure ROI when it comes to learning. Good online training solutions should allow you to track employee success and turn it into numbers that you can then share.
You no longer need an IT director and three months to implement a corporate language learning programme. Tech companies are disrupting the EdTech market by providing painless and scalable learning solutions for businesses. Here at Busuu, for example, we developed a language learning app that can be implemented within days and immediately rolled out to over 10,000 employees without any need for IT support.
Do you have a Learning Management System (LMS) or a number of online learning programmes? Good online training software should be easily integrated with all other pieces of software that you have in the office. This will give you a better overview of your employees’ training success with their language learning, which can then be analysed and improved.
It can be the case that employees see training programmes as something time-consuming and disengaging, which may result in language training being put off and delayed. This is where online training is here to help with employee engagement, making learning in the flow of work a reality! Gamification, VR and mobile apps can all help you engage with your employees. Today, gamification is a must-have for all corporate training programmes as it increases motivation and engagement and therefore employee learning success by over 30%.
People are your most valuable resource and they contribute to the success of your business, so it’s essential to aid retention and help create a learning culture within your company. Whatever online language learning programme you choose for your employees, remember that choosing the right one makes all the difference in their corporate training experience.
With various options to choose from, you’ll need to compare and contrast to find the best mix of learning elements to offer your employees. Some may benefit from the community element of in-person classes, whilst others may prefer online options, finding them more flexible and convenient to fit in with their busy lives.
An important step is to discuss options with your teams to see what will be the more adaptable choice. This is a great opportunity to let your team know how important it is to invest in upskilling people for their advancement, as well as to achieve company goals.
Busuu has over 120 million registered users worldwide. We provide high-quality language courses for businesses, created by our team of language experts supported by and online community of native speakers, on hand to help with pronunciation practise and cultural knowledge.
Image source: Busuu