A wide variety of organizations are increasingly adopting eLearning as a powerful tool to upskill and reskill their workforce. However, traditional, one-size-fits-all eLearning approaches often fail to meet the diverse needs and learning styles of individual learners. To address this challenge, the concept of custom eLearning paths has emerged as a transformative solution.

According to a recent study by Deloitte, 94% of employees stay longer with a company if it invests in their learning and development approaches. By tailoring eLearning experiences to individual needs and goals, organizations can utilize the full potential of their workforce.

In this article, we will explore six essential tips for creating effective personalized eLearning training paths that drive learner success and organizational growth.

Table of Contents:

What is an eLearning Path?

An eLearning path is a curated selection of defined courses bundled together for learners to progress through mastering a particular area/subject/program. An incredibly simple yet very powerful feature of any LMS, eLearning paths allow you to enroll multiple users in different courses at once, thus saving a significant amount of time and resources.

The key difference between traditional one-size-fits-all eLearning models is eLearning customization. These models focus on the specific and individual needs and goals of every learner, which makes organizational learning highly effective and engaging.

This allows the learner to take active control over their learning, which will result in better motivation, retention, and acquisition of new skills.

Key Benefits of Custom eLearning Paths

Organizations can develop learning programs based on the job role, skill gaps, and individual learning style for the particular custom eLearning paths created. This is indeed the only approach that will ensure the learners get the most relevant and effective training.

A sense of control among the learners would increase their interest and motivation in their own learning process. Custom eLearning paths enable the choice of different content, pacing, and delivery methods that are best suited to their preferences.

In the personal learning paths, attention to specific learning objectives helps the learners achieve the knowledge and skills required for the job to be performed. More use of personalized feedback and assessments goes on to enhance the learning outcome such that the performers also show up at standard.

The custom eLearning paths help to achieve increased productivity through skilling and knowledge of task performance. Upselling and reskilling programs would drive business performance, enabling organizations to compete in an ever-changing market.

In-house eLearning pathways can be very cost-effective because they allow organizations to target specific needs and avoid unnecessary spending. The use of technology and analytics in data can optimize training investment.

Also Read: Gamification – The Secret Sauce for Employee Engagement?

6 Tips to Create Custom Learning Paths for Employees

Instead of relying on a one-size-fits-all approach, custom eLearning modules are completely learner-centric and feature targeted activities and assessments that are fully customized based on employee needs.

This allows the training managers to ensure that every learner has the chance to fill his/her unique performance gaps and reach their true potential.

Here are six tips to know how to create custom learning resources:

While creating custom learning paths for each employee or learner, the goals and objectives of the eLearning course should remain an integral part of the overall training experience.

The first step towards creating a successful personal learning path strategy, therefore, is to develop a plan that effortlessly blends the specific needs of the employees with that of eLearning course essentials. Apart from the individualized goals and objectives set for employees, the learning path should also ensure that the learners walk away from the training experience with robust knowledge of the subject matter.

These goals can either be company-wide such as implementing a culture or strategic change, or department-wide such as targeted safety training for employees working in the warehouse. What is important here is to define a clear goal for a group like the new hires or the employees lacking in specific areas and needing improvement.

In case there is a long-term learning goal involved, it is recommended to break it down into smaller milestones to keep the employees engaged and motivated throughout.

A successful custom eLearning path for employees must cater to a varied set of learners. The learning path you create must be easily accessible to employees via different devices such as smartphones, desktops, laptops, or tablets.

Further, it should cater to the learning needs of different learners. For example – by incorporating podcasts for auditory learners that feature task performance tips, drag-and-drop serious games for kinesthetic learners, and engaging videos for visual learners, you can make sure that information is disseminated effectively, giving an advantage of higher levels of employee engagement and retention of information.

A skills matrix is essentially a tool to identify the specific knowledge and skill sets that are required to be successful at a particular job.

Designing a skills matrix at the beginning allows you to understand the specific employee needs from the training and helps you find relevant content for your learners.

To make employees feel motivated and enhance their level of engagement in training, make sure to provide a lot of relevant personal anecdotes in the learning paths you create.

It helps them connect with the content much better and allows them to think of ways they can use the information in their own professional lives. Further, making these anecdotes interactive by adding a lot of images, videos, and audio is an excellent way to personalize the overall training process for better learning outcomes.

Personal eLearning paths you create should always incorporate inputs and feedback from the employees or learners. The effectiveness of a training module can only be increased if the employer or a training manager really knows how to align the training content with the specific needs of an employee.

Further, you need to make sure that the employees always feel a significant sense of control over their own learning experience while using these personal learning paths. An excellent way to do this is by including a navigation style that lets learners opt for how they wish to move through the course along with the ability to take certain courses out of turn as per their individual requirements.

Self-reflective assessments are an important aspect of creating great eLearning paths. They allow the employees to reflect on what they did well and what areas they need to improve upon.

You can do this by designing engaging quizzes or simulations that enable learners to test their own progress and comprehension. Also, make sure you give learners the chance to correct their own mistakes by including an answer sheet or self-grading rubric.

Also Read: How Can Enterprises Implement Simulation Training for Employees

To Conclude

The concept of the personal eLearning path considers employee training as an ongoing process. It is an excellent way to give your staff the power to take charge of their learning and become active participants in the overall training process.

Further, they also help you facilitate a robust corporate learning culture that gives the dual benefit of enhanced employee satisfaction and retention of top talent. In fact, a growing number of companies are realizing the benefits of custom learning paths as the most efficient way to ensure a well-trained, skilled, and highly productive workforce.

Hurix Digital can help you with these eLearning navigation tips. Connect with us to understand how to create excellent eLearning paths for your employees and give them multiple opportunities to expand their knowledge and skill sets.