Digital Learning Transformation: How Organizations Evolve Through Online Learning

In today’s hyperconnected world, we increasingly live our lives online. And, with the rise of remote and hybrid work, this digital transformation extends to our workforce, as well. The way we work is increasing the speed at which business is changing.

Entire industries and the roles within them are evolving at the speed of light. This shift requires an adaptive workforce, one that has moved past skills, knowledge, and even application of digital skills, to one with deeply internalized capabilities. How can organizations equip and empower their employees to thrive in this technologically driven era? 

In this article, we’ll explore how employers can build the workforce skills and capabilities that prepare their organizations to remain competitive and gain market advantage in a progressively digital world. With a forward-thinking approach to digital learning transformation, companies can expand essential skills organization-wide, allowing employees to interact with customers and one another in new ways, driving innovation and new operational imperatives.

First, let’s dive into what we mean by digital transformation and how it is factoring into each and every business decision we make today.

What is digital transformation?

Digital transformation refers to a reimagining of how an organization uses technology, people, and processes in pursuit of new business models and new revenue streams, driven by changes in internal and external expectations around products, services, and outcomes.

This historic disruption of existing operating models can change how organizations deliver value, requiring continual workforce upskilling and evolving employee relationships to their roles, each other, and their organizations.

A report by McKinsey reveals that companies’ adoption of digital technologies has sped up by three to seven years in just months, with companies accelerating efforts for fear of being outpaced by competitors. What was once viewed as best-in-class speed for most business cases just a few years ago is now slower than average.

However, only 11% of 1,140 executives also surveyed by McKinsey believe their current business models will be economically viable through 2023, and it’s easy to understand their hesitancy. As many as 64% of those business leaders say their companies must build new digital businesses.

Is online learning considered a component of digital transformation?

Over the last decade, it has become more and more important for organizations to digitally transform their corporate training programs in which employees have access to continuous leadership development and upskilling and reskilling opportunities, an imperative only accelerated by the pandemic and its subsequent shift towards remote and hybrid work.

Online learning models allow organizations to more easily approach training and development as an ongoing, scalable process with clearly outlined goals and objectives. By developing digital learning transformation initiatives, L&D leaders can design and implement learning journeys in small elements to make information easier to digest and encourage learners to interact with learning content whenever they are available — throughout their tenure with the company.

With social and collaborative learning platforms such as NovoEd, cohorts of learners are enabled to connect across a large community so they can learn from each other and feel connected to the broader organization. From there, they can break into smaller communities of practice where they can transfer ideas, apply new knowledge, and receive feedback on the discrete skills and competencies they’ve developed. Finally, organizations are able to reinforce newly acquired behaviors, mindsets, and capabilities with continuous social and collaborative learning.

How organizations are leveraging digital learning transformation

CEMEX, a global building materials company headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico with close to $14 billion in revenue and more than 40,000 employees worldwide, provides industry-leading construction products and solutions in more than 50 countries. In business since the early 1900s, the company has recognized its need to become more agile, innovative, and digitally savvy through digital transformation.

The company’s digital evolution is changing how employees are engaging with external and internal customers, as well as with leadership and each other. Employees are being challenged to develop a growth mindset and enhance their skills for their jobs of today while preparing for their jobs of tomorrow. CEMEX University, an online capability academy, was created to support employee skill development during this cultural evolution and to help the business become a digitally enabled learning organization.

Since launching the CEMEX University digital learning ecosystem on the NovoEd learning delivery platform, CEMEX has scaled its program to include five academies and more than 15 digital learning experiences, democratizing learning opportunities to the broader organization and exploring new technologies to create impactful learner experiences.

Early on during General Electric’s history, the world’s leading digital industrial company determined that its most significant limitation to growth was its supply of high-quality managers. In 1956, the Crotonville leadership institute was born, and GE quickly became legendary for its leadership training, a reputation that holds today.

As successful as Crotonville was, only 30% of GE’s professional employees were able to participate in a learning experience at the brick-and-mortar academy. To remain at the forefront of an increasingly digital future and to scale the “Crotonville effect” and reach more employees worldwide, GE formalized a digital learning strategy which, in 2016, evolved into BrilliantYOU™, an online learning experience.

Since using the NovoEd learning delivery platform in the BrilliantYOU™ learning marketplace, GE has scaled its program to reach thousands of learners each week and has seen a significant increase in engagement rates. And, with advancements in data and analytics, GE is also actively working to track engagement and feedback to ensure they’re meeting the needs of all learners.

Why is digital transformation learning so important to the future of an organization?

Digital is driving an ever-faster pace of innovation, and companies can take advantage of the potential benefits only if they have the capabilities to harness it. We know from our work with clients from a wide range of industries that organizations of all sizes have increased their use of technology, which has made the barriers to digital disruption even lower and paved the way for more rapid, technology-driven changes going forward.

The ROI of digital learning transformation technologies depends on an organization’s workforce having appropriate levels of digital literacy while also being able to collaborate effectively and adapt to new internal and external forces rapidly and in alignment. 

That’s why it’s so important to create a culture of continuous learning within organizations, one that cultivates a social and collaborative environment in which employees are empowered to learn what’s necessary to make your digital transformation strategy succeed.

The corporate world’s response to digital transformation will involve bold alterations to almost every dimension of an organization: the pace at which it moves initiatives forward, the very nature of its value proposition, and the talent, capabilities, and leadership that are necessary for carrying out its vision and achieving long-term success. 

Related Searches

Digital Transformation, Online Learning Platform, Corporate Learning Experience