One of the biggest challenges that learning and development administrators face is engaging employees in training. The growing market for learning experience platforms – or LXPs – is an exciting opportunity to address this problem.

LXPs are reinventing how workers gain new skills and receive training by incorporating features from the most popular platforms online. They deliver a wide range of content in a personalized manner, not unlike Netflix, with social features to boot. As a result, LXPs can greatly increase employee engagement with workplace training while making that training more relevant to an individual’s role.

Josh Bersin, the analyst and human resources expert who coined the phrase “learning experience platform” says LXPs are a necessary adaptation to the evolving way that people learn.

“People no longer search course catalogs for ‘courses’ the way they used to, and we need a way to train and learn ‘in the flow of work,’” he writes on his blog.

This shift is particularly important as younger people who are digital natives become a larger part of the workforce. As LinkedIn’s 2019 Workplace Learning Report notes, incorporating social and mobile features that empower learners to take the reins over training are “imperative for talent development to tap into the potential—and preferences—of all learners.”

Some of the key features of LXPs that make them such an exciting evolution of training include:

• Greater content types: LXPs go beyond traditional training delivery methods such as presentations to include articles, podcasts, links to useful websites and blogs, videos and even user-generated content. Employees not only consume content on LXPs, but they are also easily able to publish it. This encourages individuals to share knowledge with their colleagues and creates a repository for in-house knowledge.
• Social media features: Like social media platforms, LXPs invite users to connect with one another, like content and post comments. These behaviors help the artificial intelligence brain of the platform better understand each user and deliver content to them that is both relevant and engaging. And, as workers share what they are learning with one another, they can also encourage others to engage with the platform and advance their own learning.
• Employee empowerment: LXPs are designed to offer a continuous learning experience that is controlled by the employee. That means they are not waiting around for a training to be offered or delivered to them. Instead, they can learn on their own schedules and as the need arises on the job. And because LXPs are intelligent platforms capable of offering individualized recommendations, they can also serve as a guide to help employees take the next step in career advancement.
• Badges and certification: LXPs often include ways for workers to earn badges or certificates through skills assessments. Because there are so many ways to learn on an LXP, these markers serve as valuable milestones for both the learner and their manager to measure and evaluate progress.

LXPs have only been around for less than a decade, so the market is still in its early stages. The platforms are likely to become even more engaging as the tools they offer improve with each iteration. They have already proven themselves to be a valuable tool for L&D professionals who want to build a more dynamic and exciting culture of learning that encourages employees to continually seek out opportunities to grow.

Discover Adobe Captivate Prime – a modern learning platform that delivers engaging personalized experiences for the learner without compromising on the core features of an enterprise LMS.–  learn more.

This post was created in partnership with SmartBrief