In a world shaken by unprecedented disruption, companies need to adapt quickly. L&D leaders have to cultivate new skills that will allow employees to capture new business opportunities, and they need to do so at scale.

Philippe Gerbelot-Barrillon, Head of LinkedIn Learning France, shares how data can help companies meet rising L&D challenges and offer learning that is accessible, relevant, and motivating.

1. What are some recent trends you have observed in corporate and executive education? How is the field changing? How is digital transformation impacting it? 

Soft skills are the main trends when it comes to learning. Communication and creativity are the two main topics in 2020, reveals the analysis of LinkedIn Learning courses followed by our 93 million users globally.

All services are impacted by digital transformation: marketing, HR, supply chain, sales... This digital transformation is linked to the transformation of customer buying habits. To survive, companies need to adapt their offer, becoming more transparent and ecological and focusing on DIB (diversity, inclusion, and belonging) and quality in their products. To do so, they need to adapt their services and strategy constantly and help their employees to adapt their skills accordingly. That's why creativity and communication are key skills to develop to adapt to this constant change. In this situation, e-learning is the best way for a company to give the tools to their employees to refresh their knowledge of these skills or to learn them.

2. In your experience, what are the most common learning challenges that large companies face? How are they solving them?

Companies are facing more and more challenges. A recent study showed that skills need to be updated every five years. To stay competitive, companies need to constantly support their team to grow and learn. Companies are working more and more globally, and it's a challenge for them to give their employees the same service in every country and every language. To do so, e-learning is key, as it provides the tool to give every employee in the world the same e-learning experience or onboarding experience. With a tool like LinkedIn Learning, you can build learning paths with services in seven different languages (English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese, and Chinese) and include your own videos in those learning paths.

3. Is AI the future of digital transformation? How will AI affect corporate learning programmes?

AI is already playing a role in the way we learn. With all the data we have, LinkedIn Learning is able to understand what the most suitable courses are for members by mapping learning courses to a member’s profile (based on profession, industry, and seniority) to develop their career. Our AI helps us to answer their needs. Creating relevancy is key for companies as it helps to engage learners and to create a culture of learning.

4. How important is personalisation in training programmes? Does personalisation make programmes more effective, and should companies invest in it?

The key requirements for creating a learning culture in a company and engaging employees are:

• Quality courses that will help them to grow;
• An engaging platform that will give employees the relevant courses they need ATAWAD (anytime, anywhere, any device).

Personalisation and gamification are a plus, but if a course is not relevant or good quality, they won't help.

5. Should training programmes focus on individual employees’ weaknesses or their strengths? How can CHROs and CLOs determine the exact kind of training that employees, teams, and executives need? 

​That's a good question – we all have weaknesses and strengths. It's usually easier and quicker to learn skills linked to your strengths, and harder and less motivating to learn skills linked to your weaknesses. So I would push employees to focus on their strengths and learn the minimum skills they need to avoid their weaknesses being an obstacle to their growth. In this way, they will be more engaged and happier to learn.

CHRO and CLO can benefit from data analysis to predict what their company will need to stay competitive, and to define their long-term strategy and the skills they need to focus on. 

6. What are the best ways for HR and L&D leaders to keep people engaged with learning?

The best way to engage people is to motivate them. To do so and to create a learning culture you need:

• A relevant tool which will give your employees the courses they need when they need them, and will also keep them informed about the learning trends in your company;
• Leaders in all services and/or countries who will help to build relevant learning paths for their community and keep employees involved;
• Regular communication on new learning paths, new content, and the engagement progress of your users.

Of course, we have plenty of examples and suggestions that we can share with you, as every company is different and needs different support.

To catch up on the latest innovations in corporate learning and connect with other CLOs and CHROs, claim your complimentary pass to the MERIT European Summit in Paris, 18 September – “Rethinking Learning in a Connected World”. This boutique event is co-hosted by LinkedIn. Book now to guarantee your place, even if the event is postponed.

By Ani Kodjabasheva