Employee training is a highly involved process. Between creating courses, reviewing employees’ progress, and helping them build a learning and development plan, you're likely running low on energy and time.
Hiring an assistant sounds pretty good right about now, doesn’t it?
But what, exactly, would that ideal assistant do?
Do you want them to take care of those menial, time-consuming tasks?
To not only anticipate your needs, but fulfill them before you even have to ask?
To brew the perfect cup of coffee, with a splash of oat milk and one sugar, just how you like it?
While AI won’t be able to brew you that coffee (that’s what the Keurig’s for!), it can tackle the other two tasks—and much more—with ease.
When you integrate AI into your training technology, it becomes the ideal assistant. It takes the work off your plate by analyzing data and automating the processes you’d normally do manually, saving you time and helping you reach above and beyond your training goals.
What Exactly is AI?
AI is a computer technology that mimics the human mind by learning from its collected data to make decisions, solve problems, and plan.
The first thing that comes to mind when you think of AI might be a complex, futuristic robot. But it’s much simpler than that.
The AI we use today (known as Artificial Narrow Intelligence) uses machine learning and algorithms to capture, interpret, and learn from the data it collects. Everything from delivery drones, to email spam filters, to self-driving cars use AI.
And if you’ve recently said, “Hey [Alexa, Siri, Google]… “ you’re already an experienced AI user. Those devices use AI—as do apps like Netflix and Spotify—to sort through data, make recommendations based on your behaviour, and deliver the content and information you want, when you want it.
9 Ways to Use Artificial Intelligence in Corporate Learning and Employee Training
Whether you’re an HR professional looking to streamline your processes or a business owner who needs to offload training tasks, you and your team can benefit from integrating AI into your employee training and corporate learning.
Step one is to work with an LMS provider that offers integrated AI. Then, you can start reaping the rewards of the technology. Here’s how:
1. Personalize Every Learner Experience
With just a few pieces of information, AI can tailor an employee's learning experience so it accurately reflects their position, skillset, and goals.
For example, if John was added to the system as a Sales Representative, the AI technology would recognize his title, understand which courses relate to his job, and suggest those courses to him.
You can also use AI to personalize the training based on what the employee has already accomplished.
Once John has a few courses under his belt, AI can assess what he's completed, how well he did, and how long it took him to complete each course. All of this information will provide the management team with the data they need to refine the individual's experience.
2. Automatically Tag Course Content
Tagging course content is a simple task, but it's also one that can be easily automated so you can focus on more important work.
AI can analyze the content of each course you create or upload, identify keywords within the content, and tag the course appropriately. This helps users and managers alike find content extremely easily, taking an already user-friendly interface to the next level.
AI’s tagging ability isn’t limited to written content, either. AI can often listen to videos or audio content that’s been uploaded to the LMS platform, pick up verbal keywords, and automatically generate up to 10 tags related to the content.
3. Use a Virtual Coach to Guide Learners
In traditional training environments, learners have immediate access to an in-person professional who can guide them through the process and answer their questions.
With AI, that same support can be maintained with a virtual coach.
Actually, it might be even more useful, since a virtual coach uses AI to offer help before the learner has to ask for it. You can even use a virtual coach to ask the learner multiple-choice questions during their training session to improve information retention.
A virtual coach can also provide feedback on how the learner has performed and recommend related materials to help them improve.
For example, if our new Sales Representative John wasn’t able to pass the ‘closing a sale’ module of his training course, the virtual coach could recommend a micro-course that focuses on closing a sale, giving John the education he needs to see further success and ace the training.
Just because users are talking to a “bot” doesn’t mean it has to feel that way. Most virtual coaches use natural, conversational language and provide real-time responses so learners can get accurate guidance as quickly as possible.
With this technology, every user gets a one-on-one coaching experience. Imagine providing one-on-one coaching to every employee in your company? It’d be nearly impossible to accomplish along with your other duties.
At Learning Studio, our virtual coach recommends content to the learner, monitors their training progress, answers questions about the content on the platform, and learns as it goes.
4. Help Employees Upskill
Looking for an easier way to help your employees upskill? AI is the answer.
AI technology can review each employee's learning history, as well as their established learning goals, to recommend related courses. (This is also known as content matching.) This process helps create a natural learning path for the employee so they never have to ask, "What's next?
To make it even easier, you can schedule push notifications to send the learner information about suggested content, courses they may like, and upcoming tasks.
All of that work, and more, is now off your plate!
5. Gather More Insightful Data
With AI, your number-crunching days are over—or at least, you'll have fewer of them.
By safely and securely collecting data, AI can analyze the collective patterns and behaviours of users to determine which type of training is most preferred and effective, how long a course takes on average, and where users struggle.
It can also continuously gather data by asking users about their likes, dislikes, and goals throughout their learning experiences.
6. Give Learners More Autonomy
By using artificial intelligence in training and development, you give your team members the autonomy they crave in their learning journey.
Adult learners want to be able to learn on their own time, at their own pace, and focus on the courses that help them reach their next career goal. AI integration hands the reins over to the learner while providing them with just enough guidance and support to succeed.
7. Eliminate Bias
While removing the human element of employee training can seem cold, in some aspects, it’s needed.
People naturally hold unconscious and conscious biases, in their personal life and in the workplace. AI can remove, or greatly reduce, the presence of bias by reviewing and grading training courses without human influence.
8. Get Your Time Back
Once you integrate AI into your employee training, you'll be free from overseeing every second of the process. With automated course delivery and scheduling, you'll have more time to focus on your high-level responsibilities.
AI can be a complete game-changer in the workplace. As Jeanne Meister Founding Partner, Future Workplace, says, “As workers and managers leverage the power of artificial intelligence in the workplace, they are moving from fear to enthusiasm as they see the possibility of being freed of many of their routine tasks and having more time to solve critical business problems for the enterprise.”
9. Get Better Results
Through AI, you can streamline the employee training process to get the results you’re looking for in less time and with fewer hassles.
From instantly answered questions to personalized learning paths, AI can be used to smooth out the rough edges of managing employee training in a way that benefits the learner and the training manager.
Will AI Ever Replace HR?
Who do you trust more: Your manager or a robot?
It might surprise you, but in an Oracle survey, 64% of people chose the robot. So what does that mean for us humans? Will AI ever truly take over the role of the HR professional?
Most likely, no. Because at the end of the day, HR requires a human touch to be truly effective.
“There is only so far one can take the usage of AI in HR,” says David Collings, Professor of Human Resource Management, Dublin City University. “It is much easier to raise a concern or discuss an issue with an HR professional whom you know and have built a relationship with. It is important [that] the human face of HR doesn't get lost.”
Preparing for the Future of Corporate Training
If you’re like 90% of HR professionals, you may be worried about how quickly and effectively you can adjust to using AI in your work. Luckily, Learning Studio makes it easy.
AI integration is just one of the many features of our custom elearning course development. To see how we can help bring your employee training into the 21st century, contact us today.