We've been experimenting with social learning and have come across a few challenges. I'd love to hear from other organisations; what has worked well and what hasn't? Also which tools are you using?
We've been happy with how with how our staff have engaged. But we've had lots of conversations with clients who struggle to keep it going after the initial excitement of choosing and releasing the new social learning tool.
We've written our social learning story here on LinkedIn, if you want more background.
There are lots of views on implementing social learning successfully. Is it a case of faking it until people engage? Or can you/should you make it compulsory for people to engage?
Those 20 somethings are a tough audience :-)
One Response
Hi Fiona, I’m 6 months into a
Hi Fiona, I’m 6 months into a role of Social Learning Manager and it’s been quite a challenge. I’ve spent almost all of that time engaging with key stakeholders trying to understand their challenges and what we can do about it. There are a number of issues I think we need to overcome. The first is that by promoting Social Learning we have offered a solution to a challenge that the business don’t realise they have. It’s an L & D view that social learning is the future not a business one. To help overcome this I am writing a Social Learning Strategy and Policy which will look at how Social Learning is promoted.
Secondly, we have introduced a social learning platform that enables social learning through creation and sharing learning content. However,our organisational culture hasn’t fully caught up with the digital age so, for many, using digital tools isn’t seen as being a good use of time. Being in a classroom learning is fine but spending time watching video at your desk is seen as wasting time – that’s a hurdle I have been trying to overcome.
There are 3 things that drive Social Learning; the Tools, the purpose (I mean a real business purpose not a L & D purpose) and an infrastructure of influencers who are promoting the cause – that’s line managers, senior managers, other L & D people, coaches etc everyone that influences people to learn should be promoting it. So, we have the tools and slowly getting people on-board, the challenge for me is to link it to hard business targets and t0 get business influencers to be promoting it.