Learning as one of the most important skills in the modern (working) world

I have been in the education landscape for some time now and have experimented with many learning opportunities. In times of digital transformation and lifelong learning, learning is one of the most important skills of all, so it is more worthwhile than ever to engage with it.

Yes, digital learning is exciting, can make a difference in education and make it fairer (see for example Khan Academy). The use of e-learning (with or without AI) is particularly exciting in “traditional subjects” such as mathematics or languages and provides access to new and more learning opportunities.

Today, however, we know that in addition to the “classic subjects” and the corresponding skills, interpersonal and personal skills are at least as important for a fulfilling and successful (professional) life:

-????????? How do I deal with transformation?

-????????? How do I work with other people?

-????????? How do I find solutions to complex problems?

-????????? How do I think critically about information?

-????????? How can I be creative?

-????????? How do I reconcile work and family?

-????????? How do I incorporate sport and nature into my everyday life?

This is confirmed by the latest Future of Jobs Report from the World Economic Forum. A modern employee should think analytically, be creative, have resilience, motivation and self-awareness, but also be curious and willing to learn.

These skills help in everyday working life, but also in the responsible use of artificial intelligence and technology overall (think about social media for example), and are more difficult to learn digitally due to the “human” component. Personal interventions, application, reflection and joint learning are required.

Coming together physically and learning together in times of digital transformation?

I say yes, precisely because of the digital transformation. Let’s look at different aspects of learning opportunities.

E-learning...

...has revolutionized the education market in recent years and made it possible for “everyone” or at least more and more people to have access to high-quality education. I am still fascinated by how it is possible to learn Python, for example, and then work in this field or access a Harvardx course in the middle of the jungle (if there is internet) and benefit from it. This also allowed me to complete the Leaders of Learning course without flying to Boston or emptying my bank account.

Artificial intelligence...

...brings exciting innovations to learning and can help to promote personal learning development. Sal Khan writes in his latest book “Brave new words” how the artificial intelligence of the Khan Academy “Khanmigo” makes learning better and faster, for example through discussions with the AI. Artificial intelligence thus becomes a personal tutor. One of the world's leading business schools, IMD, is also incorporating AI into its offering. They integrate the curriculum and materials, which allows students to access the course content at any time and interact with the AI to better understand topics.

Limits of digital learning

As mentioned, however, technological learning opportunities also have an important disadvantage and cannot be used indefinitely: Many of the skills we need to be successful, especially in the digital world, are difficult to learn on your own at home. IMD Business School not only integrates AI, but also emphasizes the skills mentioned by the WEF and takes MBA students to Singapore for a whole month in its Future Lab, to learn together and work on real-world cases.

We also know that e-learning courses in particular encourage multitasking, which leads to lower learning volumes. A 2019 study in the USA found that we find it harder to learn digitally than physically and that multitasking in e-learning leads to poorer learning outcomes. Unfortunately, many e-learning courses are also not completed (studies show drop-out rates of between 14 and 90%). This is a big problem for many companies, as they provide e-learning to their employees, but the potential is often not fully utilized (Ps: I am curious to hear your success stories :).

Long story short:

Physical learning is also important and successful in 2024. Learning together not only promotes an understanding of concepts and their application, but also cohesion and motivation, creative and analytical thinking as well as curiosity for learning and flexibility. Taking decisions and discussing about topics also creates more collaboration and teamwork.

And so, in the end, it can be more efficient to spend a day learning together than to squeeze in an e-learning session on Friday afternoon in multitasking mode (yes, I'm sure you've done it that way too ??). In the end it’s probably the mix that makes the perfect solution. For some aspects, it’s great to quickly check online and learn a topic, for other things (and especially many of the most important skills mentioned by the WEF) a more human and physical approach can and should be used.

Start at Targetsim - board games and simulations

I am looking forward to my new journey with Targetsim, where we support transformation, build business acumen and put strategies into action, together with the employees. Through board games and simulations, we make the topics tangible and enable learning-by-doing. Targetsim has stood for Swiss quality with a recommendation rate of over 96% since 1994 and has continued to develop and adapt over the years, as it is doing now (the Covid-19 pandemic and wave of digitalization has accelerated change in the whole industry). I am definitely excited to see where our path will take us and would like to thank the two founders and Managing Partners: Ahcène Baatiche and Dr. Gudrun G. Vogt for their trust and collaboration.

If you have read this far: Thank you for your attention and your time! What are your thoughts around learning? Let’s discuss ??

Sources:

McWilliams, James 2019: Online courses are cost effective but detrimental to learning, researchers find

Khan, Salman 2024: Brave New Words

HarvardX, 2019: Leaders of Learning

World Economic Forum 2024: Future of Jobs Report

IMD, 2024: MBA Relaunched

Agentur Q, 2024: Gründe für die hohen Abbruchquoten von E-learning

Targetsim, 2024: www.targetsim.com