E-learning examples: Successfully expanding knowledge and skills in the company

The importance of e-learning for company growth

Electronic learning, or e-learning for short, comes in a wide range of different formats and methods. Microlearning, social learning, video tutorials, blended learning, podcasts - digital learning knows virtually no bounds.  

It has revolutionized knowledge transfer. With its low-threshold offerings, it promotes continuous learning: people are more likely to complete a two-hour e-learning course in the office or at home than a two-day training in a distant city. And it is precisely this continuous learning of employees that is of central importance for companies so that they are well positioned for the future. After all, the demands placed on employees are increasing as the world of work becomes ever more complex. Consistent upskilling - the constant expansion of employees' skills and abilities - is therefore essential. For some employees and positions, the need for further training is even greater. It will be necessary to completely redefine skills profiles here. This is because major upheavals such as digitalization and automation are changing the world of work so drastically in some areas that simply expanding skills is no longer enough. This process is also known as reskilling. It is essential that employees keep abreast of industry-specific developments, new technology and trends. This is the only way they can develop the skills that will be urgently needed in the coming years.

And it's not just the market that is constantly changing: Companies are also changing. For example, the generation change is imminent. New employees are being on-boarded, other employees are developing into managers. Different teams want creative impetus for their work, a new project requires a change in communication, and, and, and - not to mention the shortage of skilled workers. In order for companies to successfully meet this change, their employees need diverse and extensive skills. In addition to digitally driven future skills, traditional skills such as conflict management are still very much in demand. Continuous acquisition of skills and knowledge by the workforce therefore ensures the long-term competitiveness of companies.  

E-learning makes it easy for employees to acquire new knowledge:

• Digital learning is flexible in terms of time and location: employees can learn when it fits into their working day.
• Employees can learn according to their previous knowledge and learning speed: chapters can be skipped or repeated if necessary.
• Self-directed learning by means of e-learning creates a positive learning attitude.

A win-win situation, because companies also benefit from digital learning opportunities:

• Employees bring new ideas, methods and topics into the company with up-to-date e-learning that can be consumed at short notice. This is the basis for innovation.
• Digital learning incurs low costs: there is no need to travel to and from the event or to stay overnight at the venue.
• Satisfied, motivated employees who feel supported by the company in the development of their skills feel connected to the company. This secures the skilled workforce of tomorrow.  
  

Want to find out more about the added value of e-learning? Then read our blog post Benefits of e-learning.

E-learning examples from practice

E-learning offers HR developers a flexible and effective way to train and develop employees in various areas. The following three areas of development are particularly relevant in practice.

Use case 1: Use of artificial intelligence

Many companies are currently planning and testing how they can make the most of the benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) for their own operational processes. The aim is to increase efficiency in various departments and develop more innovative solutions. The potential areas of application are wide-ranging: from the analysis of existing customers in the sales department, to the evaluation of large data sets in the research and development department, to brainstorming sessions in the marketing department. In addition, AI-driven tools can speed up the creation and revision of texts and facilitate the work of creative teams when creating images and PowerPoint presentations.

However, the challenge lies in enabling employees to use these technologies effectively. After all, employees should not only be able to understand and use the new tools, but ideally also identify other possible areas of application.

With e-learning, employees can familiarize themselves intensively with a topic in a short space of time. Interactive learning methods and concrete use cases pave the way for easy transfer of new knowledge into practice.  

A good e-learning course on AI should fulfill this requirement:

• After the course participants will have mastered the key terms and concepts relating to artificial intelligence.
• They recognize a wide range of possible applications for different areas of work.
• They are able to select and use specific AI tools to optimize work processes.
• You understand how different AI models work.
• You develop your own ideas for integrating AI into your day-to-day work.

The e-learning course "Using artificial intelligence in everyday work" from the Haufe Akademie helps your employees to exploit the benefits of AI in their day-to-day work.

Use Case 2: Building leadership skills

Dynamic, fast-growing companies with a diverse workforce in particular need competent managers. They manage growth and at the same time make a significant contribution to preserving the corporate culture. But even where the "old hands" of the management team are slowly but surely retiring, the successors need to develop certain leadership skills.

As the interface between C-level and employees , managers have to switch between different roles. As visionaries, they communicate the corporate strategy and actively implement it. They also have to be role models who live and promote the corporate culture. At the same time, they motivate and support their teams as coaches, but may also have to make decisions relevant to labor law. In short, managers need to have a versatile skillset that ranges from the basics of employment law and strategic thinking to communication skills and empathy.

It is important to continuously train and develop team leaders so that they are able to cope with their many daily challenges. However, training courses lasting several days are often difficult to fit into managers' busy schedules. E-learning courses, on the other hand, can be integrated flexibly and in short chunks into their daily work routine.  

These and other topics are highly relevant for the skillset of managers:

• Labor law,  
• Leading agile teams,
• Delegate tasks,
• Conduct job interviews,
• Women in leadership,
• Crisis communication,
• Knowledge of human nature,
• Increase team performance,
• lead to changes.

The Content Collection "management and leadership" offers over 40 e-learning courses to help you prepare your managers to change roles at any time.

Use Case 3: Development of soft skills

Employees are often forced to leave their comfort zone in their day-to-day work: for example, when giving presentations to large groups, managing conflicts in a team or conducting demanding sales talks. Such challenges can cause uncertainty and, in the worst-case scenario, affect performance.

Distinctive soft skills such as communication, conflict management and presentation skills help employees to successfully master their tasks. E-learning courses provide optimal support in developing these skills. If required, they also provide employees with effective methods and relevant background knowledge at short notice. For example, how to learn effectively from mistakes, how to organize meetings productively or how to present results confidently.  

Other examples of relevant soft skills are:

• Business Creativity,
• the ability to make good decisions,
• Giving and receiving feedback,
• deal with critical voices, unqualified comments or even insults,
• Conflict management,
• Body language,
• Mental Health,
• Quick-wittedness and rhetoric,
• Self-marketing,
• ... and much more.

E-learning courses on Personal and Social Skills empower your employees when it really matters: whether the day before a presentation, during a conflict or for long-term networking. The Haufe Akademie'sContent Collection offers over 40 courses on this topic.

E-learning examples: Basic knowledge in various areas of the company

Today, the continuous acquisition of knowledge by employees is essential if companies are to survive on the market in the long term. This does not only apply to trend topics: All areas of the company benefit from consistent upskilling. In this section, you will find an overview of the most important topics in which you should expand your employees' basic knowledge.

Leadership skills

With internal projects, it can easily happen that not everything runs smoothly: there is often no official project management, deadlines are not met and unclear decision-making processes cost time. The person who has been given the project, possibly in addition to daily business, is faced with major challenges. They have to make decisions, resolve conflicts, promote communication within the team and at the same time maintain an overview of day-to-day business. And all this with a tight deadline, but often without official authority.

In such cases, a quick and effective solution is needed to successfully implement and complete the project. A compact e-learning course on leadership skills can be flexibly integrated into everyday working life and completed quickly. For example, it teaches managers how to win over people in the company without official authority. Employees learn about the tools of lateral leadership and find solutions. For example, the "Leading without a superior function" course helps to effectively improve informal leadership skills.

Diversity

Dealing with diversity and inclusion is playing an increasingly important role in our society. After all, people with different ethnic backgrounds, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, ideology and social background or different physical and mental abilities naturally come together in the workplace too.

Many companies have already recognized that a diverse workforce brings great benefits. Diverse perspectives, experiences and skills improve innovative strength and problem-solving skills, for example. E-learning courses, such as "Unconscious Biases", can be used to raise awareness of prejudices. Participants learn to recognize their own unconscious thought patterns and make more objective decisions.

Health

Today's working world is characterized by speed, change, constant availability and high pressure to succeed. But not only in the professional environment - in many areas of life the credo applies: higher, faster, further. In this environment, health skills are becoming increasingly important. Stress management, emotional resilience and the ability to adapt are more in demand than ever.  

It is important for employees to learn strategies to deal with stress and pressure and to build up their mental resilience. They can build up the necessary knowledge flexibly in terms of time and location with e-learning courses, e.g. the "Resilience" course.

Communication and cooperation

It's hard to avoid being annoyed by the behavior of a colleague in your day-to-day work. However, conflicts that have been simmering under the surface for some time can affect personal performance or even team performance. However, it is not so easy to objectively reflect to the person concerned what is causing their behavior. It is easy for the other person to feel offended.

Constructive interpersonal interaction and effective communication are the backbone of successful organizations. They are essential for a positive corporate culture and well-functioning teams. How to give and receive feedback correctly can be learned effectively via topic-specific e-learning courses and applied directly in everyday life. Courses such as "Giving and receiving feedback", for example, also teach the factors and effects of feedback and how it differs from praise and criticism.

Artificial intelligence, data and digitalization

There is no way around AI. The technology has now arrived in everyday working life and AI-supported, data-driven decisions will play an increasingly important role in the future. It is therefore essential for employees to deepen their digital skills and engage intensively with AI and AI tools. These future skills of the workforce are an important lever for the competitiveness of a company and its economic success.

E-learning courses are ideal for quickly acquiring new skills. For example, the course "Adapting products and processes with artificial intelligence" shows how AI can be used to increase the efficiency and innovative strength of work processes and products. Learners also train to assess the impact of generative AI on HR, logistics and finance and to recognize potential dangers such as deep fakes.

Methods and working techniques

A new topic or project can present even experienced employees with unexpected challenges. Because sometimes you simply can't achieve the desired, innovative result with the usual working methods. In such cases, it helps to get an overview of different methods and working techniques. True to the motto: Think out of the (tool)box! There are a variety of tools and techniques that can be consumed and learned as small "morsels" in an e-learning course, e.g. in the "Innovation Toolbox" course. In this way, innovative strength can be developed as a skill in the workforce - the key to successful companies in the long term.

Presentation and moderation

What combines a strategic approach to process optimization, a new campaign concept and an idea for an innovative product? As creative as the ideas may be - they have to be really convincing! Because if the stakeholders are not convinced, it will not be realized.

The ability to present ideas and solutions convincingly is therefore essential for employees. Those who communicate ideas effectively can convince management and inspire the team.      

An e-learning course can help to develop these skills, e.g. on the subject of storytelling: this technique can help to present complex content in a structured and understandable way and to convey messages convincingly.  

Personnel management and leadership

In order to lead teams well and make them successful, a good knowledge of human nature is indispensable. It is a key competence of successful managers. Managers with a good understanding of human nature recognize the different needs, ambitions and personalities of their employees and have the ability to respond appropriately. In this way, they give their team a good basis for success.     

For managers who want to effectively develop their skills in this area, compact e-learning courses such as "Understanding human nature in leadership" are suitable. They learn, for example, what influences human behavior and understand perception errors and body language. In this way, they improve their ability to motivate their employees in line with their personality type.  

Personal development

Mistakes are human. And they are necessary in order to learn and develop new solutions. But while many people are already hard on themselves in their private lives when they make a mistake, the topic is even more taboo in the workplace.

You can train yourself to fail better and to learn from your own and others' mistakes. Such changes in perspective contribute to personal and professional development. In e-learning courses, for example, Learners find out more about the benefits of a positive error culture and learn how to deal constructively with mistakes. They also learn, for example, how to avoid negative actions such as ignoring or punishing mistakes in order to learn from them. The e-learning course "The error culture" supports employees in establishing a positive error culture.

Change and organizational development

To survive in the market, organizations must be agile and adapt to market- and technology-driven changes, among other things. This means: new processes, new team structures, new tools. Again and again and often at short intervals. Although these are necessary, they keep the workforce on their toes. It's no wonder that some employees find it difficult to keep up with the constant changes and feel left behind. However, for change to be successful, everyone should support it as much as possible.

E-learning courses such as "Strengthening change skills" provide valuable impetus for dealing with change more confidently. For example, recognizing positive facets and using one's own strengths in change situations. Learners also find out more about the reasons behind resistance, for example, or learn how to use emotions in a targeted manner during change.

Economic efficiency

A basic understanding of economic thinking and action is the basis for economic decisions and therefore a key factor for the success of a company. However, employees without commercial or business training may lack the basics. With e-learning courses, such as "Business Administration Basics", the most important concepts and contexts of business administration can be acquired in a short space of time. This enables employees to better understand their contribution to the value creation process and recognize, for example, the impact of decisions on the cost structure.

Compliance, data privacy and IT security

Compliance, i.e. adherence to laws and guidelines, is a central aspect of every organization. The aim is to minimize risks and safeguard the integrity of the company. This is where more comprehensive e-learning topic collections come in, covering a wide range of compliance topics, including data protection, IT security and occupational health and safety, for example. Depending on the provider, these training courses also fulfill the legal requirements in addition to the company-relevant security topics. The Haufe Akademie offers such a coordinated collection in its Compliance College on offer.

Basic knowledge in the area of sustainability

Sustainability is playing an increasingly important role in the business world, especially as legal requirements are gradually being created to protect the environment and human rights. Companies are therefore increasingly obliged to integrate sustainable practices into their operations. Haufe Akademie'sSustainability College is a collection of selected e-learning courses that provide the necessary knowledge to effectively implement sustainability practices in companies.

Our tips for choosing a good e-learning product    

There are a few criteria that you should consider when selecting suitable e-learning courses:

Relevance and quality of the e-learning product

The relevance of the learning content is the be-all and end-all of a good e-learning program. If your employees recognize the direct relevance to their daily work, their motivation to learn will also increase. Make sure that the content of the courses is aligned with your company's training strategy and the needs of your workforce. A good e-learning provider will support you in this by offering a wide range of courses tailored to different professional fields and skills.

The quality of the courses is also crucial. Make sure that the courses have been designed by experts and are of a high methodological and didactic standard. Practice-related exercises and tests should deepen the learning content and support the transfer to everyday working life. Another quality feature is the multilingualism of the courses, which enables them to be used internationally.

Interfaces  

There are two options for providing e-learning courses: Either you use the provider's learning environment or you integrate the courses into your existing learning environment via interfaces such as SCORM or LTI 1.3. Both options have their advantages: Using the provider's learning environment is particularly attractive for companies that are just discovering e-learning for themselves and want to get started quickly. Integration into your own learning environment, on the other hand, enables the provision of external expertise within existing processes and systems.    

Usability of the e-learning platform  

Good usability of the e-learning platform is crucial for acceptance and use by your employees. An intuitive user interface and a clear structure of the learning content facilitate access and promote motivation to learn. The flexibility of the platform also plays a role: can the courses be used on different end devices? Are there functions for mobile learning? When selecting a solution, make sure that it meets the requirements and habits of your workforce.

The Haufe Akademie'sContent Collection supports you with more than 150 e-learning courses in a flat rate to develop and expand your employees' skills. The course collection includes topics such as "Transformation and digitalization", "Leadership" and "Project and change management". It fits seamlessly into existing platforms or can be combined with the Haufe Akademie learning environments. Discover the many possibilities that the Content Collection offers for your company.

E-learning examples: Conclusion

The importance of e-learning will continue to grow in the future. Companies that want to successfully train their employees and expand their skills will not be able to avoid this format. Digital learning offers companies an effective way to train and develop their workforce in many different subject areas. It is important to select the right e-learning product and tailor the learning content to the specific needs and requirements of the company. In this way, the benefits of digital learning can be fully exploited and the company's competitiveness secured in the long term.