Mobile Learning – The time is now

Mobile is everywhere. It is a technology that most people cannot do without these days. Everybody is talking about mobile all the time. Enterprises are constantly trying to harness this technology to favor the business and enhance employee engagement. But what is the HR fraternity doing about mobile? Believe it or not, according to experts the time has come for HR professionals to re-look the learning processes and determine how mobile can assist in terms of reach and effectiveness. So how does all this work? How does mobile help HR? And, of course, how effective is all of this in learning, training and employee engagement ?

As the name itself suggests, mobile learning simply means delivering learning programs which can be accessed on the go via mobile. Ideally this would be a very effective way to implement learning as it does not require a classroom setup and face to face interactions. But a study by the American Society for Training and Development states in its research that only one third of the 567 businesses surveyed are equipped with learning programs to deliver via mobile. So if the HR experts are saying the time is now for mobile, then what’s happening?

For starters, it’s not easy. You would not want to rock the boat if you have a comfortable learning process set up. Would you? Introducing mobile learning means relooking the present game plan. Right from content re-creation, ensuring that learning objectives are met to implementation; it’s a long laborious process. And of course there are always budget limitations, not to mention security concerns. That’s why interest in mobile learning initiatives is still only lukewarm.

That said, how does all mobile learning help HR professionals and the workforce? Setting up a fully fledged mobile learning module will mean the workforce will have access to valuable learning information at all times, helping them gain knowledge as and when required effortlessly, in turn performing better. There will be no need any more for employees to travel half way around the world to participate in programs or login to their laptops or desktops to access these programs. Think about how much money all this is going to save the business. And with the BYOD trend setting in, this entire concept is sure to be more approachable than ever.

But then there is always the question of how effective mobile learning can be, especially for programs that require interaction and programs that require customization based on audience. All these are factors that need to be thought out well while building mobile learning programs. All this said, mobile learning is definitely the next big thing for HR as it takes learning to the next level.