The lion's share of workplace learning does not take place in training sessions, but at the workplace: This is the central statement of the often-quoted 70-20-10 principle. Learn in the article what impulses we draw from this principle and how you shape learning as a process with blink.it.
Directly to the lion's share of learning success?
Learning on the job with blink.it
70% of learning success occurs "on the job". With the learning platform blink.it, you can achieve exactly that: Accompany participants after training for several weeks online. Request your free demo now and let our blink.it expert show you how learning on the job works with the blink.it platform.
10% Learning in training
According to the 70-20-10 principle, training contributes very little to an employee's learning progress. The reason is obvious: Training usually lasts one to two days, typically in one go. In this short and content-rich time, no significant behavioral change can occur.
That doesn’t mean that training is ineffective or a bad measure per se! However, you should be aware that according to the 70-20-10 principle, they only account for a small part of workplace learning.
10% Learning in training: Further education measures that do not take place in daily work contribute only the smallest part of learning success.
20% Learning in exchange
Social learning ranks second according to the 70-20-10 principle. This initially means: Learning alone is less efficient than learning in exchange with others. It’s not about classic group work, but about everyday exchange: Conversations between employees who give each other tips and thus support each other – all without formal training.
20% is attributed to social learning, meaning: Learning in exchange is about twice as efficient as learning in training. If you combine both, the learning effect is likely even above 30%! Because those who talk about the content with colleagues after a training session retain it longer in memory. The colleague may have an additional tip – and thus the original content of the training is actively shared, reinforced, and further developed.
20% Social learning: In daily exchange, colleagues benefit from each other's experience.
70% Learning in the daily work environment
The majority of learning does not indeed take place in training or workshops, but more or less unconsciously: While working itself. “Practice makes perfect” or “Learning by doing” captures the essence of learning in general quite well. Or as learning expert Charles Jennings puts it:
Training is an event or a series of events. Learning is a continuous process.
A good example of the value of years of learning are freelancers who charge several hundred euros per hour – for a task they have perfected over the years or decades. It plainly means: You pay them not just for the 60 minutes of work but also for the many years of practice. The real value lies in the years of learning.
Important: Unlike training, workplace learning occurs rather unconsciously: The learner is not aware that they are in the midst of a learning process. For HR developers, it is therefore important to first create awareness for this everyday learning.
100% Learning by combining the three elements
Anyone wanting to increase the learning progress in companies combines the mentioned three elements. 10+20+70 = 100. Sounds logical, doesn’t it?
Of course, this calculation is only a guideline, but with a clear message:
Training is a good impulse for new perspectives.
Exchanging with others is a good catalyst for being able to categorize perspectives.
Finally, the essential learning practice takes place in the daily work environment.
The blended learning method specifically targets this shift between theory and practice: You combine classic knowledge transfer in the training room with several weeks of e-learning, which is integrated into daily work in small learning units. Combine in-person with online learning to ensure you don't get stuck at 10% learning progress!
Support for the 70% learning practice: E-learning with blink.it
The high proportion of daily learning "on the job" is not only extremely important but is also often neglected. After all, the 10% from training and the 20% from social exchange are much easier to influence. Supporting learning in the workplace itself seems more challenging.
The solution: Support employees online in their daily learning! The learning platform blink.it is designed so that the learner is the focus. They can choose when and where to take their next development step. This freedom is essential so that workplace learning truly takes center stage and learning happens “on the side” – but indeed with support. Thus, through blink.it, new knowledge is sustainably integrated into everyday work in small steps.
This is how blink.it works: Gradually, very short learning content (“Blinks”) are unlocked for the learner. They decide when to engage with it: on the train, between two meetings, or deliberately at regular intervals during work hours. A Blink functions similarly to a mini-training: serving purely as an impulse for practicing or applying what has been learned. Throughout the rest of the day or week, the learner integrates the content into their daily routine, thinks about it repeatedly, and does small exercises.
Blink.it founder Michael Witzke explains in the LEARNTEC video how blended learning with blink.it succeeds in small bites:
Conclusion: 5 steps for learning according to the 70-20-10 principle
We at blink.it see the success behind the 70-20-10 rule every day: Learning needs a continuous process, which means on the one hand time, and on the other hand targeted support.
To make workplace learning sustainable, we recommend the following five steps:
Create awareness for the importance of everyday learning, e.g., through articles in the intranet or social media.
Provide impulses for new perspectives in training.
Facilitate workplace-related learning through an online learning platform.
Create space for social exchange. Continuously ensure connections between learning methods.
Schedule your first appointment with one of our employees now and let us show you the blink.it platform in an approximately 15-minute demo! After that, you can calmly test all the functions as a course creator: create content, experiment with publication settings, and get an idea of how easy workplace-related learning can be.
