Learning is increasingly taking place directly at the workplace. But: When exactly? Many employees simply lack the time to learn new things or consolidate training content. You can find out how special learning times can solve this problem in companies in the article.

Continuous further education is an important success factor for companies – and many employees are also happy to take up learning opportunities. More and more companies are resorting to modern methods such as e-learning and blends of in-person and online training (blended learning). However, the idea of further education without seminar rooms and work downtime has a catch: Time!

Motivation is there – time is lacking

Self-directed learning requires that your employees actually find (or are given) the time to engage with materials, online courses, or learning videos. At this point, opinions diverge: Does self-directed learning even belong to working hours or should employees learn in their private time? Especially the trending method of e-learning is theoretically perfect for learning on the way to work or from home instead of at the workplace.

Answers are provided by a study from LinkedIn: 94% of employees would stay longer with a company that supports their professional development. 68% of employees prefer learning at the workplace and 58% want to learn at their own pace. So, it is worth investing in learning times at the workplace for your employees – and thereby in their satisfaction!

Time expenditure at the workplace?

Even in companies that theoretically support further education at the workplace, actual practice often looks different: Managers often find no time in their calendars to schedule learning between daily business, phone calls, and meetings. "Just take some time" is easier said than done with numerous important appointments.

For employees, often the corporate culture comes into play against the (time) calculation: "Often, the mindset prevails 'If I'm just looking at the computer, I'm not productive!'. For managers, who usually sit with their own computers in their private offices, this is normal. But at the level of team leaders or production employees, there is a strong cultural break when it comes to leaving the workplace to learn during working hours," reports corporate coach Stefan Enzler in an interview about employees in SMEs.

The solution: Establish learning times

The solution to both the time and cultural problems can be the introduction of special learning times for your employees. During these learning times, learning is not only tolerated but explicitly encouraged!

Learning times deliberately offer space for

• company-mandated training. For example, completing e-learning courses or preparing for and following up on blended learning sessions.

• self-chosen learning topics that your employees currently need for their everyday work. For example, research on the internet or reading specialist literature.

• learning groups with colleagues, where knowledge is passed on internally. For example, exchanging ideas on common processes or strengthening collaboration between different teams or departments.

Learning groups with colleagues are a great way to utilize shared learning times in companies.

For the allocation of learning times, there are a variety of possible models. Below we present three models with their advantages and disadvantages:

1. Fixed learning times:

Your employees have fixed learning times or learning days (depending on time budget). For example, "Learning time every Friday from 9 to 11".

Advantages:

• The appointment is binding for all employees and cannot simply be postponed or forgotten.

• No employee feels 'unproductive' or has to justify why other tasks are not currently being completed.

• Your employees can form learning groups more easily without having to coordinate different calendars.

Disadvantage:

• The individual learning pace of your employees is not taken into account here: After "x hours," the learning time is over, regardless of how much or how effectively was learned. Absences, for example due to illness, are also not accounted for.

2. Semi-flexible learning times:

Your employees have a fixed time budget that must be used as learning time within a limited period. For example, "x hours of learning time weekly" or "x days of learning time per year".

Advantages:

• Your employees can schedule their learning time flexibly in their own calendars. This avoids conflicts with other important appointments or varying working hours (especially in shift work or flexitime).

• Your employees can partially determine their learning pace.

• Employees can postpone or make up for learning times if necessary, instead of letting them lapse – for example, in case of illness.

Disadvantage:

• The risk: Your employees may schedule the learning time but keep postponing it due to other tasks or skip it altogether. HR managers or executives need to give learning time high relevance so that it is indeed planned and utilized.

3. Flexible learning times:

Your employees have control over how much learning time they actually need. For example, "Enter learning times in the calendar when you need them".

Advantages:

• Your employees can freely allocate their learning time and take the time for training or research exactly when they need it.

• Self-chosen learning topics are scheduled when they are urgent, not days or weeks later. This allows problems to be addressed immediately when they arise in daily work.

• Self-directed learning at one's own pace is fully possible.

Disadvantage:

• Flexible learning times require high levels of self-responsibility and self-regulation from your employees so that learning times a) are actually planned and b) used productively. HR departments and managers need to be able to assess employees well. Therefore, this method is only limitedly applicable for large teams with little personal contact.

These are, as mentioned, just three proposals from a wide range of possibilities to establish learning times in companies. Which method fits best for your company, you must decide individually. Once the decision is made to implement learning times for employees, it is best to involve all managers and the employees themselves in the decision!

The ideal combination: Learning times + presence times

Whether fixed learning times, semi- or completely flexible: Learning times at the workplace support your employees' learning process – and can also increase satisfaction.

Learner times are particularly well suited for blended learning concepts: They combine online courses at the workplace with traditional in-person training. This mix offers both high flexibility and maximum learning transfer with minimal work downtime. Learning times help your employees prepare or follow up on in-person appointments and find time for transfer tasks.

Want to know how blended learning works in companies? In our free guide "Blended Learning in Companies," you will learn how to implement the concept in three steps. In combination with learning times, you will thus train your employees easily and successfully in the future.