Background

The product is an enterprise learning management system that enables large organizations to deliver tailored learning experiences to their employees.

It wished to go further and create an environment of constant learning for the fast-paced corporate world, where upskilling is a continuous need for everyone – from the new hire to the CXO. The user gets courses in the form of easily digestible chunks, delivered to them at their time and convenience to form habits (healthy ones). Well defined KPIs help managers keep tabs on their team’s progress.

We were approached to design and develop an application to bring this idea to life.

Objective

An app that motivates and hooks the learner. One that doesn’t scare them away with hours of lectures and long required readings. Study hours are a finite resource for an agile executive and long winded courses will drive them away (we have all been there).

Strategy

We realised that for learning to become a habit, it had to come in a snackable, bite sized form. (Now you know why grabbing a ‘bite’ is so addicting).

A clever manager takes charge and defines their team’s learning goals. Performance metrics can help them track progress and assign new goals. Underperformers can receive help from their managers.

Usual answers to corporate learning requirements are one-size fits all platforms, unmindful of the individual learner – their schedule and time constraints aren’t paid attention to. This leads to high course attrition rates, defeating the purpose of the effort. If the app could break down courses into 15-30 min sessions, this bottleneck could be overcome and make everyday learning as short and anticipated as a cool off break.

UX Design

We took a mobile-first approach to make the daily learning ritual effortless– the learner just has to pull out their phone to start learning. The painless sign-up poses empathetic questions to the learners about their daily time investment, suitable learning time of the day and integrates short, daily sessions into their schedule. Here, the ownership is transferred to the learner. They feel understood, motivated – their time is appreciated.

The app lets the manager set, direct and help their team achieve their learning goals. KPIs like learning hours, assessment scores help them drill down and analyse their team in detail, from different perspectives. Comparative analysis helps them weigh learner performance vis a vis others. Lazy underperformers are nudged to keep up with their peers.

UI Design

A default dark mode for the app – it came with its own set of design challenges but made learning attractive. Accessibility and readability had to be factored in. Saying more with less text to prevent eye fatigue. The dark mode also limits the range of colours available, colors had to be perfectly calibrated for the best readability experience. Bright notifications popped up to grab the user’s attention. A white mode was provided for users seeking a light interface.

The Learner’s Section

The learner’s section was designed to be as less intrusive as possible in the learning process. The learner will find his daily tasks on his home screen and can begin instantly. The goals section lists assigned targets (both achieved and ongoing), a progress metric. The assess section is where the learner reviews and provides feedback on other learners, encouraging engagement, a healthy classroom prerequisite. The Leaderboard section introduces healthy competition among the learners, encouraging them to keep up with their peers. All of this happens in a short time-frame, decided by the learner.

Manager’s Desk

The report’s section fronts as the homepage for the manager. Their team’s performance details are in front of them, always. The ‘Assess’ section enables managers to review their team’s output. ‘My Team’ and ‘Compare’ sections enable them to drill down to find and take action for slow performing teams/individuals.

Everyone, from the c-suite executive to the new account manager is a learner. Many managers are themselves learners. All they need to do is switch roles and the app will change its avatar from managers desk to the learner’s section.

Impact

The app saw improvements in learner engagement, time spent on the app and lower mid-course drop-out rates. The app is a novel intervention for the corporate upskilling problem, overcoming learning challenges with empathetic design principles.