At the 2018 AITD Conference in Sydney, run alongside EduTECH, Wendy Perry from Workforce BluePrint delivered a key note presentation on The Future of Training and Learning. This session covered:
- how is Industry 4.0 impacting on requirements for Workforce 4.0 for all sectors?
- what are the disruptive trends shaping L & D?
- what are the 21st Century Capabilities and how are they being developed with innovative methodologies?
- ?which countries are leading the way???
- what new discovery technologies will change the L & D experience – applying xAPI?
Industry 4.0 see robots in conversation with each other and humans on show at the Japan House at SXSW, Local Roots which is a farm in a truck at the SXSW Expo and the Future of Driverless Cars where a hardware kit has been invented that fits into cars made after 2006 that makes it driverless.
What is here now includes:
- 3-D Printing applied to Building and Construction, Food, Manufacturing
- Humans and robots working together
- Small biz, startup culture within big biz
- Cyber security – blending physical and digital
- Environment is core business – electricity, gas, transportation, water, waste
- Big data analytic skills
- Outsourcing and marketplaces
- Blockchain technology, cryptocurrency bitcoin
Automation and Machine Learning will impact every job in some way shape or form and it will not only applied to repetitive, manual jobs but decision making and intelligence. Digital disruption will impact businesses that can’t keep up – technology is the main suspect together with attitude.
Seven areas impacting on the future of training and learning:
- Artificial Intelligence
- Machines
- AR, VR and MR
- Extreme learners
- Immersive experiences
- Learning integrated with workflow – data driven
- Micro learning, credentials & competencies
There is a cohort of “extreme learners” who are the trailblazers of the new learning landscape. For them, it’s not about a particular degree—the process is the product. Extreme learners seek out mentors both online and off who can guide them, helping locate and curate wisdom and resources. They are the people who join community laboratories and hackerspaces where they can get their hands dirty in ways not possible inside traditional lecture halls. They design their own curricula from the massive open online course offerings of top universities. They apply novel feedback mechanisms and the lessons of neuroscience to optimize their learning experiences. Extreme learners have learned how to learn.
It makes a difference if an employee must search actively for a learning module that he or she needs, or that the module is offered at an appropriate moment in the workflow, based on real time observations of the behaviour the employee. If there is a meeting with company X in your diary, your personal learning aid might ask: “Do you want to learn more about company X?”. If you are stuck in designing a difficult Excel macro, the Excel chatbot asks you: “Can I help you to design the macro?”. If you have a meeting scheduled with an employee with a low performance rating, you are offered a short module “how to deal with under-performing employees”. The solutions become even better if your individual learning style and the level of your capabilities are considered.
Countries to bench mark against and who are leading the way are:
- European Commission
- Finland
- Indonesia
- New Zealand
- Singapore
- USA
For example, The European Centre for the Development of Vocational training (Cedefop) helps develop and implement EU vocational training policies. It monitors labour market trends and helps the European Commission, EU countries, employers’ organisations and trade unions to match training provision to labour market needs.
Emerging edtech and blockchain applications sited were:
STRIVR is used by some of the world’s most respected organizations, from Fortune 100 companies to professional sports teams. The STRIVR platform utilizes immersive technology (like VR and AR) to help individuals learn faster and more effectively, improving reaction time, pattern recognition, and decision making in the real world. What’s more, the data and insights drawn are unlike anything else: the most accurate assessment of performance and preparedness for real life situations.
The key take-aways for leaders covered 7 disruptive trends shaping L & D, 21st Century Capabilities, aim to be World-class and world-leading like SXSW, new discovery technologies and emerging EdTech.