Using LMS to incorporate Social Learning within your eLearning Strategy

Communicating and networking are one of our core needs as humans. Social learning bases itself on amalgamating learning with communicating and networking. This is why many L&D professionals have started to incorporate it in their eLearning strategy. This has spurred two major questions. First, are the benefits worth the time and resources? And, what are the most crucial social learning features that you need to consider for your LMS? Let’s answer them! 

Before getting into the 3 must-have social learning features for your LMS, let’s take a look at the benefits of social learning in regard to workforce training and development.

Benefits of Social Learning in your eLearning Strategy

Incorporating social learning in your eLearning strategy and workplace culture offers many undeniable benefits that contribute significantly to workforce training at your company. Some of these comprise:

1. Fosters Collaboration

Promoting a culture of social learning facilitates group learning and encourages collaboration among learners. By enhancing communication among different teams of learners, social learning brings them closer and creates a collaborative environment even beyond training.

2. Enhances Communication

Social learning provides various channels for communication for learners where they can discuss the eLearning programs they are enrolled in, discuss doubts about a subject, and similar topics of interest. An LMS with social learning feature also offers communication tools like video sharing, audio sharing, instant polls, question posts, etc., that reinforce forum discussions and community participation. 

3. Imparts Soft Skills

By fostering collaboration and enhancing communication, social learning also imparts interpersonal and soft skills in your employees. A culture of social learning induces interactions between employees and thereby is inculcated communication and collaboration skills among the participants.

4. Community Support

Incorporating social learning in your eLearning strategy also allows learners to have access to online communities where they can gain peer support.

5. Boosts Engagement

Engagement is the centerpiece of the success of your eLearning strategy. By ensuring that the learning experience is more interactive and collaborative, social learning invariably makes training programs more engaging.

3 Features to Promote Social Learning Leveraging an LMS

Now that we know how beneficial social learning can be to corporate eLearning, let’s take a look at the 3 must-have social learning features in your LMS:

1. Online eLearning communities

Social learning allows you to create a network of learners through online eLearning communities. These communities are perfect for learners to talk about shared topics of interest, clear doubts, share resources, and much more. You can also analyze the discussions that happen in these communities and assess training needs for upcoming eLearning programs.

2. Web conferences

Web conferencing feature is a must-have to incorporate social learning in your eLearning strategy, especially for a remote workforce. It allows a virtual workplace to work and learn together and eliminates the negative impacts of working remotely on mental health and productivity.

3. Discussion forums

Online discussion forums are a must for your employees to discuss on topics that are relevant to them with their peers. These forums also provide for a great place for employees to bond and communicate with each other. You can also introduce badges for the active participation of employees which will foster communication and collaboration in these forums.

To sum up, incorporating social learning in your eLearning strategy offers many worthwhile advantages that create a culture of communication at your workplace. You should look for an LMS that offers seamless integration of social learning to further solidify your eLearning strategy.

G-Cube is among the fastest-growing learning-tech organization in the entire Asia-Pacific region with 80+ awards in the last 6 years, and a noteworthy experience of 20+ years in the said domain. Our LMS (Learning Management System) Suite is highly compatible to the current eLearning needs of varied industries. For any queries, please do write to us.