8 Benefits of Microlearning in Financial Institutions

There are many benefits of microlearning for today’s learners. However, the strategy of taking longer content and cutting it into shorter bites is not a new concept. We have seen an increase in focus and desire for microlearning as part of a financial institution’s overall training programs.

Microlearning is everywhere in our everyday lives. When we watch, listen or read something short and sweet that’s targeted on a specific topic and is intended to teach you something – it’s microlearning. Think TikTok, YouTube, Facebook videos or animated infographics.

Many financial institutions are stretched for time and struggle to prioritize employee learning and development. With limited learning time and shorter attention-spans (on average), one of the many benefits of microlearning modules is that learners are empowered to digest and retain nuggets of information when they need it and in a format, they are accustomed to.

benefits of microlearning

What is Microlearning?

Microlearning is short bite-sized (often 5-10 minutes in length) focused training segments (modules or segments?) designed to provide a quick overview of specific topics. A benefit of microlearning is that these focused modules allow students to review content quickly, giving them more time to assist customers and generate revenue. For example, OnCourse Learning’s FAST Modules concentrate on one specific topic within a regulation, rather than a complete, in-depth understanding of the regulation. This format is designed to allow students to better retain concepts specific to their job role.

Why is Microlearning Important?

We feel the demand of distractions and the need to multi-task daily. In some cases, this has intensified with many financial institution employees working from home. Given these conflicting demands, it can be a struggle to block the needed hours for training. Gartner reports that 33% of HR leaders admit they don’t effectively integrate learning into employee workflows.

Microlearning is designed to be targeted, easy to access and to meet a specific outcome. These modules can be offered as a stand-alone segment or be strung together over a longer timeline. Learners enjoy microlearning because it can be used on-demand in the moment of their need. They get a relevant and targeted learning experience – giving them a sense of achievement.

8 Benefits of Microlearning

  1. Individual Empowerment. Microlearning modules appeal to modern learners because they are designed to focus on skills-based training. Learners may take initiative to review a regulation without needing to go through the full course.
  2. Gain Knowledge Faster. Another benefit of microlearning is that the information is delivered in bite-size increments, therefore, students can gain the necessary knowledge more quickly. This means that less time is taken away from customers, resulting in a better overall customer experience and more revenue generation.
  3. Engaging & Media Rich. Our microlearning modules are fully animated and modern. They are designed to be engaging. They have instructional infographics, video, role-based scenarios, and more to help keep learners focused on learning the concepts.
  4. Enhanced Retention. Microlearning is designed to cover one objective at a time. This allows learners to better understand the learning outcome that needs to be accomplished. This benefit of microlearning positively impacts the learning and application of content.
  5. Quicker to Complete. The average employee only has 24 minutes a workweek to focus on training and development. Providing snack-sized learning modules, learners can focus on the areas of most need, making the most out of the time they have to dedicate to learning.
  6. New Hire Experience. If you have a new hire, you can use a FAST Module as a preview prior to diving into the full course. Giving a new hire a quick overview will help them retain basic information easier and give them a better understanding of the overall regulation is another benefit of microlearning.
  7. Use in Team Huddles. Microlearning modules (or OnCourse Learning FAST Modules) are great for team meetings or morning huddles for a quick group review of a specific regulation. They are a great way to ensure regulatory compliance is a part of a team’s daily priorities.
  8. Remediation. If a learner is consistently having trouble understanding portions of a regulation, microlearning can be used as a remediation tool.

In closing, microlearning is not a new concept, however, it’s one that is top of mind for learners. These benefits of microlearning, along with many others will help to ensure your training program is built with the flexibility today’s learners want and need.

Learn more about OnCourse Learning FAST Modules by visiting oncourselearning.com/microlearning

Rachel Davis - Product Manager at OCL

OnCourse Learning empowers financial institutions to prepare their frontlines, compliance teams, executive leadership and board of directors with comprehensive enterprise compliance, risk management and professional development education that is effective and engaging. Over 10,000 clients and partners have adopted OnCourse Learning solutions to efficiently manage complexity, change and growth. Plus, over the course of our 40+ year history, we have trained over 200,000 individuals with our NMLS-approved licensure and continuing education courses.

Rachel Davis - Product Manager at OCL

OnCourse Learning empowers financial institutions to prepare their frontlines, compliance teams, executive leadership and board of directors with comprehensive enterprise compliance, risk management and professional development education that is effective and engaging. Over 10,000 clients and partners have adopted OnCourse Learning solutions to efficiently manage complexity, change and growth. Plus, over the course of our 40+ year history, we have trained over 200,000 individuals with our NMLS-approved licensure and continuing education courses.

By |2021-01-28T07:36:02-06:00January 5th, 2021|Bank, Credit Union, Financial Services|Comments Off on 8 Benefits of Microlearning in Financial Institutions