Building Microlearning into Daily Work Routines

This week, I facilitated a manager workshop on how to grow and develop people and teams. One question sparked a great conversation: “How do you develop your people outside of formal programs?” It’s a great question. IMO, one of the highest leverage actions a leader can take is making small, but consistent actions to develop their people. While formal learning experiences absolutely a role, there are far more opportunities for growth outside of structured settings from an hours in the day perspective. Helping leaders recognize and embrace this is a major opportunity. I introduced the idea of Practices of Development (PODs) aka small, intentional activities integrated into everyday work that help employees build skills, flex new muscles, and increase their impact. Here are a few examples we discussed: 🌟 Paired Programming: Borrowed from software engineering, this involves pairing an employee with a peer to take on a new task—helping them ramp up quickly, cross-train, or learn by doing. 🌟 Learning Logs: Have team members track what they’re working on, learning, and questioning to encourage reflection. 🌟 Bullpen Sessions: Bring similar roles together for feedback, idea sharing, and collaborative problem-solving, where everyone both A) shares a deliverable they are working on, and B) gets feedback and suggestions for improvement 🌟 Each 1 Teach 1:  Give everyone a chance to teach one work-related skill or insight to the team. 🌟 I Do, We Do, You Do:Adapted from education, this scaffolding approach lets you model a task, then do it together, then hand it off. A simple and effective way to build confidence and skill. 🌟 Back Pocket Ideas:  During strategy/scoping work sessions, ask employees to submit ideas for initiatives tied to a customer problem or personal interest. Select the strongest ones and incorporate them into their role. These are a few examples that have worked well. If you’ve found creative ways to build development opportunities into your employees day to day work, I’d love to hear what’s worked for you!

Our client thought their training was working until they saw the data. Like many companies, they had a solid compliance program: annual trainings, mandatory videos, end-of-year quizzes. The usual checklist. But then they looked closer. - 90% of the content was forgotten within days. - Employees were skipping or rushing through. - Risky behavior like clicking unknown links was still happening. That’s when we helped them try something new. Real-time microlearning, triggered by behavior One day, an employee clicked on a suspicious link. Instead of a slap on the wrist or worse - silence, they got a quick, 90-second interactive lesson. Right then and there. No dashboards. No long modules. Just the right content, in the right moment. And it worked. ✅ Engagement went way up ✅ Retention improved dramatically ✅ Compliance gaps started shrinking Because people learn better when it’s relevant, immediate, and bite-sized. Training doesn’t need to be a calendar event. It can be a part of your culture. Embedded in real workflows. Invisible until it’s needed and unforgettable when it is. Our client now sees behavior change in real time, not in hindsight. And their people? They’re sharper, more confident, and less likely to click the wrong link again. Curious what this could look like in your org? Let’s talk about bringing learning to life, one click at a time.

I built LEADx because I wanted to make it EASY for leaders to develop habits. Here are three types of nudges we use to do that: [Example Topic = SLII®] 🟩 Personalized Behavioral Nudge What it is: A prompt with a specific action a learner can take. Example: “During your next S3 conversation, ask how you can help. Click for the 14-item S3 Checklist.” Why use it: Get learners to engage with SLII® and apply the framework. 🟦 Micro-learning in the Flow of Work What it is: A prompt to engage with your SLII® coaching plan. Delivered in real time in the flow of work. Example: “Team member accomplished and confident? Give low support + low direction. Use this 3-step Delegating Approach (Click for Job Aid).” Why use it: Drives learners to engage with their coaching plan in the flow of work. Completion is trackable. 🟧 Conversation with an ICF-Certified Coach What it is: Nudges learners to open up a live conversation with an exec coach. Example: “Having trouble diagnosing your team member’s developmental level? Click to chat with an executive coach." Why use it: Reminds your learner they have daily access to a human coach. They can ask Qs, share challenges, and do SLII® roleplays. #leadershipdevelopment P.S. We just announced four new dates for our SLII® Public Workshop. You can learn more about it on our website under “Solutions.”