Learning Must Be Social
When people are given the option to choose how they learn, they prefer immersive and social experiences. Social learning is:
> DESIRED. People want to learn together and in the flow of work vs. classroom (Bersin, 2019) and e-Learning, of which only 3.8% is engaging (Gore, 2019). > EFFECTIVE. 80% of people learn as much or more from their peers as they do their superiors (Imperative, 2019). Over 80% of social learners take new actions and 70% develop new daily habits. > HEALING. We need each other, especially in times of chaos and uncertainty. Over 90% of learners feel safe sharing their fears and anxiety with each other. |
To nurture our natural and desired way of learning together, Unity Lab's Experiential Learning Platform features: 1. Small, diverse peer learning groups, 2. Live kick-off calls, 3. An easy to use LMS, 4. Best-in-class pedagogy, 5. Live celebration calls, and 6. Pre- and post-assessments.
#1. Small, Diverse Peer Learning Groups
Learners begin each program by being placed into small peer groups that are optimized for diversity so that:
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#2. Live Kick-off Call
After the learning groups are formed, learners are invited to a 90-minute live kick-off call, where they:
> Learn about the program leaders, course structure, expected outcomes and logistics; > Meet their small, diverse group peers, learn about each other, schedule their first session; and > Get their questions answered. |
#3. Platform
After the kick-off call, learners log in to the LMS to connect with their small groups, learn together, complete the exercises, access their discussion guides and take their pre- and post- assessment. Our LMS is:
> TURNKEY - Get started in 7 days. > CONVENIENT - Automated curriculum delivery across all devices. > SOCIAL - Learners build group agreements, and leverage the group chat to support each other between group discussions. > RESPONSIVE - Group forum moderated by subject matter experts. > TRANSPARENT - Admin dashboard and weekly analytics. > SAFE - Secure cloud hosting, daily back-ups, SSL certificates. > RELIABLE - 99.9% up-time and 24/7 monitoring. |
#4. Best-in-Class Pedagogy
Our pedagogy leverages the latest research in social learning, neuroscience and psychology to deliver an engaging and social learning experience. Our method is:
> Purpose-forward - recognizing that learning sticks when its contextualized within a learner's purpose and values.
> Peer-centered - recognizing that 80% of us learn as much or more from peers as we do managers, we learn together with colleagues at our same level.
> Inclusive - baking inclusion and diverse relationships into every learning experience.
> Holistic - leveraging, the head-heart-hands model of transformative learning and numerous learning styles - didactic, text, video, audio, on the job practice, reflection, writing and discussion - to ensure learners understand, feel and apply concepts.
> Flexible - recognizing the great expense involved in live trainings, and that 68% of learners prefer to learn on the job, Unity Lab empowers learners to learn in the flow of work, e.g., 5-minute videos, 15-minute exercises, 1-hour peer discussions.
> Digitally-native - ensuring every learner belongs and stands on equal footing, wherever they work.
> Social - recognizing the epidemics of loneliness and mental health, the new world of flex-hybrid work and the power of relationships in modeling and amplifying norms, employees learn together and build long-term relationships.
> Amplifies learning - recognizing our propensity to forget, as 90% of information is forgotten within 7 days, Unity Lab Programs scaffold learning over 7 sessions (a live kick-off session, 5 modules of content, exercises and discussions, and a final completion session to recap and celebrate the actions taken).
#5. Live Completion Call
Learners are invited to a 90-minute live completion call, where they:
> Recap what they've learned and celebrate their transformations; > Meet with people from other groups in breakouts to share their experiences and breakthroughs; and > Discover the next opportunity to learn and grow together. |
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#6. Pre- and Post-Assements
To quantify progress, we leverage standard employee experience metrics, a 20-question employee experience survey, and open-ended qualitative questions:
> STANDARD METRICS, such as intention to leave, employee satisfaction and employee net promoter score, > EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE SURVEY, that assesses purpose, leadership, belonging, mattering, trust, transparency, growth and retention. > QUALITATIVE QUESTIONS, are aggregated and anonymized, help you understand how people are feeling, what would have them be fully satisfied at work, and what needs to change in your organization. |
This isn't for everyone.
Only explore this approach if...
#1. You need a scalable people + culture solution to develop, engage and retain your employees no matter where they work.
#2. You need to impact retention, social and emotional health and culture as quickly and efficiently as possible. #3. You are personally committed to everyone in your organization thriving and belonging. |