MICROLEARNING IN TRAINING 1

Effectiveness of Microlearning in Workplace Training:

Literature Review

Melina Wetzel

Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, ASU

COE 501 Introduction to Research and Evaluation in Education

Dr. Hodges Kulinna

7/7/21
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Effectiveness of Microlearning in Workplace Training

The daily life of a corporate training and development team includes more than just delivering

content to learners. Evolving our training and delivery practices is an ongoing need, especially as the

workforce transitions into new methods of distance learning over time, including the changes we’ve seen

in response to the recent pandemic. Among the many responsibilities and tasks that exist

behind-the-scenes, evaluating if learning has occurred, how effective it’s been, and where training gaps

exist is an important responsibility. While evaluation trends can provide insight to future training and

development, there are a few challenges that consistently impact the effective measurement of

outcomes, such as whether employees are even taking the learning opportunities to start with.

There are several areas to explore for how learning occurs in an organization, most notably the

aspect of time. Time is precious for many reasons and can be defined in multiple ways depending on the

perspective or role in question. For example, we can assess the time it takes to create and deliver a

required or key training or perhaps as the amount of time a learner needs to set aside to effectively learn

the content. Other considerations with time include differences in where someone feels learning time is

most appropriate or effective for their own needs and learning style (Visibility Software, 2019). Among

smaller and growing businesses, time can be even more valuable since there may be fewer employees to

take on various types of responsibilities; with these smaller organizations, learning opportunity access is

often limited and lacks intentional or formal training in the workplace from hire through tenure

(Susomrith & Coetzer, 2015). Many people may have experienced this when an organization lacks a

training team completely and instead relies on other established employees to serve as someone to

shadow, etc.

In other circumstances (such as in larger companies or longer-running teams), training access

may be available yet not learner-friendly or relevant. We know that longer training segments are known

to impact cognitive fatigue, leading to less effective knowledge transfer (Brown, 2019a; Shail, 2019). In
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these situations, the cost-benefit balance to the employer or company becomes impacted: if training is

implemented as lecture only, we may see lower retention which draws the argument away from

spending time on more training efforts (effective or otherwise). As “on demand” content for learning

opportunities are typically lacking, organizations can risk falling behind the changing workforce, where

both younger generations, new skills, and increased technology use for learning grow (Bishop, 2019;

Visibility Software, 2019).

One such growth area is microlearning, which can be implemented with new technology

solutions or using it’s principles as a guide to develop more learner-friendly and role-relevant content.

Microlearning is focused on addressing the attention spans of adults, which has been found to average

under 20 minutes (Brown, 2019b). This can also be used to meet the flexibility needs of current working

cultures, family needs, or work location changes like those we’ve seen with the 2020 pandemic. Ideally,

objectives are designed in “micro-content” lessons ranging between 30 seconds and 5 minutes, then

delivered in small chunks with various time/space or on-demand structures (Jahnke, et al., 2020). Using a

well-designed microlearning approach, organizations have the opportunity to create a learning

experience matching a working adult’s attention span and need for self-directed, participatory learning

methods (Simonson, et al., 2015).

Workplace Context

The organization I work for is still in its start-up years (less than 10 years) and is a merge of three

disciplines: musculoskeletal care, behavior change, and app-based technology for at-home participant

support. As such, we are essentially training both new hires and tenured team members (anyone past

our 2-month probation period) on three different industries at once. Given that we are required to

follow structures as both a tech start-up and a healthcare program, we have several constraints with

time allowed for educating new Health Coaches to ensure they are working with our participants

effectively. This extends to ongoing training for the Coaching department at large to ensure we are
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keeping up with quick-turnaround product changes, program enhancements, and compliance needs.

Our Coaching department ranges in age from 25-77, all with a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree

and either already board certified with the NBHWC or accredited and eligible to sit for the exam within

the first year of hire. All Coaches are full-time and salaried, though caseloads may differ based on the

rate of enrollments for our program (averaging 800 participants per Coach per year and can be anywhere

from 10-36 new participants weekly). Currently, we are growing rapidly; we have more than doubled in

size as a department in less than one year. Though we have over 300 Coaches in our department, our

Coach Learning & Development (CL&D) team is just three people and, due to our start-up status coupled

with the unexpected impact of COVID-19, no formal Learning Management System (LMS). Our current

diversity of staff is in need of improvement as the majority of Coaches (at minimum 80%) are female and

between the ages of 28-41. Similarly, most of our Coaching staff presents as cis-white, which is

something that our Diversity and Inclusion team is re-working with new role opportunities to ensure we

have more points of entry into the role. The socioeconomic trends of our Coaches are not available to

the CL&D team.

Before COVID-19, our Coaching team was dispersed throughout the United States in a variety of

work-from-home, in-office, or hybrid workplace formats. We do have ‘hubs’ in San Francisco, Chicago,

Minneapolis, and Portland, Oregon – based on those locations, cost of living can be significantly

different; conclusions about affordability and socioeconomic status may be drawn from overall

demographic norms for those areas. Given the pandemic environment, our teams are all still in a

mandatory work-from-home setting, which has not been an easy transition; the sudden change without

time for office space setup has affected most of the department. As of a recent company-wide survey,

the majority of our Coaching team reported feeling overwhelmed, stressed from increased on-camera or

digital work time, and many reported still not being adequately set up with office space.

For the CL&D team, delivering virtual training suddenly and with no time for set up was a
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significant barrier over the past year. With one break in hiring that occurred in Winter 2020, the team

was able to make some small adjustments to the delivery format but still dealt with several limits (i.e.:

we do not have a mock training environment). Previous solutions to this issue focused on flying new

hires or small groups of tenured coaches into our main San Francisco office for live-shadowing and

exposure/practice with other Coaches in a monitored format, both for new hire training and ongoing

training updates. In the virtual setting (and without a formal LMS) we are limited to just sharing our

screen via Google Hangout web-meetings and directing attention to our Google-doc based resources.

This is further limited by HIPAA regulations, so we can’t actually share much of the process with Coaches

until they have their own caseload. New hire and ongoing training processes have been much more

challenging with the onboarding of 80 new Coaches between January and April 2021.

Now that we are on a hiring freeze, we have noticed many gaps and repeat questions, opening

an opportunity to create a more focused effort on continuing training and streamlining content for more

reliable referencing for daily process steps. A key component of this effort will be ensuring that

department employees are actually able to set time to take these training tasks on (without adding to an

already full day), ensuring those with split shifts are able to access and participate effectively, and

making sure that each role is getting the information that is relevant to their role, day, or career path

needs (i.e.: coach vs. support/manager).

Purpose

The purpose of this research proposal and literature review is to explore three challenges to

ongoing workplace training) that can be improved with microlearning techniques and/or technology.

Specifically, employee engagement, flexibility, and role-relevant application are a continued challenge for

many organizations due to conflicts between the pace of work-related demands and need for keeping

employees up-to-date on work-related procedures or overall development.

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Rationale

The culture as a whole at my organization is focused on wellness, which has historically extended

to the employees. Up to 2020 when the organization was smaller, work-life-wellness balance was

managed reasonably. The combination of rapid growth while dealing with COVID-19 lockdowns has

changed our internal landscape considerably, with burnout and too much screen time at the forefront of

our employee voiced concerns. Even though the organization encourages breaks and time for ongoing

training/professional development, an issue we have seen recently is that our Coach’s bandwidth is

overrun by virtual meetings. Required trainings and professional development are continually being

pushed back to just get daily work done between frequent, lengthy, and mandatory meetings, which is in

keeping with challenges seen in recent workplace trends overall (LinkedIn Learning, 2018). Standard role

items that are absorbing the most time are: increased caseload/phone sessions with participants,

increased on-camera meeting hours due to newly virtual settings, and cumbersome troubleshooting or

resource searches now that we are all working from home.

More effective ongoing training is crucial for the CL&D team, as our new hire training

requirements are very tight already and there isn’t much time to create new content for tenured

employees. Our leadership requires that we have all new Coaches trained on the tech/product, pain

neuroscience, the Coaching role, and platforms within one week and have them ready to take clients as

of Monday of their Week 2. While feedback from new hires has been that the content is structured well,

the sheer volume of information is overwhelming and challenging to retain. This carries over to our

tenured Coaches who continue to ask a high volume of repeat questions, frequently make errors with

implementing newly announced processes or procedures, and have trouble keeping up with change

announcements from our product or leadership teams.

The CL&D team has been working to find opportunities to improve content delivery. Leadership

and product teams currently schedule one-hour meetings to ‘train’ the Coaches on new changes, though
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most of the information lacks effective delivery of how/what to do in the actual job. Instead, Coaches get

more of an explanation of why there is a change and an overview of what the features are. We know

that longer training segments are already a culprit in cognitive fatigue, which reduces the actual learning

and retention we want to see (Brown, 2019a; Shail, 2019). The alternative has been several very lengthy

emails with a myriad of steps (not documented anywhere else), sometimes accompanied by

attachments of 10 or more PDFs or Google doc pages- these largely show the planning phases rather

than role-relevant information. Consequences of continuing with this status quo include the

already-present issue of burnout in our Coaches, leading to turnover in our department at a time when

we are rapidly taking on new clients. Additionally, maintaining or increasing the current level of errors

will lead to reduced participant engagement and less satisfaction with the program as a whole (from

both participants and then later, client groups as outcomes trend lower).

A learner-friendly method such as microlearning features will help us keep Coaches engaged

without pushing them to their last limit in bandwidth, yet still capitalizing on retention based on the

adult attention span, noted at under 20 minutes (Brown, 2019b). This would serve our needs with

reducing Coach pressure to find an additional 1-4 hours in the week for training on new changes or

updates. Bite-sized and role-relevant training for quick implementation are already shown to be more

helpful to ensure employees are not considering training as an optional and extra addition to their day;

instead, it’s able to become part of their normal working hours (King, 2021). The microlearning approach

benefits individual Coaches, the department, and the organization as a whole since Coaching is

something of the ‘first line’ of experience with the program. Retention of information is integral to our

work with participants so as to keep them engaged and, later, continuing the incoming revenue from

each client. This includes ensuring our Coaches are staying up to date with important app features to

assist participants, communicating the limits and changes to our program offerings, and navigating

internal platforms for efficiencies or documentation compliance.

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Literature Review

In corporate America, we know that organizations and their employees do best when knowledge

of day-to-day operations, updates to procedures, and ongoing development opportunities are clear and

easy to find (SHRM, 2016). Since this encompasses both new and ongoing learning for employees, it

follows that multiple styles of training delivery would benefit a company by meeting the differences

between a new hire and an established employee. It’s also known that saving money from unnecessarily

high employee turnover is desirable for any organization; retention efforts include providing employees

the tools they need in a clear and accessible way for their role and ongoing learning (LinkedIn Learning,

2018; SHRM, 2016). With these baselines in mind, the concept of creating a more positive work

experience and environment is understood to be more likely when organizations are tuned in to effective

training methods and delivery.

A major challenge to fluid training, ongoing learning, and access to organizational updates lies in

our generally hectic American-style pace. There is simply very little time in most organizations to devote

to non-critical daily tasks and procedures, so employees report not engaging in learning development

even when it’s promoted by their employer (LinkedIn Learning, 2018). Advancements in technology,

however, can provide us with new ways to close the gaps in learning and training needs. This literature

review will contain three sections related to a specific target challenge to workplace learning: employee

engagement, flexibility, and role-relevant learning. In each section, the challenge will be defined, current

research will be explored, and core takeaways (as well as limitations) will be reviewed. Final implications

for training design opportunities will close this review, along with future considerations for both learning

designers and researchers interested in expanding our understanding of microlearning.

Employee Engagement

Learner engagement is always an important feature to consider when creating a design for

learning delivery- after all, someone who is just going through the motions and uninterested is not likely
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to retain much about the content long-term (TalentLMS, 2018). Engagement is a broad term to generally

describe the motivation and behaviors of a learner’s active participation in the learning process

(Schwartz, n.d;). For adults, that includes various active problem solving opportunities with real-world

application that allows the learner to take ownership over their own learning experience (Schwartz, n.d;

Simonson. et al., 2015). This can also look like collaborative effort and attention, as it’s often the case

that the more motivated and inspired the learner is, the more invested they are in the learning process

and outcomes (Simonson, et al., 2015; TalentLMS, 2018). Unfortunately, given the pace and workload of

most American jobs, there is a conflict between general training formats and employee engagement.

A study by Jahnke, et al. (2020) sought to narrow the focus and address how microlearning

opportunities could improve the issue of employee engagement in workplace learning. Specifically, the

researchers isolated the following questions: 1) what key characteristics of mobile microlearning would

be present, 2) which design principles were present in mobile delivery to make them effective, and 3)

what changes were noted in engagement with the content that followed microlearning principles

beyond using video clips only (Jahnke, et al., 2020). For the purposes of this study, the researchers

conducted a literature review of 30 articles, along with reviewing industry reports, and conducted a

second review one year later for change monitoring (Jahnke, et al., 2020). They also gathered qualitative

data via semi-structured interviews with industry professionals that create mobile microlearning

platforms (Jahnke, et al., 2020)..

Data was analyzed with thematic analysis and constant comparative method for categorical

organization; it was then peer reviewed for accuracy and credibility (Jahnke, et al., 2020). The

researchers focused on data coding to focus on design similarities; triangulation efforts were based on

design, challenges, or principles to create cluster comparisons (Jahnke, et al., 2020). In reviewing the

results of their data, we see a positive support for well-designed microlearning in an organizational

setting. The authors found a relationship between how a microlearning course is designed and increased
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engagement (as well as job performance); specifically, incorporating skills challenges with feedback to

ensure flow-state theory is supported (Jahnke, et al., 2020). Among the general correlations between the

microlearning design with flow-state theory, the authors also found specific areas to focus on when

creating effective microlearning content to target engagement.

This study found that building in interactivity and collaboration principles also led to increased

engagement, as well as supporting learning targets like authentic learning and reflective practice

(Jahnke, et al., 2020). The authors also note that lessons focusing on a specific area are ideal to help the

learner target mastery in that one aspect alone via microlearning approaches, rather than “crammed

lessons” (Jahnke, et al., 2020). Other notables target the importance of productivity of a microlearning

delivery, focusing on the information/instruction pattern of Khan’s “snippets” learning formatting and

using a min-version of Gagne’s learning levels (Jahnke, et al., 2020). In keeping with most adult learning

theory requirements, microlearning should involve the learner to direct their experience and the lessons

should respect the short format- focusing on a specific need such as content, a skill, or topic, that is

reasonably digestible (Jahnke, et al., 2020).

While the question of how microlearning platforms should be designed was not clearly

developed in the results of this study, the authors' qualitative data supported literature reviews did

support their results of how microlearning (including mobile microlearning) has a positive impact on

increasing workplace learning participation and engagement. Further exploration would be needed to

confirm the consistency in design principles; it seemed to support the carry over of using generally

accepted design methods for adult learning overall. That said, microlearning would need to be treated

just like any other learning intervention. This study’s focus on including microlearning aspects for

workplace training does not mean only using microlearning for the sake of it, supporting the need for

intentional design when exploring both method and technologies (Simonson, et al., 2015; Jahnke, et al.,

2020). Knowing when and how to combine learning design tools and formats will still be important for
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the instructional designers to to consider. Not every learning experience will need a microlearning

approach, especially when it comes to a mobile platform delivery option- in reflecting on the work of

Simonson, et al. (2015), technology for the sake of using technology is not the goal of training design.

This study also did not take into account the impact of microlearning on disadvantaged groups,

differently abled peoples, and differences in access based on role variety, all of which would be

important for real-world application with diverse workplace populations.

Additional research around how design principles and applications can be used for best practices

will still be needed as our world and workplaces continue to evolve. Integration with leadership support

and intention will also be needed, as shown in work by Susomrith & Coetzer (2015). In their study, the

researchers used a qualitative approach to gather data from loosely structured interviews. The results

found that in smaller organizations, most participants identified engagement as dependent on whether

their managers specifically delegated training to the employee given their knowledge of role

performance and skill (Susomrith & Coetzer, 2015). The interviews provided support for the fact that

many employees find the impact of training as taking away from their work time to fulfill those

requirements. The participants in this study focused on the limits of the company’s training as a

challenge to engagement (such as time, resources, and funding), as well as whether or not other

employees or managers took part in or spoke about training (Susomrith & Coetzer, 2015). As an extra

nod to how important leadership buy-in and support is. Susomrith & Coetzer (2015) found that

employees expected additional training requests to be denied by leadership; that, combined with the

awareness that certain skills or knowledge could be gained elsewhere, impacted engagement in provided

training and initiative with seeking ongoing training opportunities.

Orwoll, et al. (2018) reported similar findings with adults outside of a typical employee training

structure. In a study involving nursing practices to reduce infection rates, a self-assessment survey was

completed by participants and showed that engagement of nurses improved when using a combination
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intervention of gamification microlearning. Retention of their learning targets for compliance monitoring

improved, evidenced by reduction in infection rates for the targeted intervention group: 48% lower rates

when compared to the previous year and nearly 70% lower than the control group’s rates (Orwoll, et al.,

2018). Some of the related factors to the nurse study may have included a confidence change based on

the way the participants retained knowledge using the gamified microlearning approach- Hesse, et al.

(2019) note that across most industries, confidence and convenience play a big role in job performance

and task training, especially to assist in reducing turnover of employees. Their longitudinal study took

place over 6 months in Germany and found that nearly 80% of the active participants (117 people) saw

an increase in confidence of the tasks at hand once they completed training content delivered with a

microlearning approach (Hesse, et al., 2019). Since about two-thirds of the active participants still

completed the content during non-work hours and the learning opportunity was not marketed heavily by

the employer, Hesse, et al. (2019) shows the importance of short time commitments to connect the

motivation and interest in content, along with the importance of leadership mentions and buy-in.

Other considerations for using microlearning to improve engagement are present in the work of

Bannister, et al. (2020). In their study, the authors used a social media approach to market opportunities

for learning and development using a microlearning feature, chunking information and providing a link

for further information and evaluation forms (Bannister, et al., 2020). They note that barriers to effective

evaluation include not having enough participation to effectively evaluate for feedback about these

styles of learning methods, even when a social media component is implemented that earns more initial

views for the chunked information (video or otherwise) (Bannister, et al., 2020). The idea of a

“micro-evaluation” is suggested as an option to consider for engagement measurements to reflect more

usable data (Bannister, et al., 2020). For further research, micro-evaluations could be explored, along

with more support for how microlearning can help with design that is intentional and not using

technology platforms like smartphones without purpose. In reviewing the studies around engagement
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using microlearning design, these authors do not address a Transformative view to ensure that equity of

access and participation for all is factored in (Mertens, 2020). For those that may continue the

exploration of the topic, it will be essential to expand the participant populations to ensure that

microlearning options (especially mobile platforms) are available for all accessibility needs. Engagement

solutions of any kind in the workplace should be created so that those who are differently abled can

participate fully and so that employers can have a reliable set of data for how, when, and why learners

are finding microlearning solutions to be helpful.

Flexibility

In the modern workforce, flexibility has been a significant term to ensure that we are growing

and adapting to a changing world and technology space. Flexibility in training is focused on offering

individuals the ability to learn at their own pace and in their own settings; convenience in where and

when a person learns is made even more accessible with our online learning spaces and continues to

change how we see productivity (Joan, 2013; Simonson, et al., 2015; Haraldsson & Kellam, 2021). Among

many challenges with general training formats is the need for flexibility both in time and structure for

various learning styles. Lee, et al. (2021) studied 35 participants working in or studying the journalism

industry in the fall of 2018 to explore the impact that a flexible mobile microlearning platform design,

called EdApp, has on learning effectiveness. Namely, the authors focused on the impact of content

delivered in short, convenient chunks and how the design of the learning content impacts takeaways

such as learner knowledge/skills and experience when using a flexible platform (Lee, et al., 2021).

During the study, participants used the EdApp mobile microlearning platform to complete 5

courses, gathering quantitative data from EdApp’s reports on completion rate, completion time, and

participation, as well as pre-tests, post-tests, and knowledge checks through each lesson (Lee, et al.,

2021). The researchers analyzed the resulting data using a paired sample t-test, one way ANOVA, and

Pearson correlation comparison; Likert scale surveys were also used to gather information about the
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learner’s perspective of the experience (Lee, et al., 2021). The resulting information showed that the

flexible mobile learning option was preferred. According to Lee, et al. (2020), 100% of participants

responded that they would recommend a microlearning format to peers, specifically showing highest

approval ratings in the Convenience category (86% choosing either agree or strongly agree).

In step with findings about microlearning design for engagement, Gagne’s nine levels were

highlighted as a key foundation for developing effective content when paired with flexibility of

completion structure (engaging and completing steps on their own time, between meetings, etc). More

research may be needed to further develop higher order learning, however. While flexible and

convenient from the learner’s perspective, there exists a concern around how effective a microlearning

solution would be for higher-order or longer term learning. According to Lee, et al. (2020), 80% of

participants scored higher in post-tests than pre-tests and 91.4% accurately completed the concepts of

the course via the testing and knowledge check segments; whether that content was “meaningful”

learning is not identified. Based on these outcomes, we see the theme of using microlearning for certain

types of training needs reinforced, rather than relying on this feature alone.

Gronseth & Hutchins (2020) note the additional importance of incorporating Universal Design for

Learning in the workplace, extending from the typical K-12 space to encourage access and knowledge

transfer via multiple methods for adults, including online collaborative or technology-focused delivery

systems. These aspects of flexibility not only assist in time-sensitive needs for training and workplace

constraints, but also support learning with other avenues to ensure there are enough options for a

person to select their preferred method for on-the-job learning requirements (Gronseth & Hutchins,

2020). The authors encourage feedback avenues through technology offerings to be included as well to

serve the diversity we see in a typical workforce; Gronseth & Hutchins (2020) stated: “With the evolution

to Web 3.0 technologies, training technologies have become even more intuitive in adjusting the

learning environment to learner preferences, expanding options for collaborations across platforms
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especially in utilizing social media, and having learners co-create the content.”

In support of these efforts, Boeing outcomes of using microlearning were shared at the 2021

April ISPI Conference (Crain Burns, 2021). In the discussions it was noted that time limits can be worked

around more effectively with microlearning options for both performance improvement and topic

learning/retraining (Crain Burns, 2021). With consistent evidence for the impact that shorter, more

interactive learning content is both desired and effective for workplace training, and the need for

employers to still honor budget needs, it’s clear that we have opportunities to grow the delivery options

for corporate learning. In real time, these items are more effective to implement in an employee’s day -

content that is needed now for the job role can help organizations get to the point (Simonson, et al.,

2015). Attention should still be given to the availability of technology options to ensure equitable access

to these more flexible options; one such concern would be those who don’t have smartphones, as they

would be heavily impacted if an organization moved to all-mobile microlearning.

Further research is needed to assess how different groups, specifically those who are

marginalized or differently abled, are impacted by flexible options that are web or mobile based. It’s

important to keep in mind that flexible options does not automatically mean flexible access. For

example, for those who require multiple jobs to meet basic cost of living needs, doing training and

development during off-work hours would be immensely different from an employee who works one

regular work week and can do their microlearning lessons during work time. A Transformative or even

Pragmatic lens would be helpful to gauge how employers can best set the standard for all roles so that

improvements can be established equitably for best implementation into the job area and for

in-real-time needs (Mertens, 2020).

Role-relevant application

With workplace training, there are often many overlapping factors that will impact how a

training is delivered. Most employees can likely think of a time they’ve sat through a training session,
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realized none of it was related to their role, and wondered if they were supposed to be included in the

meeting or training. Though we know ongoing development is important for employee satisfaction,

role-relevant application (aka, role-based training) is learning specifically related to the skills, knowledge,

and training required for that individual role function (Korneagay, 2018; LinkedIn Learning, 2018;

Thompson, 2020). Current issues that can come from ignoring this distinction include overtraining and

overload in areas not related or less related to the role; missed, forgotten, and incomplete training; or

learning gaps and lack of mastery in the role content (Malmros, 2019). In terms of on-the-job relevance

for employees, Zhang & West (2020) explored literature specifically focusing on the efficacy of

microlearning with a heavy competency-based focus.

Since competency is one of the foundations that microlearning was based on, this lens supports

the in-real-time needs of workplace training and is compatible in style, as relevant content can be

chunked in short segments (Zhang & West, 2020; Smaldino, et al., 2015, p. 251). The authors found that

microlearning was efficient for meeting the targets of workplace role-relevant training given it’s

bite-sized content for one-component modules; specifically, problem solving and acquiring a specific skill

for a role-based performance (Zhang & West, 2020). Immediate application of the knowledge or skill

following a microlearning lesson was the primary benefit of using microlearning for competency-based

learning in the workplace, following a Pragmatic perspective (Zhang & West, 2020; Mertens, 2020). In

fact, this method was found to be helpful as more than just one time training; since most people don’t

tend to look for information until they need it, it would be in-trend to provide similar types of training

option, taking place in small segments over time (Greany, 2018, as cited by Zhang & West, 2020).

While working adults can spend about 20 minutes on learning, intentionally or via

in-the-moment searches, there is a caution noted with regards to training time interruptions- the

additional burden of refocusing and reducing the time in flow-state can negatively impact employee

stress and retention (Bersin, 2017 & Galluch et al., 2015, as cited by Zhang & West, 2020). Additionally,
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the authors make note of the emphasis placed on learning designers fully understanding the job

competencies- this way, skill tracking can be built in for learners to be more efficient (including instant

feedback), less overwhelmed, and able to see their progress through content lessons visually (Zhang &

West, 2020). Emerson & Berge (2018) support this vision for role-relevant training using microlearning

since they note proficiency will need to keep pace with the changing world. This fact is something that

Gartner (2018) also highlights; findings show that about 70% of employees surveyed feel they have the

skills they need to “master” their current job, and only 20% feel they are prepared with skills they will

need for their future roles. Smaller segments of content will be required to ensure employees can keep

up with improvements to their performance in a way that better fits their day and the current

search-for-content methods we use day-to-day (Emerson & Berge, 2018).

The trend we see in microlearning needs are supported by evidence we see even with general

daily habits: Emerson & Berge (2018) identified that every generational group currently takes in

“bite-sized snippets” for everything from news to cooking instructions, to our cards. As a result of our

new norms, microlearning for quick implementation ensures employees can perceive and place training

requirements in their normal working role seamlessly (King, 2021). Of course, tending to what we have

learned about cultural and socioeconomic disparity will be an ongoing need. While Businesswire (2016)

showed role-relevant training can help reduce the likelihood of employees becoming disengaged at

work, ensuring that all roles are supported with the same opportunities should be monitored closely. For

example, a study by Udemy showed that of 1,000 surveyed full-time employees in the U.S.: 44% left their

job due to a lack of learning opportunities and 53% voiced the need for employers to pay for skill and

professional development (Businesswire, 2016). Attention would need to be paid to equitable visibility of

available ongoing training that targets role-specific skills or needs.

Implications

Microlearning can help reduce issues in our three target areas (engagement, flexibility,
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role-relevant learning), especially around ongoing and job- performance style learning improvements.

These focuses support a Pragmatic view as it relates to actionable change which can be challenging to

achieve in a corporate world which commonly runs into bureaucratic speedbumps. Communicating how

gaps in learning can be filled with quick and efficient interactive learning will be essential to demonstrate

to leaders and training decision makers, especially seeing the support around how microlearning style

methods can be helpful for both individuals and organizations as a whole. While the bottom line often

comes down to dollars, there are a few related aspects that need to be considered when making the

decision for or against implementations.

Time constraints and resources can be one of the most impactful barriers to organizations,

especially when it comes to smaller companies who may have no formal training set up at all. Creating

easily accessible and/or quickly completed content that relates directly to the employee's job can save

the company time in repeated knowledge or development gaps, which can build into retention issues

(and cost money). From a productivity perspective, we see improved errors and improved employee

engagement by respecting their time (vs. requiring off-hours training to be done). Taking cues from

Jahnke, et al. (2020) and Lee, et al. (2021), it’s very clear that small bite-sized training lessons can be

effective when built with proven learning design principles in mind.

Gagne’s nine levels of learning showed promise as a helpful standard for building an effective

training microlearning-style module approach for any organization to begin with. Caution should still be

taken with the type of design and use of the microlearning options. Technology for technology’s sake is

not effective, and some items may not be realistic for a microlearning view. For example, with my

organization’s new hire training, some items like terminology or short order-of-operations needs can be

met with microlearning features embedded into the larger training format. More realistically,

microlearning (especially mobile versions) would be most applicable to our ongoing training and

specifically product or system change updates that need to be communicated and learned quickly.
 MICROLEARNING IN TRAINING 19

Other themes to consider both for future research and for any in-action implementation include

a growing need for assessment from a Transformative viewpoint. Especially in light of current cultural

awareness efforts and accessibility needs, it’s important to connect the impact of microlearning with the

reality of breadth of access. As microlearning really hinges on technology availability, whether or not it

includes mobile options, employers will need to explore how they are supporting each person to

participate effectively. Exploring a full dive into organizational culture will help learning designers assess

where gaps exist that may impact microlearning efficacy, such as lower income (i.e.: access to

wifi/smartphones), accessibility (i.e.: for those who are differently abled), job role compatibility (i.e.: in

the field while driving), and technology literacy.

 MICROLEARNING IN TRAINING 20

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