AI in Training – What to Expect in 2019

Chances are your organization is already leveraging AI in some capacity. In fact, according to Accenture, 72 percent of organizations globally have adopted AI in some form. But for most organizations, AI has not yet become an enterprise strategy. It’s typically being used in one or more areas, but rarely throughout the whole organization:

 

“While we’re seeing momentum in businesses deploying AI more strategically across the enterprise, its application is often fragmented across business functions, leaving much of the potential untapped.”

– Chris Mazzei, EY Chief Data & Analytics Officer and Global Innovation Technologies Leader

 

But according to a new article from Forbes, that’s all about to change. In fact, many expect 2019 to be the year that AI goes mainstream – becoming more deeply integrated within organizational workflows and operations at the enterprise level. So, while organizations are already seeing AI deliver value in specific departments, like finance, sales/marketing and product development, in the coming year, we can expect AI to expand into more “support business functions” like supply-chain, HR and legal.

 

“In 2019 we’ll see growing confidence that this smart, predictive technology, bolstered by learnings it has picked up in its initial deployments, can be rolled out wholesale across all of a business’s operations.” – Forbes

 

What does AI push mean for HR and L&D?

Organizations that are already embracing AI in other business units (and experiencing the value and efficiencies that AI can deliver) will be more open to exploring how learning departments can follow suit. This means L&D will be more empowered than ever before to build out AI in training that:

• Generates richer, more predictive data. Data that’s on par with the actionable insights AI is able to generate in other areas of the business
• Automates many of the processes proven to make for effective learning, including real-time personalization, one-on-one coaching, self-remediation and mastery-based learning with verified mastery
• Provides learning insights that can be digitally mapped to a company’s internal performance data (the data that organizations already collect to evaluate employees, such as KPIs and overall job performance) to inform hiring/firing/promotion/leadership decisions and even maintain compliance and safety
• Helps organizations achieve their learning goals with the greatest efficiency possible

 

AI in Training – AI Assistants

One way to integrate AI into learning is through some sort of AI assistant. We’re not suggesting that L&D needs to build out assistants as complex as Siri or Alexa, but they should look for tools that can mimic the benefits of an AI assistant within the learning environment, such as:

• On demand access to training content through voice or text command
• Content recommendations that allow learners to explore additional topics or delve more deeply into a subject matter
• Content predictions that can tell L&D where a workforces’ interest lies, where they need additional tools and identify “hot topics”

When it comes to AI Assistants, L&D departments currently have three types of tools at their disposal:

AI-Powered Chatbots

AI-enabled Content Providers

AI-based Adaptive Learning Platforms

 

AI-Powered Chatbots

AI-powered chatbots can interact with employees on a one-to-one, individual level – answering questions, explaining processes, providing quizzes and directing users to relevant information on demand. And with many new non-coding bot platforms on the market, it’s easier than ever to build a custom chatbot that can be integrated into a variety of platforms. For example:

Dialogflow, formerly API.ai, is powered by Google and allows users to create a chatbot in three simple steps. And the bot trains itself over time, so it’s only going to keep getting better and better.

Flow XO supports the creation of chatbots on Facebook Messenger, Slack, Telegram, Twilio SMS or as a stand-alone messenger that cab be embedded on a webpage. It comes with a level of artificial intelligence that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, and it’s also super flexible. It can be integrated with other tools popular L&D tools, including SurveyGizmo, for a more effective learning experience.

Mobile Coach is a chatbot platform designed to reinforce corporate training. It can be customized to the needs of each clients and deployed across multiple channels, including SMS and Facebook Messenger.

AI-enabled Content Providers

For years, MOOCs and eLearning marketplaces have provided companies a way to deliver on-demand access to a vast library of ready-made content, helping employees build, maintain and grow their skill sets (and helping organizations foster a culture of learning). Some content providers have gone a step farther and are beginning to embrace AI to make their products more personalized and offer “Netflix-like: suggestions. For example, Lynda.com leverages user analytics and LinkedIn’s rich data on job needs and job seekers to provide recommendations for Lynda.com courses and video segments.

AI Assistants Embedded within Learning Platforms

Many learning platforms leverage some sort of “assistant” that helps learners move through the training. Most of these assistants are static – offering the same set of advice and suggestions for each learner regardless of individual performance – so they’re often not very helpful. But the most advanced learning platforms incorporate AI into their system assistants, making them much more dynamic and impacting. For example, based on each user’s unique performance, our platform provides AI-generated, adaptive hints, good-to-know/elaborative content and behavioral suggestions to improve learner performance and the efficacy of learning just like an assistant would (e.g. take a break or come back to this content later).

 

AI in Training – Adaptive Learning Platforms

Another way that organizations can integrate AI into the learning and training is through an AI-powered adaptive learning platform, like the Fulcrum. Our AI-powered, adaptive learning platform delivers:

• Real-time adaptations, so training is deeply personalized to the needs and behaviors of each individual learner – their learning sweet spot
• Predictive insights based on both user behavior and performance data, including how likely employees are to accurately apply what they’ve learned in training back on the job
• Full feedback loop where a company’s internal performance data is fed back into the learning platform, making the platform more intelligent and more streamlined with each user interaction. This means users have a more compelling and effective learning experience, and it also ensures that the learning content is optimized for maximum efficacy
• Informed insights that can contribute to employee evaluations, new-hire decisions, performance reviews and departmental/program improvement
• A better, more relevant learning experience that delivers more effective, efficient training and is a hit with learners

AI is changing the training game – and is on its way to delivering a dramatic uptick in terms of learning efficacy, learner experiences and training value.

If your organization is one of the many that’s pushing for AI to become an enterprise strategy in 2019, don’t let your L&D department fall out of step. There are a lot of options for integrating AI in training, and Fulcrum can help you figure out how to answer the call to develop AI strategies enterprise-wide in your organization. To learn more about our AI-powered adaptive platform, let’s connect for a short demo or check out our overview video.

 

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