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AI is transforming every industry, and learning and development (L&D) is no exception. For those of you in HR, management, or L&D, using AI in learning and development can give your company a competitive edge, make your job easier, and support positive outcomes for your learners.
In this post, we’ll explore benefits to using generative AI in learning and development, plus ways you can implement it in your company.
What is AI in learning and development?
Traditional one-size-fits-all training methods don’t account for the different needs of employees in a diverse workplace. Personalized training isn’t necessarily possible when there are only a handful of HR or L&D professionals for a company with hundreds or even thousands of employees.
That’s where AI comes in. AI can personalize experiences based on each employee's unique needs, making talent development initiatives more engaging and impactful. The future of learning and development lies in AI—not just helping create a better learning experience for employees, but lightening the lift for L&D teams to scale programs.
What are the benefits of using AI in L&D?
Joining AI and learning brings several advantages to the table that help L&D teams build impactful programs and improve outcomes for your learners.
Here’s how using AI for learning and development benefits you:
Identify and close skill gaps
AI can analyze vast amounts of data which can help you identify skill gaps in your organization. Whether it’s technical skills, soft skills, or role-specific competencies, AI helps pinpoint areas where training is needed the most. By accelerating talent development, you can help ensure your workforce is well-equipped to meet current and future challenges.
Leverage internal knowledge
Another benefit of using AI in learning and development is getting the most out of your company’s internal knowledge. AI learning and development tools can sift through documentation like product information, sales strategies, and internal policies to identify learning opportunities and create training resources. These tools also offer ways for internal SMEs to turn their expertise into training materials to share their knowledge company-wide.
Support learner needs
AI can offer real-time support to learners, providing them with instant feedback and resources tailored to their needs. Learning and development tools that use AI can respond to queries and even anticipate what an employee might find useful. Employees all have different learning needs and AI can support that through offering different formats and feedback, making sure training is engaging and effective.
Harness predictive analytics
Predictive analytics capabilities allow your organization to forecast future training needs. By analyzing trends and patterns from your learning and development tools as well as external sources, AI can help predict which skills will be in demand, helping you stay ahead of the curve and prepare your employees for the future.
Scale L&D initiatives
Many organizations don’t have enough L&D staff to support the need for in-depth, personalized training initiatives. Using AI for learning and development allows teams to increase the amount and depth of training provided. It has the ability to automate a lot of the tedious busywork and support you in some of the more complex tasks so you and your team can focus on the most important, strategic tasks.
How to use AI in learning and development: 6 practical examples
Now that we understand the benefits, let’s explore six practical ways to implement AI in L&D programs at your organization.
1. Identify knowledge and learning gaps
By examining metrics such as test scores, course completion rates, and learner feedback, AI can pinpoint areas where employees struggle and recommend targeted training to address these gaps. In turn, this data helps L&D teams create more effective training programs. By understanding specific knowledge gaps, your team can design learning interventions that directly address the needs of your workforce.
Usage and engagement data can also help you determine how to deliver certain training. With these insights, your team can more easily track the effectiveness of your programs over time and better support future talent development.
2. Personalize learning paths
One of the most significant advantages of AI in learning and development is personalization. By analyzing what individual learners need most, AI-powered learning and development tools can create a customized learning path for each employee based on skill needs, learning preferences, and professional and organizational goals.
Employees can explore these paths to develop new skills, including mentorship. Some AI-powered tools give mentees a “choose your own adventure”-style learning experience with recommended discussion points for mentorship sessions based on skill needs and relevant topics.
3. Seamless assessments and instant feedback
Quizzes, tests, and other kinds of assessments are incredibly useful for judging where an employee is at and what areas they need to improve on. With AI-powered learning and development tools, participants can see and understand their performance instantly, guiding them down the right path to successful skill development.
4. Virtual coaches and tutors
AI tools can become an employee’s virtual assistant in all things L&D. It can provide personalized guidance through answering specific questions, offering tips, and suggesting additional resources. Employees get answers to their questions in real-time with explanations that cater to the learner’s knowledge level. This kind of instant support mimics the experience of having a live tutor available at all times, which can be especially helpful in hybrid or remote work environments.
5. Content creation
Using AI in learning and development offers new ways for learners, subject matter experts, and L&D professionals to create and curate material. Going beyond simple suggestions, these tools analyze your existing training content, preferences, and styles to provide recommendations that suit the needs and objectives of your project.
Another way AI can support building new materials is through slide and video creation. If you’ve ever stared at a blank slide deck unsure where to start, AI learning and development tools can help. These tools can make suggestions on content, design, and ways to present complex information in a concise, digestible way—simplifying your task without sacrificing quality.
6. Adaptive learning platforms
Adaptive learning features craft learning experiences that resonate with each individual. By analyzing engagement and performance data, AI-powered tools can predict what skills a learner needs more work on or which to develop next. With that data, adaptive learning platforms can change information delivery to align with each learner’s pace and learning style.
AI can also support more impactful mentorship conversations by reading the profiles of employees in a match along with previous discussion notes to suggest next session’s talking points. This approach nurtures stronger connections and promotes ongoing professional development through insights into a mentee’s strengths, growth areas, and career goals.
These examples of AI in learning and development can support all the great work your L&D team does while making sure all your learners’ needs are met—creating more efficient and impactful training programs.
You now understand many of the practical applications of AI in learning and development, but privacy and compliance are a valid concern. When looking for AI-powered learning and development tools, ensure you understand how it processes information. For example, Together redacts all Personally Identifiable Information (PII) before processing and all AI features can be disabled completely for organizations with strict requirements. With peace of mind, you can lean into the future of learning and development with confidence.
Ready to see the power of AI-enabled learning in action? Book a demo with Together or explore our interactive demo and discover how our platform supports impactful L&D programs through mentorship.
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