Today, the make-up of the employee base is changing, making mobile technology even more relevant.  By this year alone, traditional full-time workers will only comprise 41% of the total workforce (per Fieldglass - http://resources.fieldglass.com); freelancers, contractors and remote workers are now the majority.  Gone are the days to walk down the hall, gather the team and collaborate on a project.  To be efficient, some form of social technology is needed to connect and collaborate.    

Likewise, other forms of collaboration and teamwork have risen to the top, as effective approaches.  They have also proven to be valuable points of learning.  According to a recent Bersin survey, 80% of workforce learning “happens via on-the-job interactions with peers, teammates and managers.” 

Peer Collaboration has become extremely popular to share best practices and experiences, as managers realize its effectiveness with job performance.  With Scrimmage’s social learning solution, for instance, learners are able to discuss content and have a real-time interaction with their peers about key topics.  Today, people want to learn, but they also want to share what they’ve learned.

Creating collaborative opportunities among different generations has also proven to be effective.  Peter Cappelli, Professor of Management at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, notes, “mixing older and younger [generations] has always worked pretty well and I suspect that's going to work well going forward.”  Just as the Scrimmage social tool addresses all generations, a social solution should be tech-savvy, device agnostic and highly-responsive for the younger generations, yet also fit the needs of other generations by being easy to use and intuitive, as well as help everyone seek additional efficiencies in today’s workplace.

As Inette Dishler, Senior Talent and Organizational Consultant at University of California, Berkeley, reiterates, “workplace learning must adapt to this new world and provide the tools and vehicles to leverage the collective wisdom in the organization. We can curate content, build platforms, encourage peer learning and share information.“  

Ultimately, collaboration, along with its social learning complement, should be treated as an element of workforce development and even play a role in driving the organizational strategy.  Further, by making space for collaborative learning in the organization, it shows that the corporate culture values both development and collaboration. After all, “great things in business are never done by one person.” 

Feature of the Month: 

Billboards – they should not be overlooked!  A Billboard can be Simple. It can be Dynamic. For example, link to a message from the CEO, or team leader. It can be Interactive. It can highlight new training & learning modules - and Drive Learners to the content. Remember, Billboards are very Visual, so they are Engaging. Plus, they can be Personalized, which further engages Learners and provides Ownership of their app, of their learning. Also, don’t forget to Make Billboards Fun, Bright and Customized to the Message.  

Let’s Meet-up!  

Scrimmage will be in Atlanta for ATD’s International Conference & Expo, May 22-25.  Our booth is just two rows to the right of the big ATD booth - #1726  - Stop by and say ‘hello’ + enter to WIN various prizes! To Learn More and Register, click here.

Scrimmage will also be at the 46th Annual Life Sciences Trainers and Educators Network (LTEN) Conference, June 5-8 in Nashville (taking place at the renowned Gaylord Grand Ole Opry Resort).  We’re exhibiting here too!  Be Sure to Visit Us – we’ll have another sensational event (within an event) going on at our Booth. Learn More and Join Us, click here. 

Scrimmage has been invited to speak at ATD’s local chapter meeting in Cincinnati, OH on May 16th at 7:30am. Our Elena Coarse will be discussing a key topic for today’s L&D leaders, Looking Beyond the LMS, and how mobile is playing a vital role.  Learn More here and Be Sure to Register. 

More Award Nominations!  

Scrimmage is honored to be a Finalist in the Innovation Category for this year’s Life Sciences Trainers and Educators Network (LTEN) Awards.

We have something special in store for you, your associates and your learners to participate.  Check your Inbox, check our Social Media – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram. Details will be Coming Soon.

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About Scrimmage:

SCRIMMAGE is a modern technology firm featuring the latest mobile learning and engagement tools serving global businesses from Fortune 100 companies to SMBs. The company works closely with its clients to build a customized, scalable and secure platform for all static and dynamic content, along with a full suite of learning solutions, including award-winning gamification, social collaboration and robust data reporting. Founded in 2010, Scrimmage has enjoyed over 525M platform interactions on a worldwide basis to more than 50 enterprise clients across a spectrum of industries.