Time is Money that Your Team Can’t Spare: Learning Needs to be Optimised

By James Mc Gowan, CEO at Wall Street English

Time management is an issue that we all face. Balancing day-to-day tasks alongside continuous growth and learning has become more difficult in the demanding and fast-paced world we live in. Research by Harvard Business School backs this up, with the majority of people consistently feeling “time-poor.”

Even so, growth is still a top priority for employees, with around 94 percent of employees saying they would stay longer at a company that invested in their learning and development. It’s clear employees want learning opportunities, but these need to be flexible to fit around professionals’ increasingly busy schedules. As they say, time is money and your employees have little to spare, so optimised learning is important for continued success.

Learning delivers returns

Employee learning is crucial for driving organisational success. Not only does it create new and effective approaches to work, but it also helps employees build the confidence and skills to succeed within the business.

According to Gallup, creating a high-performance workplace hinges on building a high development culture. Organisations that strategically focus on employee development experience 11% higher profitability and are twice as likely to retain their employees.

Among the skills in high demand, speaking English is particularly crucial for career growth and economic empowerment. The Economist Intelligence Unit revealed that 70% of executives from non-English speaking countries consider English skills important for career advancement. Also, according to a recent report, 8 in 10 respondents believed that English proficiency is directly linked to earning potential.

Time is an investment

We all deal with various responsibilities alongside our work commitments, so learning programmes need to ensure effective results without demanding too much daily time.

Micro-learning is an efficient strategy for this, offering 10-15 minute learning sessions in small,
manageable bites. This approach isn’t aimed at reducing time spent learning but it allows busy professionals to incorporate education into their daily schedules more easily, while also enhancing knowledge retention by breaking down content into smaller segments.

By keeping sessions concise and digestible, employees are encouraged to develop consistent learning habits while better managing their time. Language learning still requires investing sufficient time to absorb the information properly, so this isn’t an opportunity to ‘skip’ ahead.

Technologies like AI can enhance this process by automating routine tasks like scheduling classes, saving both time and effort. These tools can also deliver instant feedback on performance and questions, allowing learners to quickly identify areas for improvement making the learning journey more agile and convenient.

Make it engaging

To maximise the impact of employee education, training programmes need to relate to the tasks and challenges they face daily. Experiential learning – or ‘learn by doing’ – brings what they are absorbing to life, ensuring relevance to their roles.

In addition, personalised learning is also important for employee productivity and engagement. At Wall Street English, we offer an interactive platform that allows our students to track their progress and stay on top of their goals by using real-time data that empowers them to tailor their learning experiences to fit their needs. This creates a more productive environment that nurtures consistency, helping students reach their full capabilities.

The best of both worlds

Hybrid learning, a mix of in-person and online classes, is becoming increasingly common. This learning method allows for the best of both worlds, the flexibility of learning at your own pace at home while also receiving in-person support and coaching when needed. Its inclusivity and accessibility also make it perfect for individuals who aren’t always able to attend in-person classes.

With different ways to take advantage of hybrid learning – for example on a tablet or smartphone – employees are granted easy access no matter where they are, effectively optimising how they use their time. By aligning learning with an employee’s needs, stress is taken off their shoulders which ultimately encourages them to continue their education.

If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it

As the saying goes, ‘If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it,’. We need to be able to determine whether a skill is getting better or needs more work. With a variety of measuring tools and analytics platforms, employees can gain insights into their performance and identify areas for improvement, helping them stay focused and aligned on reaching their milestones.

At Wall Street English, even with our 96% success rate, we always want to improve the way we do things. We constantly monitor how our learners study to improve whether that’s optimising learning times, boosting productivity, or enhancing flexibility. Our recent launch of the Study Planner tool empowers students to take charge of their learning journey, monitor their progress, and reach their goals.

Employee learning is not only important for developing productive, engaged, and high-performing teams, but it also enhances the organisation’s capability to tackle complex challenges. Because time is precious, optimised learning will make it easier for employees to get the most out of their education and continue to grow. Time spent learning is time spent sowing success for the future.