Introducing our newest feature (drumroll please): learning recommendations. 

With the new tailored content suggestions, Go1 is bringing personalisation to the forefront of the learning journey by taking steps to capture and understand individual learning interests. The updates have been in early access for a few months - thank you to those who have been early adopters of the feature!

Portals which enable the Suggested Courses for you option in Portal Settings will see a new block on their dashboard with five recommended learning items. Users can also personalise these recommendations by selecting topics they are interested in learning more about. There is a new block at the bottom of the dashboard, prompting users to select their topics.

If a user has previously added topics of interest on their portal, the topics will carry over with this update and appear in a list at the bottom of their dashboard.

Topics can be updated using the Update Settings button. 

All users will now see a new tab under their Account Settings called Recommendations. Here users can add/update their topics of interest.

If you’re interested in getting the most out of the personalised learning feature, read our guides to get started:

How to enable the content recommendations email on your portal (for Administrator)

How to choose your topics of interest (for Learners)


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New learning recommendations to help keep your users engaged!

Shipping soon - updates to personalised learning recommendations!

Unfortunately, for many employees, workplace learning ends up being another task tagged on the end of an ever-growing to-do list. 

Yet, Deloitte’s 2017 ‘Global Human Capital Trends’ report found 42 per cent of millennials are likely to leave their organisations because they’re not learning fast enough. 

The data also reveals that among millennials, the “ability to learn and progress” is now a key element in their perception of a company’s brand.

While opportunities for workplace learning are highly valued, time is a significantly limiting factor.  

When the average employee has only 24 minutes per week to learn, it is crucial to understand how to maximise that time and ensure that learning is useful.

In this article, we will be exploring how participants can make the most of their online learning experience in the time available. 

The following five tips are our suggestions for maximising the time you allocate to online learning.  Whether you are a participant or learning and development professional, they may be useful to share with your colleagues and help to develop the learning culture in your organisation: 

1. Understand where your strengths and weaknesses lie

If you know exactly which aspects of your role you are good at and which need some work, you can use the limited time you have for learning in a targeted way.  

For example, if you know you need to develop your communication skills, but you are confident in the hard skills required for your role, communication should be the focus of your learning time.

Avoid completing tasks and lessons you already understand for the sake of it, and communicate this to those responsible for learning and development in your organisation.

Sometimes flexibility in workplace training is limited, and every staff member has to take the same course.  If this is the case, when you are given the opportunity to provide feedback, you can explain that it would be better if the learning was personalised.

2. Develop a growth mindset for learning 

The term “growth mindset” was coined by Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, Carol Dweck.

She argues that an individual’s views of their ability can be placed on a continuum, from those with a “fixed mindset” to those with a “growth mindset”.  

In an interview in 2012, she describes the difference between the two states of mind in the following way: 

“In a fixed mindset students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that's that, and then their goal becomes to look smart all the time and never look dumb. In a growth mindset students understand that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort, good teaching and persistence. They don't necessarily think everyone's the same or anyone can be Einstein, but they believe everyone can get smarter if they work at it.”

Being able to learn independently is a crucial skill for any employee (or adult!) to have, but it isn’t always easy.  Sometimes we expect those in positions of responsibility to have all the answers, when we could easily do a little extra research and find out for ourselves. This will save time emailing back and forth or waiting for answers to questions you could easily Google.

On the flipside of this, there will be situations when a new concept just isn’t clicking for you, and you need to ask somebody for help.  

A great prompt used in schools to encourage independent thought is ‘brain, book, buddy, boss’ when students are looking for answers to a question.

If you have exhausted all the other options available to you, asking a colleague, a facilitator or your boss is a perfectly viable next step.  More often than not, you will find the answer before needing to ask your boss and you can both happily continue getting on with the other tasks you have planned for the day. 

You can either work on learning goals by yourself, with a line manager or in collaboration with a colleague responsible for learning and development in your organisation.

When thinking about what your learning goals are, your most recent performance review is a good place to start.  Learning and development goals may already be included in your review, but, if not, think about which specific areas of your role you really need to pay more attention to. 

This information, as well as understanding your general strengths and weaknesses, will help you to form a clear picture of the direction your learning needs to take.

A one stop shop for all things training, Go1 makes it easy to compare the best training options available, and find the right resources for your professional development, compliance and business training needs. 

Five ways to make the most of an online learning course

When the average employee has only 24 minutes per week to learn, there is an increasing demand for courses to be delivered in manageable, easy to access formats.

As part of this, course assessment is being redefined with micro-credentials - the alternative to traditional qualifications such as degrees or diplomas. 

Deakin University defines micro-credentials as mini-qualifications that demonstrate skills, knowledge and/or experience in a given subject area or capability.  

They are already in use across the education sector, including online learning, universities, and vocational colleges, and are set to be the future of upskilling in the workplace. 

Micro-credentials tend to be less detailed than traditional degrees or diplomas, although they are flexible and can include a wider breadth of learning material. 

A key difference is that they are used to accredit learning for both hard and soft skills.  For example, you could have a micro-credential in a broad topic such as ‘data science’, or in a specific soft skill like ‘effective workplace communication’. 

Globally renowned industry analyser and research analyst, Josh Bersin, describes a new paradigm emerging in corporate training. He labels this, ‘learning in the flow of work’, which means presenting employees with opportunities to learn through platforms they are already using.

The advent of micro-credentials is paving the way for such advances, as they enable organisations to incentivise workplace learning.  People are often naturally motivated to learn, but the promise of recognition beyond their current role makes participating all the more worthwhile. 					      								

The benefits of micro-credentials for businesses and employees

With micro-credentials already being used across the education sector, there is no doubt that they will continue to shape the future of learning.

The following points explain why micro-credentials are making such an impact, and how they could help to upskill your workforce more effectively:

Personalising learning is the difference between content being engaging or boring.  Content needs to address an individual’s learning needs as accurately as possible, and advancing technology is helping to simplify this process.

As micro-credentials are often less detailed, it becomes easier to tailor learning to an individual employee’s needs.

Learning content that was once part of a longer course can be made available separately, meaning participants can engage with the material they need.

This avoids the issue of employees wasting time completing learning material which is either irrelevant to them or unnecessarily time consuming, while still gaining recognition for their efforts. 

As microcredentials are often more succinct than their traditional counterparts, there is greater flexibility in the content. 

Learners can develop hard skills specific to their roles and level of experience, and gain recognition for individual modules without having to complete a lengthy course. 

They can also be recognised for developing soft skills, which are not acknowledged separately in many traditional courses. 

Deloitte’s 2017 ‘Soft Skills for Business Success’ report predicted that two out of three jobs would be soft skill intensive by 2030.

The report goes on to explain that a workforce with a mix of skills is crucial for business success and prosperity.

With this in mind, a focus on soft skills is all the more important, and micro-credentials are a great way to upskill a workforce in this area.

Micro-credentials also create flexibility in the structure and delivery of workplace learning.

Course content can be designed from scratch and tailor-made for an organisation.  Learning can also be delivered incrementally for employees to engage with at their own pace. 

By offering micro-credentials, organisations are able to design and deliver bespoke learning experiences for their team members. 

Opportunities for ongoing learning and growth are important for employees to feel invested in the organisation they work for.  Ultimately, human beings function best in environments which allow them to grow. 

The simplified structure of micro-credentials makes workplace learning all the more accessible to employees, as they can complete a course in less time, while still gaining recognition for their efforts. 

With the rapid pace of change in the digital age, there is a widening gap between the skills required in the workplace and the readiness of employees to perform their desired roles. 

Micro-credentials are helping to address this as employees or job seekers can quickly learn the skills necessary for a current or prospective position, and gain long-term recognition for participating. 

At Go1, we offer workplace learning in partnership with a range of organisations, along with micro-credentials and recognition for completion of courses. 

Go1 portal administrators can also create awards, within which they can specify which courses, or sets of courses, can be completed to obtain certification in a particular area.  

Micro-credentials: the major disruptive force in workplace learning

Looking for an easier way to find the right training content for your team? Let us introduce you to Go1 Premium.

With Go1 Premium, you’ll have unlimited access to a growing library containing thousands of learning resources, from top training providers around the world. All in one easy subscription.

Introducing GO1 Premium: thousands of courses, one easy subscription (USA)

You might also like to watch Meet Go1: Making learning easy! video, to understand more about who we are and what we do.

Or head over to the Go1 YouTube channel - we regularly post webinars, case studies, and FAQ videos to the channel, so don’t forget to like and subscribe!  

Introducing Go1 Premium: thousands of courses, one easy subscription 

Go1 is excited to announce three new courses from the Blue Ocean AcademyTM, the official blue ocean learning provider under the Blue Ocean Global NetworkTM.

If your business is like most businesses, you’re competing for a greater share of shrinking demand. In the face of today’s global trends and technological developments, this cutthroat competition is becoming fiercer. It’s a red ocean and it’s getting bloodier all the time.

But it doesn’t need to be this way. Apple, Facebook, Amazon or any great company you can think of didn’t succeed by imitating what others in their industry were doing; why should you?

With the right strategy, you can shift to a blue ocean of uncontested market space.

Making a blue ocean shift is about creating new demand rather than competing for existing customers. You need to identify your noncustomers: buyers that don’t buy into your industry, product or service yet.

You also need to identify the pain points your industry imposes on buyers and get a clear picture of how they limit the appeal and size of your industry.

These three courses are your essential introduction to understanding and applying blue ocean concepts and methodologies, and setting you on route to a blue ocean of uncontested market space.

 Blue Ocean AcademyTM have partnered with Go1 and Premium content partner ViaUp, to deliver three short, engaging and interactive courses that will show you how to systematically create blue oceans of new market space.  

The Blue Ocean Global Network (BOGN) is a community of expert blue ocean practitioners founded by world-renowned Professors Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne, the authors of Blue Ocean Strategy and Blue Ocean Shift. 

BOGN have played a very active role in the development of each new course, making sure that each module is full of high quality case studies and interactive elements that allow people to see real world applications of blue ocean strategy.

The new courses are in the form of micro-modules that take people through specific aspects of blue ocean in easy to understand, bite-sized chunks.

Navigating the Blue Ocean
In just ten minutes, you will understand what blue ocean strategy is, how it differs from a red ocean approach, and how to navigate both oceans to discover exciting new business opportunities.

Looking to the Horizon and Beyond Existing Demand
This course has been designed to help you understand how you can create new demand by looking at noncustomers of your current industry.

Mapping the Course to Exceptional Value
Perfect for those trying to reach new customers, this course helps you to understand how to uncover and create exceptional value for buyers by identifying and addressing pain points those customers have within the market.

Get started with blue ocean courses now and transform your business through the proven tools and methodology of new market creation.

These 3 courses will show you how to create new demand and stand apart from the competition

Learn how to supercharge your online training platform with off-the-shelf eLearning content - a webinar hosted in partnership with eThink. 

When it comes to Learning Management Systems (LMS), not every organization has the bandwidth or resources to effectively manage their L&D program as well as create and deliver high-quality eLearning courses. When it comes to the latter, finding or creating employee training that can both meet compliance needs and fill the skill gaps in your team is often very challenging. 

From construction to childcare, regulatory requirements are constantly changing and as every industry evolves, there is a need to stay up-to-date and ahead of the competition. That said, training programs can be a lot to manage. Thankfully, L&D professionals have options when it comes to finding support for their training platform or outsourcing content needs.

Join us on September 26th  at 11:00 am EST / 4:00 pm BST to learn about how you can power your training program with a flexible learning platform and canned content that’s tailored to meet your organization’s unique training needs. By combining your LMS with a comprehensive off-the-shelf eLearning library, you’re able to support your learning strategy with industry-specific courses and training that drives the success of every member of your team, ultimately increasing employee performance and business outcomes.

In this session, you will hear directly from Go1, the world’s largest marketplace of training, and eThink Education, a world-class LMS solutions provider, to learn: 

why it’s important to incorporate multiple methods of workplace learning including in-person and online training, and how a best-of-breed content strategy supports this

the benefit of incorporating off-the-shelf eLearning content into your learning programs 

how the best learning and development training can increase employee engagement, collaboration, and productivity

how Go1’s corporate training library combined with eThink’s fully-managed LMS solution provides an all-in-one eLearning solution, enabling organizations to offer a seamless, engaging learning experience to end-users. 

Randy Jones (Vice President of Sales eThink Education)

As VP of Sales, Mr. Jones is responsible for overseeing strategy and execution for both direct sales and eThink’s channel network. Mr. Jones joined the eThink team in 2014 and brings over twelve years of education technology experience, including four years with the New York Times and four additional years providing Virtual Course Material platforms. Mr. Jones holds a MBA from the University of Baltimore and a BS in eBusiness & Marketing from Towson University.

Paul Callan (Head of US Channel Partnerships Go1)

Paul Callan is the Head of US Channel Partnerships at Go1, the worlds largest marketplace for corporate training. Paul draws on more than ten years of experience in the areas of product, marketing and mobile ecosystems to help Go1 partners reach their full potential. Go1 is a world leader in corporate learning – aggregating thousands of courses into one simple solution. 

Webinar: Supercharge your online training platform with off-the-shelf eLearning content 

Find out what makes Go1 the world’s largest marketplace of training and how we can take the hassle out of workplace training, to save your business time and take your training budget further.

Got a spare minute? Watch the short video below!

Meet GO1: Making learning easy! (USA)

We also regularly post webinars, case studies, and FAQ videos to the Go1 YouTube channel, so don’t forget to like and subscribe! 

For many of us, learning is an activity we associate with sitting in a classroom listening to an adult or expert imparting knowledge.

Yet, our brains are wired for learning and growth, no matter where we are or what we are doing.  From an evolutionary perspective, our ability to learn has shaped us as a species and continues to do so. 

Newborn babies learn through their developing senses and interactions with the world, and this process becomes increasingly complex as we progress through life. 

As our thoughts become more layered, it can be challenging to remain open to the idea of continuous learning.  Other priorities take over, and it can be difficult to take on new concepts.

In order to do this, we have to be in the right place psychologically, and this is why developing a growth mindset can be useful. 

With this research in mind, a growth mindset is a psychological state anybody can develop with the right attitude, making them all the more receptive to new ideas and concepts.

But how might you go about doing this? What changes to thought patterns or behaviours might you need to make? The tips below should help you to get started: 

1. Admit that you don’t know everything

Admitting when you don’t understand a concept or how to solve a problem can be challenging, particularly in a professional context.  You want your boss to think you’ve got everything under control and that you’re doing an amazing job 100% of the time, but this is humanly impossible! It’s much better to ask for help when you need it or to clarify with a question.  This means you’ll be able to learn something new and avoid the stress of not understanding how to progress with a task.

Every conversation you have is an opportunity to learn something new. Whether you’re the CEO or an intern, our experiences are all different and we can learn a lot from what a colleague or team member has to say.  You can do this by asking more questions when you talk to people and mine for new information.  You might be surprised who teaches you something new. 

This is a key component to having a growth mindset. When colleagues give you feedback on a piece of work, it can be hard not to take it personally, but try to remove yourself from the situation and act upon what they are saying. You can even seek out feedback.  This is a great way to grow in your role and gain insights from your peers or those with more experience.

As human beings, we are susceptible to second-guessing ourselves and being afraid to put ourselves out there.  While negative self-talk is useful from an evolutionary perspective to save us from sticky situations, in the relatively safe and comfortable modern world, it can be quite destructive and limiting.  

If you have a fixed mindset, you might believe that it is impossible for you to grow beyond the talents and skills you already possess, but this simply isn’t true.  While, as Carol Dweck explains, you might not become Einstein, the brain is plastic and capable of forming new neural pathways throughout life. The opportunity for growth and learning is always there, we just need to harness it. 

5. Understand your strengths and weaknesses

When you understand where your strengths and weaknesses lie, you can identify which areas to devote your energy to, and which need more attention. You might benefit from taking a course or asking for help, particularly if a certain skill you aren’t confident in is required for your role. 

For more insights, be sure to subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs.

Our brains are wired for growth. In order to do this, we have to be in the right place psychologically, and this is why developing a growth mindset can be useful. 

How to develop a growth mindset for learning

Think for a moment about your favourite streaming service, YouTube channel or blog.  What draws you to it?  To ensure you keep coming back, there needs to be a range of content tailored to your preferences as an audience member. 

When it comes to online learning, the need for a variety of high-quality content is exactly the same, but this goes beyond satisfying consumer demands. 

A selection of learning content and activities can be the difference between an engaging workplace learning experience, or your colleagues checking off yet another item on the growing to-do list.

With this in mind, let’s explore why variety is a key element to engaging your colleagues in learning. 

Knowing what makes an online course engaging is the key to convincing your colleagues to take time out of their busy schedules for learning. When you provide staff with content they can really connect with, they are far more likely to see the upside, and this will create momentum. 

As part of this process, it is important to offer a variety of learning content. Here, we explain how you can use variety to make the learning experience more meaningful for your colleagues:

Engage participants using multiple types of learning experience 

Multiple types of learning experience are important if a participant is to remain engaged with learning content. 

For example, you might look for courses that include a variety of activity types. One part of a lesson might ask participants to watch a video and record their thoughts.  The follow up task might be to apply this new knowledge in the workplace and reflect on the process.

Learners also take on new information best when it is broken down into bite-sized chunks.  If the content you choose includes a range of tasks and activity types, it will definitely tick this box. 

      2.  Provide participants with the opportunity to use different thinking skills

 In order for a learning experience to be engaging, participants also need to use a wide range of thinking skills.  

Certain tasks will require more brain power from learners than others, and a good online course will ensure activities encourage different types of thinking.

For example, activities which ask participants to be more creative or to problem solve will be far more engaging and result in deeper learning. 

However, sometimes participants will simply need to recall facts.  This process is less engaging but necessary for certain topics.

All you need to remember when making a selection is that the best courses will include activities with a range of thinking skills.     

      3.  Appeal to different personality types and interests

Each of your colleagues will have different personality types and interests.  If you have access to a variety of learning content, you will automatically appeal to a broader range of people. 

Participants will also have the option to explore content at their own pace.  For example, if they are interested in the content covered in course A over course B, they can select that which is more relevant and interesting to them.  

      4.  Factor in a personalised learning journey

Some courses will do this better than others, or perhaps include features which enable you to integrate learning with platforms your workforce uses regularly.

Giving your colleagues access to a wide range of learning materials will help to make the process more tailored to their learning needs.

      5.  Create an authentic learning experience

The most useful learning experiences will be those relevant to your colleagues’ professional context and aspirations. 

Many online courses include practical stories, which are particularly important for workplace training. 

If the learning content you select includes a range of practical examples and ways for participants to apply their learning in the real world, their experience is far more likely to be both authentic and useful. 

When a participant takes a course, they will also generate ideas and questions along the way.  With a variety of content to choose from, they can select material to explore ideas or thoughts as they pop up.

With Go1 Premium, you’ll have unlimited access to a growing library containing thousands of learning resources, from top training providers around the world - all in one easy subscription.  

Why learners need a variety of content to stay engaged

You've spotted an eLearning course that would be perfect for your colleagues and help them grow as a team. Unfortunately, your organisation has a tight budget to stick to this year, and it isn’t easy to convince the boss to allocate the funds.

The question is, how can you make the case for eLearning? Why should your organisation take notice?

The benefits of learning in the workplace are well-documented, and with 42 per cent of Fortune 500 companies implementing eLearning programs, your organisation is at risk of falling behind without one. 

In this article, we will explore how to encourage those in management to embrace eLearning, and demonstrate that it is a long-term investment worth making. 

Online learning is an increasingly popular way to perform workplace training, but some managers will need persuading when it comes to allocating both the time and money to this relatively new concept. 

Our advice is to let the benefits of eLearning speak for themselves.  The following points should help you to get started with communicating the unexpected advantages of investment in online courses:

Deloitte’s 2017 ‘Global Human Capital Trends’ report found 42 per cent of millennials are likely to leave their organisations because they’re not learning fast enough. The data also reveals that among millennials, the “ability to learn and progress” is now a key element in their perception of a company’s brand.

Employee turnover is also expensive.  Josh Bersin of Deloitte estimates the cost of losing an employee to be 1.5-2.0 x the employee’s annual salary.  This could mean a company losing anywhere from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars each time an employee moves on. 

With this in mind, giving employees the opportunity to engage with eLearning courses seems like a small price to pay.

Improving employee retention isn’t the only reason investment in eLearning makes good business sense.

If you are going to convince your leadership team that eLearning is the way to go, they will need to understand it in terms of a business plan. To do this, highlight the shortcomings of your current method of training (if any), and explain why eLearning would be better financially. 

You can also measure the ROI of online training using Kirkpatrick's model of evaluation as a starting point. 

Your leadership team will also want to know what employees stand to gain if they adopt online learning tools. 

Research shows that eLearning increases retention rates 25-60 percent.  In comparison, retention rates of face-to-face training are much lower at 8-10 percent. 

If your organisation is already spending big on face-to-face learning, these stats could show that eLearning would have more overall impact, and be better value for money. 

A Training Needs Assessment (TNA) is a way of determining if a training need exists in your organisation.  If it does, the assessment can review what training is required to fill the gaps.

This is designed to make the connection between a required performance or desired behaviour and the actual performance or behaviour in your organisation. 

When your leadership team is presented with this data, it might make more sense to invest in online learning as a means of improving efficiency or addressing a particular challenge. 

There could also be considerable scale and diversity in training needs.  In this case, those in leadership could be more likely to opt for the flexible solutions an eLearning platform can offer. 

Data also shows that eLearning participants learn nearly five times more material than those attending face-to-face courses, without increasing the time spent training.

A traditional face-to-face training course might typically take a day, meaning an employee would need to spend a whole day out of work to focus on learning.

With online courses, employees can log on anytime, anywhere. Participants can spend ten minutes learning from a video, then get back to their regular tasks for that day.

The fact that eLearning is presented in bite-sized chunks also makes information easier to digest and retain. 

For more insights, subscribe to the Go1 newsletter to stay on top of all the latest L&D trends. Or, you can book a demo today to find out how Go1 can help with your team’s learning needs.

Elearning is an effective way to engage employees and improve their performance. Learn why now is the time to start investing in elearning!

Five reasons your organisation should invest in eLearning

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