The Value of Peer-Peer Knowledge Sharing

It takes more than a traditional learning and development program to make an impact in today’s ever-evolving market. Your corporate learners demand flexible and responsive learning formats that deliver the very latest information applied in real-world scenarios. If your content is not relevant and accurate to the minute of their delivery, they are a lost opportunity. That’s just one of the reasons why Peer-Peer Knowledge Sharing is so impactful in today’s corporate learning environment. Here’s how you can better understand the value of this non-traditional delivery method.

1. What is Peer-Peer Knowledge Sharing?

This learning format is a pretty simple one, and more common than you might think. Peer-Peer refers to knowledge which is passed between learners, or between co-workers. The benefits of this method include ease and natural delivery, up to the minute content, and extreme relevancy to the learners engaged with the lesson. Examples of peer-peer knowledge sharing in the consumer realm include YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Skillshare. Your learners are already experienced and comfortable with this method of learning new skills, and now it’s time to bring that experience and ease of access to the corporate learning environment.

2. What does Corporate Peer-Peer Learning Look Like?

Peer-Peer Knowledge Sharing looks familiar to your learners, but perhaps not in the corporate context that will make it measurable and valuable to your organization at large. Technology is a critical part of this learning method. It turns everyday conversations into a powerful learning and development tool that can be measured and leveraged strategically. Consider video training repositories, peer to peer conversation forums, wikis, and even something as simple as brown-bag lunch and learns, where peers can learn from the experience of their coworkers. Online learning has a lot to offer if you take the right steps to bring the content into context and encouraging your team to make the most of the opportunity. Connecting peers directly to others who can benefit from their experience leverages this training method in truly impactful ways.

3. Capturing Peer-Peer Knowledge Sharing Value

One of the frequent worries that HR and L&D leaders express is capturing and understanding the tacit knowledge of their workforce. Everyone has something important to teach, but empowering individuals to share their knowledge is critical. The kind of insight and understanding that isn’t really written down anywhere or easily transferred from one employee to another makes the need to capture that critical knowledge. Providing an informal channel for employee knowledge sharing can make a huge difference in bringing that valuable knowledge to the forefront of your corporate learning programs. This allows learners and their trainer-counterparts to be more nimble, more responsive, and more effective than other training methods.

Are you looking for better ways to help your team learn?

Can your employees access information and training tools right when they need them? Does your training strategy include up-to-date practices?  Technology has changed the way top companies approached learning and training, making it challenging to choose the best options for your need.  There are plenty of ways you can easily bring Peer-Peer Knowledge Sharing to your learners, and Clarity can help. Get started today with a call to Clarity Consultants.