Restoring Human Connection at Work
April 22, 2025
March 3rd, 2025 – By Rebecca Taylor, CCO and Co-founder of SkillCycle
Employees want to feel valued at work, and companies that meet this need are more likely to retain the talent they require to be successful. The key is understanding the employee lifecycle (how staff experience your organization throughout their career within it), so you can engage individual team members more effectively at each stage. By focusing on the employee experience at every touchpoint, organizations can create an environment where talent feels supported, motivated, and empowered to grow.
Companies that invest in employee experience are four times more profitable than those that don’t. Adding valuable learning opportunities throughout an individual’s career with your organization can help you deliver a positive experience throughout the employee lifecycle. This investment signals to employees that the organization is committed to their professional development and long-term success, which in turn strengthens engagement and retention.
However, companies often miss the mark in delivering learning experiences, driving down the value for employees. Sometimes these missed opportunities are due to relying too heavily on platforms that don’t truly engage or empower people in their learning. The key is to look closely at where technology drives benefit—and where it doesn’t. HR leaders must carefully evaluate learning solutions to ensure they align with both organizational goals and employee needs, creating meaningful development opportunities that resonate with their workforce.
Why is workplace learning such an essential element in preparing for the future? Reskilling research from McKinsey & Company shows that 50% of leaders know they face business problems due to skills gaps. Yet, while the majority believe that upskilling and reskilling are the solution, only 13% feel confident about implementation. This stark contrast between recognizing the need and feeling equipped to address it highlights the importance of finding the right approach to workplace learning that can effectively close these critical skills gaps.
A fresh, people-centered approach to learning instead pairs employees all over the organization with one-to-one learning and coaching. This personalized methodology recognizes that each employee has unique learning needs, preferences, and career aspirations that require individualized attention and support.
In this blog post, we’ll explore:
What existing learning platforms get wrong
Why human-first is the most effective way to scale learning
How centering people builds connection throughout the employee lifecycle
How HR teams can drive more impact with the right tools
Many learning programs rely heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) and don’t provide a valuable, engaging learning experience for employees. This is a critical error that can drive down employee satisfaction—and your ability to develop your workforce to prepare for the future. When learning platforms prioritize technology over human connection, they risk creating a disconnected and impersonal experience that fails to meet the deeper needs of employees seeking growth and development.
AI can enhance the delivery of curated, integrated learning content. However, companies can sometimes lean too much on AI to handle all aspects of learning, and hope the tech capabilities will outweigh the limitations. This over-reliance on technology often results in a one-size-fits-all approach that doesn’t account for individual learning styles, career goals, or the nuanced needs of different roles within the organization.
Learning platforms that are too AI-focused can burden your organization to create and manage learning content. Most companies don’t have the time and resources to curate and develop content; and without ongoing upkeep, programs can become stale. This challenge is particularly acute for HR teams already stretched thin with multiple responsibilities and limited bandwidth for content creation and maintenance.
While AI can create increasingly authentic and human-sounding responses, these automated nudges and responses can feel disconnected and cause engagement to dwindle. Employees can quickly detect when they’re interacting with automated systems rather than receiving genuine human guidance and support, which can diminish the effectiveness of learning initiatives and reduce overall participation in development programs.
While technology plays a vital role in modern learning delivery systems, it’s crucial to recognize its limitations when used in isolation. Learning platforms powered solely by technology can often feel mechanical and impersonal, potentially failing to create the engaging and dynamic learning environment that organizations strive to achieve. Moreover, these technology-driven platforms may inadvertently incorporate inherent biases and assumptions that can create barriers to equitable learning access across diverse workforce populations.
The human element must remain at the forefront of any learning strategy. Adopting a people-first approach is not just beneficial—it’s fundamental to creating professional development opportunities that are truly accessible and meaningful for every member of your organization, regardless of their role, background, or learning style.
In today’s rapidly evolving workplace landscape, the imperative to upskill workers for future challenges has never been more pressing. The unprecedented pace of workplace transformation presents a compelling case for maintaining human connection as the cornerstone of your learning initiatives. Despite the remarkable advances in artificial intelligence, human coaches possess an unmatched ability to adapt, respond, and pivot more effectively to emerging needs and challenges.
Taking a proactive stance on addressing skills gaps through human-centered learning can establish a more “dynamic, nimble, and effective way” to address critical business requirements. This approach not only helps bridge existing competency gaps but also enables organizations to anticipate and prepare for future skill requirements with greater precision and effectiveness.
A human-first learning platform demonstrates superior capability in maintaining developmental momentum for both individuals and organizations. The lessons learned during the pandemic highlighted how unexpected disruptions can simultaneously impact work patterns while intensifying learning requirements. During periods of significant change or uncertainty, learners are more likely to maintain their educational momentum when supported by dedicated human coaches who can provide personalized guidance and encouragement.
Conversely, purely technology-driven approaches that leave learners to navigate programs independently often result in diminished engagement and reduced learning outcomes. The vital human connection between learner and coach serves as a crucial catalyst for progress and sustained motivation. As organizations increasingly focus on measuring and enhancing employee engagement, HR leaders must implement “an agile, long-term, and personalized L&D strategy,” as emphasized by Gartner.
Human coaches possess the unique ability to adapt their approach in real-time, helping learners discover meaningful connections between their learning journey and career aspirations. While artificial intelligence can certainly facilitate the creation of personalized learning pathways, it cannot replicate the profound human connection that inspires learners to discover deeper meaning and purpose in their professional development journey.
Creating meaningful engagement across all stages of the employee lifecycle has become increasingly critical for maintaining high retention rates and attracting top talent, as highlighted by Gallup. This comprehensive approach to employee development requires careful attention to individual needs and aspirations throughout their organizational journey.
While technology serves as an invaluable tool for learning delivery and administration, it should complement rather than replace the essential human elements that foster connection and motivation. One-on-one coaching provides superior results in building authentic relationships, gathering genuine feedback, and incorporating these insights into the learning process. This human-centric approach ensures that learning initiatives remain relevant, engaging, and aligned with both individual and organizational objectives.
A human-first platform is thoughtfully architected to provide a guided, intuitive learning experience that puts individual agency at its core. Learners are empowered with unprecedented autonomy to handpick their preferred coaches, navigate through customized learning pathways, conduct comprehensive self-assessments, and manage their coaching sessions according to their schedules. This level of empowerment creates a deeply personalized learning journey that significantly enhances engagement levels, ensuring your employees extract maximum value from your chosen platform investment.
The strategic integration of technology to facilitate learning, foster meaningful connections, and support goal achievement is paramount in today’s workplace. When leveraged effectively, technology serves as a powerful enabler that facilitates authentic one-to-one connections between coaches and learners, culminating in more profound learning experiences and comprehensive understanding of key concepts.
Technology that amplifies and augments human capabilities will invariably prove more impactful than standalone AI solutions. By prioritizing human connection throughout the employee learning journey, organizations create an environment where individuals feel genuinely supported, receiving the mentorship and guidance necessary to confidently progress along their career paths.
Successfully integrating learning initiatives, prioritizing employee experience, and establishing meaningful connections between performance management and inclusion represent critical success factors in employee development programs. These elements form the foundation of a comprehensive learning strategy that drives sustainable organizational growth.
A human-first platform enables HR leaders to achieve these objectives while simultaneously streamlining their technology stack and reducing system management overhead. The optimal solution empowers HR professionals to refocus their energy on their core mission—nurturing and developing talent within their organizations.
This people-centered approach necessitates a fundamental shift in how learning program success is evaluated and measured. A human-first platform equips HR teams with the capabilities needed to support continuous growth throughout the employee lifecycle, emphasizing the delivery of equitable, effective learning experiences across all organizational levels. This approach redirects attention to essential elements such as constructive feedback loops, meaningful reflection opportunities, organizational values alignment, competency development, and identifying key success factors for employee growth and advancement.
In our increasingly digital world, technology-enabled learning has become more prevalent than ever before. However, the true differentiator lies in adopting a human-first approach that prioritizes genuine connection and personalized development. Ready to explore the transformative impact of putting people at the center of your learning strategy? Find out more about our distinctive approach to creating a learning environment that truly centers human connection and development.
