Blog Post

Your Guide to Celebrating Online Learning Week

Jeff Miller

Chief Learning Officer and Vice President of Organizational Effectiveness, Cornerstone OnDemand

This piece is part of our celebration of #OnlineLearningWeek, happening from September 10-14. Have a skill you want to sharpen? Start learning through Cornerstone's free online learning portal here.

The skills gap is growing. According research from Deloitte, 90 percent of CEOs expect digital technology to disrupt their industry, and 70 percent don't think their company has the skills necessary to adapt to prepare for the workforce of the future.

The good news is there's a simple way to start closing the skills gap and filling your organization with the talent you need now and will need in the future: Establish a culture of continuous learning. Businesses with strong learning cultures are 52 percent more productive and 92 percent more likely to innovate.

To kick-start your culture of continuous learning and celebrate Online Learning Week, our team at Cornerstone is giving everyone access to online learning for free from September 10-14. Check out the 18 learning playlists below—which cover everything from how to prepare for digital transformation to how to hone your leadership skills—to get started on your learning journey today.

1) Getting Started as a First-time Manager

Watch if you...

Want to become a better leader, or are moving into a management role for the first time.

Why We Love it: Being a new manager can be a daunting task. For the first time, you are responsible for other people's happiness and career path at your company. This playlist is designed to help you learn how to motivate and coach employees, listen actively and lead with passion so you can get started on the right foot.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Going from Peer to Manager | Grovo Lesson, 3 minutes
  • Q&A: Essentials for New Managers | BizLibrary Lesson, 12 minutes
  • Use Delegation to Improve Your Team's Productivity | Grovo Lesson, 3 minutes

2) How to Remain Agile During Digital Transformation

Watch if you...

Want to maintain a learning mindset.

Why We Love it: The rapid pace of change in today's workplace requires us to be constantly learning. This playlist will help you become more agile, flexible and maintain a growth mindset so you can stay on top of your game.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Success, Failure and the Drive to Keep Creating: Elizabeth Gilbert | TED Talk, 8 minutes
  • Employee Awareness: Open to Change | BizLibrary Lesson, 35 minutes
  • Brainstorm Multiple Solutions to Problems | Grovo Lesson, 3 minutes

3) Boost Your Creativity to Drive Innovation

Watch if you...

Are looking for a break from your day-to-day routine and want to infuse creativity into your life.

Why We Love it: Business leaders today are chasing productivity. Every hiring decision, software purchase and company reorganization is an effort to squeeze out a little bit more. This playlist will help you tap into your creative mind and prepare you to think bigger, take risks and innovate.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Use Design Thinking to Better Understand Problems | Grovo lesson, 6 minutes
  • Where does Creativity Hide?: Amy Tan | TED Talk, 23 minutes
  • How to Manage for Collective Creativity: Linda Hill | TED Talk, 18 minutes

4) Basic Business Acumen Every Professional Should Know

Watch if you...

Are looking to strengthen your business foundation.

Why We Love it: Whether you are just entering the business world or are a seasoned executive, a successful career is built on a strong foundation. This playlist serves as an intro (or refresher) course for those who want to strengthen their core business skills in sales, finance and data analysis.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Demonstrating Business Acumen | Skillsoft course, 15 minutes
  • How to Build a Business that Lasts 100 Years: Martin Reeves | TED Talk, 15 minutes
  • Understanding Budgeting and Finance | CyberU course, 4 minutes

5) Clear Your To-Do List with Productivity Tips

Watch if you...

Want to stop procrastinating and start doing.

Why We Love it: Whether you're bored, stressed or just dreading the task at hand, we've all had days where procrastination takes hold. Sometimes, the secret to being productive simply lies in creating a daily to-do list that is both reasonable and achievable. This playlist is designed to help you focus your to-do list with productivity best practices and tips.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Organize Your Inbox in 60 seconds | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Leading Productive Meetings | CyberU course, 31 minutes
  • How Too Many Rules at Work Keep You from Getting Things Done: Yves Morieux | TED Talk, 17 minutes

6) Top Data Analysis Skills You Should Know

Watch if you...

Want to master data based decision making.

Why We Love it: Data drives decision making in nearly every industry. However, many people write off their ability to work with numbers early on in their career. The truth is, it just takes a little practice and patience before you can make meaning out of numbers. This playlist will introduce you to top data analysis tools and practices to help you prove your value and impact using data.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Philip Evans: How Data Will Transform Business | TED Talk, 14 minutes
  • Common Types of Visualizations Used in Presentations | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Big Data and the Data Analysis Process | Skillsoft course, 26 minutes

7) Leaning into Diversity and Inclusion in the Global Workplace

Watch if you...Watch if you...Want to learn more about how to practice diversity and inclusion at your company.

Why We Love it: Diversity means having a culture that values and celebrates uniqueness, but how we get there as individuals and as a broader organization can be elusive. This playlist gives some actionable tips to create a diverse workplace.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • The Value of the Multigenerational Workforce | CyberU course, 9 minutes
  • Set an Inclusive Tone | Grovo lesson, 8 minutes
  • General Martin Dempsey: Communicating across different cultures | PowerForward lesson, 2 minutes

8) Finding Purpose & Passion In Your Career

Watch if you...

Are looking to feel more invested in your job or your career as a whole.

Why We Love it: Whether you are on top of the career ladder or hitting a slump—it's natural to want to feel a greater purpose in your career outside of your paycheck. With this playlist, learn how to take control of your own career and identify your passions to feel more engaged at work.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • The Surprising Science of Happiness: Dan Gilbert | TED Talk, 22 minutes
  • The Energy Bus: Desire, Vision and Focus | BizLibrary lesson, 3 minutes
  • Learning How to Thrive: Redefining Success | BigThink lesson, 3 minutes

9) Best Practices and Tips from Your L&D Peers

Watch if you...

Are an HR or learning and development professional wanting tips from your peers.

Why We Love it: It's time for learning and development departments to operate as truly data-driven teams, driven by strategic initiatives. This playlist is full of tips and tricks to prove the business impact of your learning and development efforts, and get employees engaged in learning everyday.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Enable Everyday Learning | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Learning Retention Strategies | BizLibrary lesson, 27 minutes
  • Positive Atmosphere: Establishing an Engaged Workforce | Skillsoft course, 23 minutes

10) The New Sales 101

Watch if you...

Need to brush up on modern day sales skills.

Why We Love it: Old school sales techniques might close the deal, but mastering new soft skills is what will make you stand out. This playlist will set you up to learn skills spanning digital tools, social selling and emotional intelligence, all of which are becoming increasingly important in the sales world today.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Negotiation Styles | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • How to Present Data Visually | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Building GREAT Sales Relationships | ej4 course, 7 minutes

11) Become an Authentic Leader in the Digital World

Watch if you...

Have aspirations of becoming a leader, but aren't sure how to get there.

Why We Love it: Becoming an authentic leader is not about how many people you lead—it's about clear communication and trust between you and your team. With this playlist, strengthen your leadership skills and learn how to establish purpose, define values and find passion to help your team reach their personal and professional goals.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • 5 Ways to Lead in an Era of Constant Change | TED Talk, 14 minutes
  • Encourage Authenticity as a Manager | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Cultivate Self-Knowledge: How to Find Your True North | BigThink lesson, 6 minutes

12) Use Mindfulness to Improve Happiness at Work

Watch if you...

Need to bring some zen into your workday.

Why We Love it: Mindfulness practice has been linked to activating parts of the brain correlated with happiness, joy and enhanced self awareness. But how can engaging mindfulness at work make us happier? This playlist offers helpful tips and tricks to begin practicing mindfulness in your personal and professional life.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • All it Takes is 10 Mindful Minutes: Andy Puddicombe | TED Talk, 10 minutes
  • The Science of Sleep Hygiene | ej4 lesson, 6 minutes
  • Happiness at Work—Stress Less | CyberU course, 16 minutes

13) Get Ahead at Work With These Top Soft-Skills

Watch if you...

Have ever been told you're not a "people person."

Why We Love it: Emotional intelligence, teamwork, communication and problem-solving aren't skills typically taught during employee onboarding. But these soft-skills are becoming increasingly critical in the business world. The good news is they can be learned.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • What Does It Mean to Take Ownership? | Grovo lesson, 4 minutes
  • Chad Troutwine: How to Use Empathetic Awareness to Build Great Culture at a Growing Company | PowerForward course, 2 minutes
  • A Quick Guide to Emotional Intelligence | CyberU course, 12 minutes

Institute for the Future Series

This year, Cornerstone has partnered with the Institute for the Future to help organizations map and prepare for the future skills that will be required to thrive in our rapidly evolving world of work. Here are five playlists based on the most recent Future Skills report to help you get fit for what's next.

1) Make Yourself Known With the Art & Science of Reputation Management

Institute for the Future

Watch if you...

Want to build or strengthen your personal brand.

Why We Love it: Everyone is visible in our hyperconnected world, but how do you stand out? This playlist will teach you why and how to build your reputation so that you can get value from your personal data, earn credit for your online learning and shine no matter where you are in the world.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Use Feedback to Grow | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Communication Tools for the Global Landscape | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Manage a Multicultural Team | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes

2) Make Sense of Loopy Complex Systems

Institute for the Future

Watch if you...

Want to embrace change instead of run away from it.

Why We Love it: Everything is connected these days. But do you know how to utilize those connections to create powerful feedback loops and uncover stories buried in data? This playlist will help you make sense of all of the complex systems filling the workplace today.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Scooter Braun: Deciding How to Proceed When Selling a New Concept that Might Go Against the Status Quo | PowerForward lesson, 3 minutes
  • Build an Innovation Machine | Grovo lesson, 6 minutes
  • Theory of Change: Align Your Strategies to Achieve Your Results | CyberU course, 60 minutes

3) Keep It Going By Building Resilience in Extreme Environments

Institute for the Future

Watch if you...

Want to become an extreme learner.

Why We Love it: We are living in times of intense political and social pressures. This playlist will show you how to tap your network to get support, build your emotional IQ and establish ethical clarity when facing challenges.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Ramsey Musallam: 3 Rules to Spark Learning | TED Talk, 7 minutes
  • Are You Learning Every Day? | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Creating Clarity | BizLibrary course, 3 minutes

4) Build Your Tribe in the Many Worlds of Peer Production

Institute for the Future

Watch if you...

Want to expand your network.

Why We Love it: Our future is always shape shifting. We can't count on our jobs staying the same, but we can count on our network consistently being there to support us. This playlist will help you strengthen key skills needed to build your network as well as teach the basics of design thinking and relationships building.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • The revolutionary power of diverse thought: Elif Shafak| TED Talk, 22 minutes
  • The Ins and Outs of a Design Thinking Workshop | Grovo lesson, 6 minutes
  • Build Work Relationships Remotely | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes

5) Befriend the Machines to Master Human-Machine Collaboration

Institute for the Future

Watch if you...

Anticipate technology disrupting your job in the future. (Hint: it most likely will!)

Why We Love It: Machines have a language of their own, so if you want to work with them, you need to learn it. This isn't a lesson in computer languages—it's a set of skills anyone can use to adapt to the various ways the machines will enter our working lives. This playlist is designed to help strengthen your digital fluency, understand AI and Big Data and tap into machine intelligence to accomplish things you never could before.

Our favorite courses in this playlist:

  • Nick Bostrom: What Happens When Our Computers Get Smarter Than We Are? | TED Talk, 3 minutes
  • How to Present Data Visually | Grovo lesson, 3 minutes
  • Building GREAT Sales Relationships | ej4 course, 7 minutes

Start your learning journey today with Cornerstone's free online learning portal and access all 18 playlists here.

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