So often our training audience attends training that isn't relevant or engaging, contains so much extra information they feel lost, or the included scenarios make no sense for them and their role.

Context is one of the most important things in creating effective learning. That’s why in this episode, I want us to explore learner personas. What are they? Why are they important? And how do we build them?

Key Points:

00:58 The value of context for creating effective learning experiences

03:54 What learner personas are and why they are important

05:20 How to create learner personas

What are Learner Personas?

A learner persona is a fictional representation of a specific category of learners in your audience.

It helps you understand:

Their work environment and constraints
The skills they need and their biggest challenges
Their personal motivations and goals

Why Learner Personas Matter

Learner personas help you make learning more relevant. When you know a learner’s daily challenges, you can design training that fits into their real work environment.

They also build empathy as you research your audience and more deeply understand your learners.

But ultimately, we want to use learner personas to drive better outcomes. When training reflects real-world scenarios, learners engage more and are better able to apply what they’ve learned.

How to Create a Learner Persona

First, identify your target group. Who are you designing training for? It might be frontline supervisors, new employees, executives, or another group of people.

Then, define what you need to know. Consider their work environment, challenges, and motivations.

Now, you’re ready to gather data. You can use focus groups, surveys, HR reports, exit interviews, or direct observations to gather the information you need.

Once you have the data, look for themes. Identify patterns in needs and behaviors to shape your persona.

Finally, once you have your persona, it’s important to actually use it. Tailor learning experiences, support systems, and accountability structures based on what you’ve learned.

Design Training with Intention

Learner personas are often thought of as a document, a piece of paper. But, it’s actually the process that makes the biggest difference. As you become more in tune with your learners’ needs, you can create more effective, engaging, and impactful learning experiences.

To learn more about learner personas, tune into episode 123 of the Learning for Good podcast.

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