Building Workforce Development Platforms Where Higher Ed Meets Industry

Key Considerations for Building Workforce Development Platforms

These are the considerations to be kept in mind to make sure it’s an experience that can help them thrive and grow in the world of now.

1. Unveiling the “Pilot Goldmine”

When introducing a new workforce development or learning platform, many institutions start with a pilot program to test feasibility. While pilots are a low-risk way to assess effectiveness, they can become a
long-term trap if they lack clear objectives and exit strategies. To avoid getting your tail stuck in the trap, you can try keeping the following tips in mind:

• Resist the temptation to test every feature at once
• Set a fixed timeline for evaluating the results
• Expand successful initiatives or pivot based on lessons learned

2. Maintaining Engagement Beyond Launch

While pursuing a degree, life is already packed with classes and assignments. If a learning platform doesn’t keep reminding you why it’s useful, it’s easy to forget about it after signing up.

• Friendly Reminders Help: Sending a quick email or notification when a learner hasn’t logged in for a while can be the push they need to stay on track.
• Success Stories Make It Real: Instead of generic “Keep Learning!” messages, hearing how another learner landed an internship or aced an interview using the platform makes it more exciting.
• Connect it to Goals: If someone is focused on landing a summer job or building a resume, learning campaigns that match those goals, like “Top Skills for Summer Internships,” can help them stay motivated.

A little encouragement makes a big difference. When learning feels useful and relevant, it’s easier to stick with it.

3. Boosting Engagement Through Mentorship

To further drive engagement, institutions can leverage faculty and peer mentorship. When learners feel supported by instructors and peers, they are more likely to complete their courses. How can a platform provide that?

• Student Progress Dashboards: Provide faculty and advisors with real-time dashboards to monitor student progress. This enables timely support and intervention for those who may be struggling, helping to keep them on track.
• Achievement Leaderboards: Build a sense of accomplishment by providing recognition via achievement leaderboards. Public acknowledgment encourages engagement and improves course completion rates.

4. Committed Community Building

If your platform includes social features like discussion boards, user posts, or peer feedback, you need someone to keep it active. Without moderation and engagement, forums can quickly become empty or filled with spam. A thriving community makes learning more interactive and valuable.

• Assign Community Leaders: Pick dedicated staff or “learning ambassadors” to spark discussions, answer questions, and keep conversations going. For example, they can post weekly prompts or highlight useful insights.
• Recognize Quality Contributions: Badges, shoutouts, or small incentives can encourage more participation.

5. The Content Conundrum: Curate vs. Create

One big decision is whether to curate existing content or create new material from scratch. Both approaches have pros and cons, and the right choice depends on factors like budget, time, and learning goals.

Curating means gathering high-quality courses from existing providers like Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, or industry experts. This is a faster, more cost-effective option, as it leverages trusted content that’s already been created and tested.

On the other hand, creating original content ensures custom-built courses. This usually incorporates real-world examples, case studies, and highly relevant employer insights. The downside? Developing high-quality content takes time, expertise, and a commitment to keep it updated.

So, what’s the best approach? Most successful workforce development platforms use a mix of both approaches. They curate industry-recognized courses for foundational skills. Then, they supplement them with custom content that aligns with local workforce needs. For example, a cybersecurity training program could curate industry courses from Cisco or Google while creating custom content on interactive simulations based on actual security breaches.

6. Having the Right Team

When you’re building an online learning platform, you have to ensure everything fits into your existing structure and works for everyone involved. To make it successful, you need to get faculty, administrators, employers, and edtech partners on the same page from the start.

For administrators, the focus is on student success rates, job placements, and how these platforms support institutional goals. If you can show that industry certifications (like AWS, Google Data Analytics, or Microsoft Azure) improve employability, they’ll be much more likely to buy in.

Your edtech providers aren’t just vendors; they should be partners in making this work. Involve them early to negotiate better licensing agreements and customize learning experiences.

7. Making Data Work for You

Online learning platforms collect tons of data in the form of logins, course completions, and time spent on lessons. But not all data is useful. Just because someone finishes a course doesn’t mean they’re using what they learned. The goal isn’t just course completion, it’s real skill growth. The real question is: Is it making a difference?

Track what matters, adjust as needed, and make learning more effective for everyone.

• Skill Application Tests: Give learners real-world tasks to see if they can apply what they learned. For example, coding courses can include projects where learners build an actual app.
• Checking Progress: Test skills at the start and end of a course. Are scores improving? If not, the content might need tweaking.
• Feedback from Learners or Professors: If learners are using these skills at internships or in class, are their mentors noticing a difference? If learners are facing issues in managing a course, is it a technical glitch or an issue with the teaching method?

An Opportunity To Seize

Workforce development platforms help learners get job-ready faster. However, balancing coursework, internships, and part-time jobs can be overwhelming, making it difficult to engage in additional skill-building programs.

Upskilling feels like an opportunity when it actually moves the needle on someone’s career. If learners see a clear path to exciting career roles, promotion opportunities, pay raises, or exciting avenues, they’ll be way more motivated to learn. The way learning is delivered matters too. Bite-sized, interactive formats, like microlearning, gamification, start feeling like a power-up in a video game, like being one step closer to leveling up.

Higher education institutions could equip learners with job-ready skills, creating a ripple effect that boosts employability, career growth, and long-term success in an evolving job market. As platforms bridge the gap between knowledge and real job opportunities, they create a win-win situation. Learners feel empowered, knowing their time and effort lead to something tangible. Employers benefit from a skilled workforce that’s
job-ready from day one.