Developing a Reskilled Workforce for the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Beyond​

The Challenge

An AI-enabled, highly interactive platform that generates virtual learning environments and provides personalized coaching to reduce employee up-skill training times and costs while accelerating team performance.

IMERSHEN arose from what has been dubbed the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The new century propelled us firmly into this Fourth Revolution as we build on the Third Industrial Revolution’s digital evolution. In the Fourth Industrial Revolution we have a fusion of technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, robotics, and the Internet of Things (IoT). The advent of these highly immersive and interactive technologies has fundamentally changed the way we live, work, and relate to each other.

Some of the most dramatic changes brought about by the Fourth Revolution are seen in the workplace, requiring extensive reskilling of employees. While the new skills being acquired by the workforce have long-term benefits, the learning process itself can be stressful, difficult, expensive, and time consuming.

The responsibility of reskilling employees falls squarely on the shoulders of business. Business must inspire change and enable learning and development programs so employees are willing and able to learn new skills, no matter their role or experience level. There may be resistance as employers and employees alike adapt to new paths to learning and development.

Fully capitalizing on the promise of advanced technology carries the inherent risk of dehumanizing and robotizing our workforce. Empowering people by giving them the tools and skills they need to make successful transitions keeps the “human” in “human resources.” Enhanced workforce learning benefits society as a whole through better performing, higher achieving employees and companies and also as people apply the skills learned in the workplace to the world around them.

Early in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, IMERSHEN identified the need to harness modern technologies for workforce learning, training, and development. By utilizing a unique blend of today’s most interactive and immersive technologies, the IMERSHEN Solution is an effective and efficient tool for creating High Performing Teams at all levels of an organization.

The IMERSHEN Solution – Creating High Performing Teams

Successful companies are more than a random collection of individuals. They are intentionally built High Performing Teams similar to championship sports teams, a racing pit crew, and military groups like the Navy Seals. When training – such as reskilling employees – is effective, groups of individuals can evolve more quickly into High Performing Teams resulting in stronger, better operating, high producing companies.

The IMERSHEN Solution is tailored to the stated needs, goals, and training environment for each client and to the individual learning needs of each employee.  This is accomplished through an innovative blend of today’s highly interactive technologies that creates tools, a learning environment, and a personalized coaching experience that allows staff to learn when, where, and how is best for them.

Employee training needs are individual and the training itself can be personalized to take those needs into account. One employee may need less time or have fewer questions than another employee. One may learn better visually while another learns better orally. One may need more hands-on time than another or feel more comfortable in a group setting vs. learning on their own.  One may need multiple small bites of information while another can take in a lot of information at once. One employee may need to role-play scenarios while another needs to visualize how to accomplish their assignments and tasks.

Learning differences are handled seamlessly through the IMERSHEN Solution. By personalizing the learning experience to the needs of the individual and to their own learning style, training will be more effective while still complete and thorough. 

IMERSHEN delivers a super-charged training experience by blending four key technologies:

• Chatbot: Imagine a conversation with a chatbot (similar to Alexa or Siri) via text or voice that provides a response to an employee’s question at any hour of the day or night. The Chatbot can answer the specific question asked on-demand and also instantly deliver a micro-learning unit about the subject of the question to improve the employee’s depth of understanding and capabilities.
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) Personalization: Much as Netflix or TikTok learns a user’s preferences and needs, IMERSHEN Solution’s AI Personalization module learns the training content needed by the individual. Based on their role in the company, learning style, topics of interest, and training and industry practices, the employee will be provided with high-quality, concise training content that is targeted specifically to them. As the employee learns, content is expanded automatically to enhance their knowledge.
• Augmented Reality (AR): Virtual and / or Augmented Reality has been used to simulate real-world scenarios for some time. For instance, a pilot first learns to fly by using a flight simulator. Today’s technology delivers AR in small, mobile, easily accessible units such as goggles and glasses. AR is highly effective in training through imagery and instruction that can be tailored to company and individual needs. Company or department specific tasks can be turned into hands-on learning modules such as how to stock shelves or manage customer service.
• Serious Games: Gaming technology isn’t just for gaming anymore. It can be very effective when it is designed for learning and practicing skills since many people in today’s workforce are comfortable and familiar with using gaming technology. This play-based experience can be applied to a variety of learning points including project planning, communications, testing, and collaborating, as well as to specific skills and jobs. By designing training as “gaming,” employees are likely to see training as fun and as something they want to do rather than have to do.