Learning in the Flow of Work [Key Strategies & Examples]

When you're driving and come across an unexpected turn, Google Maps gives you real-time guidance so you can navigate without pulling over or reading a manual.

That’s exactly what "learning in the flow of work" delivers: actionable knowledge right when the end-user needs it.

In training circles, it’s the new buzz phrase & since you’re spending your time reading this blog, we bet you’re looking for a smarter way to make learning more seamless.

Let’s not waste another minute hyping the term and decode what it really means.

“Flow”? If you're wondering why we even use that word, scroll to the bottom where we've explained who coined it and why it matters.

Here’s what we’ll cover in this blog:

What Is Learning in the Flow of Work?
When Was the Term Coined?
Conventional Training vs. Learning in the Flow of Work
Five Strategies To Enable Learning in the Flow of Work
Challenges of Learning While Working
Examples of Learning in The Flow of Work
How DAPs Enable In-Flow Software Training
FAQs
Quick Trivia: The Man Who Discovered Flow

What Is Learning in the Flow of Work?

Learning in the flow of work refers to the continuous, on-the-job learning that naturally occurs as employees perform their daily tasks.

While this has been happening for years, HR and L&D departments are just beginning to recognize its importance and how to harness it better.

In simple terms, if your employees were juggling a dozen tasks at work, and suddenly, they’re stuck and have no idea how to proceed. Now, would you rather let them:

Dig through a 20-page training manual, or
Provide a quick, clear tip right where they’re stuck

Exactly! Learning in the flow of work is about taking the second option. Enable your employees to learn in the flow of work by providing support at the moment of need.

When Was the Term Coined?

The term "learning in the flow of work" was introduced in 2018 by Josh Bersin, a prominent thought leader and industry analyst specializing in HR, talent management, and learning.

Why Did Bersin Coin This Term?

Bersin coined this term to reflect a much-needed evolution in workplace learning. He mentioned that traditional training methods weren’t cutting it anymore in times of fast-paced, demanding nature of modern work environments.

His deductive reasons were:

Time Crunch: Employees barely have time for formal learning. A study found that the average employee could dedicate only 24 minutes per week to formal training.
Motivation Gap: Many employees lack the interest or drive to engage with lengthy courses or programs that feel disconnected from their immediate needs.

To address this, Bersin proposed a solution that integrates learning seamlessly into everyday workflows, making it part of the job instead of an extra chore.

Bersin’s research showed tangible benefits. He reported employees who experience learning in the flow of work are likely to go through:

47% less stress
39% higher productivity
23% greater readiness to take on additional responsibilities
21% higher happiness levels

What Makes This Approach Work?

The concept thrives because it delivers bite-sized, actionable learning right where employees are—within the tools and platforms they use daily, like Slack, Teams, or their CRM software. This:

Improves Engagement: Employees are more likely to use learning resources that feel natural and relevant to their tasks.
Boosts Retention: Learning something while doing it makes it stick better.
Drives Performance: Real-time problem-solving empowers employees to work smarter and faster.

Conventional Training Methods Vs Learning in the Flow of Work

Here’s a side-by-side comparison to give you a clearer view:

Traditional training gives your employees knowledge, but often with a delay before they apply it. In that gap, much of it fades. Feedback is slow, and the cost? High in time, money, and effort.

Learning in the flow of work flips the script:

You apply knowledge instantly, reinforcing it right away.
Feedback is fast, so you can adjust in real time.
It’s cost-effective, using tools you already have.

Bottomline: Both of them can complement each other. Use traditional training to deepen the theoretical understanding of a topic and apply flow-based learning to make it stick.

Now, let’s explore key strategies that L&D and HR leaders can use to seamlessly integrate learning in the flow of work into their training programs.

Five Strategies For Learning in the Flow of Work

In a Gyde Bites episode titled "How Can We Create a Culture of 'Learning in the Flow of Work'?" (which we highly recommend you listen to), Cammy Wood, Global Director of Learning and Engagement at GoDaddy, shared some practical, experience-backed strategies.

Building on her insights, we’ve outlined five key strategies that L&D and HR professionals can use to start enabling learning in the flow of work more efficiently:

1/ Level up Engagement In Learning

Making training more motivating, fun, and sticky

To really support learning in the flow of work, training content needs to be something end users can act on immediately—while they’re still mid-task.

That’s where an approach like gamification can help. It taps into your employees’ natural drive for competition and achievement. This fits naturally into the flow of work because it:

Catches attention at the right time. A quick challenge or quiz during a task feels doable and even fun, compared to a long training module.
Builds a feedback loop. Progress bars, points, and instant rewards make learners feel accomplished and more likely to keep engaging, without stepping away from their actual work.

Tools like Trivia Maker make it easy to create these game-like experiences that actually fit into real work scenarios, making learning stick right when and where it’s needed most.

2/ Make Learning More Collaborative

Enabling peer-to-peer learning, discussions, community

Learning in the flow of work isn’t just about using a tool or following a quick walkthrough. It also involves getting the right help from the right person at the right moment, without stepping away from the task at hand. That’s where collaboration plays a big role.

When employees ask a teammate for advice, share tips in a Slack channel, or solve a problem together over a quick Zoom call, they are learning as they work. This kind of peer-to-peer learning is informal, contextual, and continuous. It naturally fits into daily workflows and makes learning feel less like an event and more like a habit.

According to Degreed, employees are 147 percent more likely to connect with peers in companies that have healthy learning cultures. That’s a strong reason to build a culture where people are encouraged to apply their skills, share experiences, and grow together.

Platforms like Slack, Teams, and Zoom support this kind of collaboration really well. They help create learning communities where employees take ownership of their development and make learning an everyday part of work.

3/ Diversify Learning Formats

Offering multiple ways to consume and interact with content

Learning in the flow of work is not about using a single method. To truly support employees as they go about their day-to-day tasks, you need to offer learning in formats that fit their specific context.

This will look different depending on the team or industry.

In manufacturing, it might mean using AR or VR simulations to help employees safely operate machinery.
In marketing, it could be short video courses delivered through an LMS to upskill on CRM analytics or campaign tools.
In customer success operations, it can be in-app help article within the POS system they are handling the customer queries.

The idea is simple. Learning should feel natural, timely, and easy to access.

To make this possible, you need the right set of tools. Some useful ones include:

Digital Adoption Platform (DAP): Offers step-by-step walkthroughs, tooltips, and prompts as users interact with applications. Unlike LMS or KBs, a DAP embeds help directly into the software your employees are using whether it's Salesforce, SAP, or any internal system.
Learning Management System (LMS): Hosts structured courses, quizzes, and training paths. Often used for compliance training & certifications. While LMSs typically exist outside the daily workflow, modern LMS can support learning in the flow of work through integrations & mobile access.
Knowledge Base (KB): Offers quick answers and self-service resources (articles, FAQs, product documentation, and troubleshooting steps) during work. Though accessed externally via search or portals, it still supports in-flow learning by delivering just-in-time information when employees need it most.

4/ Make Learning More Sustainable

Using data to make learning iterative and continuously relevant

To achieve sustainability in learning, it's essential to create a system that evolves over time. In other words, end-users should learn in the flow of work within a dynamic environment where training materials can be quickly updated and aligned with changing business needs and technological advancements.

That’s why you can leverage every tool used to deliver training, whether it’s a Learning Management System (LMS), a digital adoption platform, or any other training software that generates valuable data on how learners engage with the content.

These data points tell a story of your learner experience and show employee engagement patterns such as:

when they access training,
how long they engage with specific modules,
which types of content they prefer

Ultimately, by adopting this iterative approach, L&D teams make sure that the learning experience is constantly evolving in response to real-world data to keep employees engaged, informed, and skilled.

5/ Speed Up the Creation of Learning

Using Gen AI to create training faster and on demand

Training content needs to be created and delivered with speed, so employees can act on it right when they need it. With Gen AI and LLMs everywhere, L&D/HR professionals are seeing a transformation in how they design & deliver learning content.

In just two years, the Gen AI landscape has advanced exponentially.

It now integrates into your organization’s communication channels and is able to store specific acronyms, troubleshoot steps, and even help with customer support systems. This capability allows you to tailor training content to reflect your organization's unique style, tone, and processes.

For remote teams, GenAI can generate step-by-step, context-specific instructions in an instant. This enables L&D teams to create training materials that could be seamlessly embedded into their daily tasks, keeping them in the flow of work.

*Quick Advice*

When considering training software, prioritize those with AI-powered functionalities that can make software use more intuitive.
A great example is Microsoft’s Co-Pilot AI, which can function as a personal assistant for developers, helping them write or correct codes and even give documentation insights right within their development environment.
DAPs like Gyde have integrated AI to help training creators to build in-app walkthrough content in minutes. With Gen AI, step titles and descriptions of walkthroughs are automatically generated based on the user's screen context.

Challenges of Learning While Working

Integrating learning into daily work sounds seamless on paper.

But in practice, employees might face a set of common challenges.

We’ve outlined following five you’ll want to watch for:

Challenge 1: Frequent Interruptions

The “Ping Pong” Problem

Learning while working can be disrupted by constant notifications from emails, messaging apps, or meetings. These interruptions break concentration and reduce the effectiveness of learning.

To address this, organizations can adopt adaptive learning platforms that save progress and allow employees to resume exactly where they left off, minimizing the impact of context-switching.

Challenge 2: Cognitive Overload from Too Many Tools

The “Tab Overload” Syndrome

Employees often juggle multiple tools (training systems, work platforms, communication channels) all in separate browser tabs. This fragmentation leads to cognitive overload and loss of focus.

Embedding training directly within commonly used work applications with DAP tools can simplify the learning process and reduce the mental load associated with switching between tools.

Challenge 3: Balancing Learning with Workload

The “I’m on a Deadline” Dilemma

Employees may struggle to prioritize learning when faced with tight deadlines and immediate work demands. In such cases, learning is often postponed or deprioritized.

Use analytics to spot low-intensity work periods (e.g., post-project wrap-ups) and nudge employees to engage then. Managers can also assign optional “learning sprints” during quieter weeks so training doesn’t compete with urgent deliverables.

Challenge 4: Time Scarcity

The “When Do I Learn?” Question

With back-to-back meetings and overflowing inboxes, employees find it difficult to dedicate time to structured learning activities during the workday.

Organizations can promote a culture that encourages microlearning moments throughout the day and empower managers to lead by example by scheduling and protecting small windows for learning.

Challenge 5: Low Engagement with Learning

The “Motivation Mirage”

Without clear incentives or relevance, employees may view learning as a checkbox activity rather than a meaningful opportunity for growth. This leads to low participation and retention rates.

Include intrinsic motivators (such as visible progress tracking, peer recognition, or personalized learning paths) can help employees feel more connected to and invested in their development.

You might be curious about how others have embraced learning in the flow of work in their training strategies. Let us show you how it’s been done successfully.

Examples of Learning In The Flow of Work

1/ Walmart

Traditional, long-form training was time-consuming and ineffective for fast-paced retail operations at Walmart. Associates often needed task-specific knowledge at the moment, but existing training lacked contextual, on-demand support.

As a solution, they used bite-sized nanolearning modules using the tools and methods such as Me@Walmart app, Augmented Reality (AR) / Virtual Reality (VR).

How it worked:

Associates accessed 1–2-minute training videos focused on specific tasks (e.g., cutting fabric, mixing paint, using VizPick).
Associates used company-issued smartphones to access the Me@Walmart app.
Over 1,000 nanolearning sessions available, searchable by department and task.

The Impact:

17 million nanolearning modules completed in the U.S. alone.
Associates learn faster, on the job, with higher relevance and less downtime.
Employees who earned badges were more likely to stay with the company.

2/ Delta Airlines

Traditional deicing (process of removing ice, snow, or frost from a surface) training was costly, slow, and logistically complex for Delta Airlines. Technicians had to travel to specific locations during winter for live proficiency checks. Only 3–4 technicians could be certified per day, leading to delays and scalability issues.

As a solution, Delta improved technician onboarding by implementing immersive VR training program. This simulation-based training enabled airplane technicians to practice realistic deicing procedures on various aircraft models without needing live conditions or travel.

How It Worked:

VR modules were integrated into Delta’s LMS, with analytics tracking usage, pass rates, spray time, and more.
Technicians accessed a fully immersive VR experience simulating Delta’s SOPs for deicing.
The experience included knowledge quizzes, repeatable practice scenarios, and realistic aircraft models.

The Impact

Boosted knowledge retention and confidence with repeatable, on-demand training.
Increased deicing proficiency checks from 3 per day to over 150, a 5,000% improvement.
Saved millions in training costs by eliminating travel and reducing fluid usage.

3/ Bajaj Finance

Bajaj Finance’s field agents struggled with using Salesforce CRM due to its complexity.

As a solution, they used Gyde’s DAP that brought training directly into Salesforce app, enabling learning in the flow of work.

How it Worked:

As users interact with the software, they were guided with audio-visual walkthroughs & help instructions that appear right in the app interface.
All walkthroughs and help articles could be auto-translated by the users in their preferred language.
Field agents could access Gyde help content within their Salesforce mobile app, helping them access the necessary information wherever they are.

With Gyde, Bajaj agents can instantly translate help resources into the language of their choice.

The Impact:

Faster onboarding despite high turnover
Improved data accuracy and productivity

How DAPs Enable In-Flow Software Training

As mentioned above, Digital Adoption Platforms (DAPs) offer in-app guidance, helping employees learn without stepping away from their work. Let’s take one of the top DAP example to understand this better.

Gyde is an AI-powered DAP that helps employees learn while they work across browsers and cloud-based apps like CRMs, HRMS, or even custom-built tools.

They simply click the Gyde help icon at the bottom of their screen.

From there, they can access:

Audio-visual walkthroughs: Step-by-step visual cues appear directly on screen, guiding users through a task whenever they’re stuck.

Contextual help articles: Text-based instructions serve as an in-app knowledge base, reducing basic IT support queries & only escalating advanced issues.
Multilingual support: All help content can be translated into an employee’s preferred language, making it ideal for global teams.

Gyde also includes in-app assessments that encourage employees to apply what they learn immediately, improving retention and engagement.

Creating these resources is just as easy.

Gyde’s no-code walkthrough creator makes it easy to build step-by-step guides by simply clicking through a process. You can record an entire workflow or capture a single step, all without writing any code. It automatically takes screenshots, highlights actions, and uses Gen AI to turn them into helpful instructions in minutes.

With just one click, you can also convert guides into different formats like videos or translate into different languages.

Plus, it has an analytics dashboard that tracks usage and highlights areas where employees struggle. This gives L&D teams the insights they need to offer timely support and continuously optimize workflows.

By embedding learning in the flow of work, DAPs like Gyde eliminate context-switching, boosts productivity and gets your organization quick software ROI.

FAQs

What is knowledge in the flow of work?

Knowledge in the flow of work is the delivery of relevant, bite-sized information exactly when it's needed, integrated directly into the tasks employees are already doing.
It’s when alongside formal training sessions, you provide insights, guides, or tools within the workflow, allowing employees to learn as they work without breaking their focus.
It helps them solve problems and improve skills in real-time, enhancing productivity and learning simultaneously.

What are the difficulties of flow of work?

The difficulties of learning in the flow of work lie in balancing productivity with learning.
Employees may struggle to focus if learning disrupts critical tasks.
Without proper tools, finding relevant information quickly can become a challenge.
Organizations also face the risk of inconsistent knowledge delivery and inadequate tracking of learning progress.
Finally, making sure accessibility and engagement in real time can strain existing workflows.

What’s the Difference Between Learning in the Flow of Work vs. Learning in the Workflow?

Learning in the Flow of Work delivers just-in-time support during daily tasks, such as a sales rep receiving instant guidance while handling a customer issue.
Learning in the Workflow is embedded training within tools, like interactive CRM tutorials during onboarding.
For L&D teams, the first enhances immediate performance, while the second builds long-term capability.

Quick Trivia: The Man Who Discovered Flow

(It was coined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi — yeah, we know, it’s a mouthful!)

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi introduced this concept to explain those moments when someone's "in the zone." He called it 'flow'.

A flow is a mental state where a person is fully immersed in an activity. They’re focused, productive, and often enjoying the task at hand.

He outlined four key characteristics that define a flow state:

Concentration: Learners are so focused that distractions don’t stand a chance. Learning on the job, in the flow, means tackling real problems with laser-sharp attention.
Clarity: Learners know exactly what’s next and how they're doing. In the flow of work, this comes from real-time feedback and in-context guidance.
Challenge-Skill Balance: Tasks are neither too easy nor too overwhelming. This balance keeps learners engaged and encourages steady growth without stress.
Intrinsic Motivation: When learners actually enjoy what they’re doing and see results, they’re in a true state of flow.

Why Does This Matter for Your Organization?

Learning in the flow of work mirrors Csikszentmihalyi’s theory. It brings these flow elements into employees' daily routines. When learning is built into the tools and systems they already use, employees don’t feel pulled away from their tasks.