Our employees don’t want to learn

Every time I hear someone say “our employees don’t want to learn,” my heart sinks.

Because the truth is: your employees ARE learning. Just not with you.

They watch documentaries on Netflix in the evening. They use Duolingo on the bus. They listen to podcasts on the way to work. They watch tutorial videos on YouTube. They chat with ChatGPT.

When you say “our employees don’t want to learn,” what you really mean is: “employees don’t want OUR learning.”

And that’s not an engagement problem. It’s a training process management problem.

The Baltic’s HR paradox

We’ve invested thousands of euros in platforms and created good e-learning courses. Engagement? 10–15%.

Meanwhile, employees are busy with everything except our training.

Two different approaches

Team A (campaign failed): “The headline was weak. We used the wrong channels. The copy was too long.”

Team B (9% engagement): “Employees don’t value learning. Everyone is busy. Nobody prioritizes development.”

Two teams, two completely different approaches. One takes responsibility. The other looks for external excuses.

The wrong approach is the death of our field.

Quick test

→ Would people pay for it? 

→ Would they recommend it to a colleague?

 → Would they choose it over scrolling LinkedIn? 

→ Does it solve their REAL problem?

If any answer is “no,” the problem isn’t engagement. The problem is training process management. And that’s something we can change.

The AIDAL model: how to market learning?

Most of us stop at the first step. We inform. But we don’t market.

AWARENESS Ask yourself: Do they even know it exists? Solution: Run campaigns. Use storytelling. Create intrigue. Truth: One email doesn’t create awareness — it’s just background noise. Example: Send an intriguing teaser in Teams/Slack: “Did you know the average manager spends 4 hours a week on tasks that could be automated?”

INTEREST Ask yourself: Do they see a reason to care? Solution: Sell the outcome. Answer “What’s in it for me?” Show how it helps THEM. Truth: Descriptions don’t spark interest. Results do. Example: Share a short video from a colleague: “How I saved 3 hours a week” + a link to your learning path.

DESIRE Ask yourself: Do they genuinely want it, or are they just clicking for the sake of a checkmark? Solution: Use case studies. Bring in peer recommendations. Make it feel essential. Truth: Making something mandatory doesn’t increase engagement. Example: Show results: “27 colleagues have already started. 19 said it changed their daily work.” Counter: only 12 spots left.

ACTION Ask yourself: Are they using it consistently? Solution: Reinforce. Track. Build habits. Show the clear value of taking action. Truth: A one-time intervention = wasted effort. Example: A personal invitation from a manager: “Join us on Monday.” Reminders across multiple channels.

LOYALTY Ask yourself: Would they recommend it to others? Solution: Employees as your best marketers. Celebrate successes. Make it shareable. Ask for feedback and use it. Truth: Loyalty doesn’t happen on its own — you create it through marketing. Example: Share success stories in internal channels: “How Elo’s team reduced meeting time by 30%.” Elo’s comment. Button: “Share with your team.”

Three important shifts

1. Stop reducing learning to content. Start focusing on people. Content alone doesn’t change behavior. People need to feel a connection to learning and see its relevance to their own challenges. Learning has impact when it starts with the person — their needs, obstacles, and motivation.
2. Stop treating learning as a one-time event. Make it an ongoing journey. Learning doesn’t end when the training does. Achieving lasting change requires application, feedback, and reinforcement.
3. Stop prioritizing completion metrics. Focus on business outcomes. If learning doesn’t lead to behavior change or strategic impact, it’s just noise. Start with outcomes and design learning to maintain momentum.

Conclusion

Baltic HR professionals face a unique opportunity. We have good tools. We have talented teams. We have employees who want to learn.

What we’re missing? Strategic, data-driven approaches that help us understand audience motivation, make learning feel “essential” — not just “nice to have” — and ensure we reach the right people, in the right way, at the right time.

This isn’t failure. It’s a skill that can be developed.

Our competition isn’t another training course. It’s everything else. And right now, everything else is winning.

That’s not inevitable. It’s a choice.

Teams whose budgets grow master both training process management and marketing. They don’t settle for 9% engagement.

Let’s choose wisely!

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Coursy.io learning management system is a tool. Now we also have a model. Let’s use them together and watch engagement rise from 10% to 82%.