Dive Brief:
- Coursera will allow its enterprise customers and their employees free access to more than 30 courses in response to the novel coronavirus, according to an April 30 blog post. The move aims to build on the pandemic response plans of its customers, many of whom have turned to "learning to build organizational resilience," wrote Coursera Chief Enterprise Officer Leah Belsky. The company said it services more than 2,300 businesses through its enterprise platform.
- The courses include "some of our highest demand courses during the crisis," Belsky said, noting that the initiative aims to "help employees successfully transition to remote working, increase digital readiness, and improve mental wellbeing during a particularly stressful time." Subjects span from wellness, communication and leadership to epidemiology.
- Participants will have unlimited access to the courses until July 31. Enrollees must finish their courses by Sept. 30.
Dive Insight:
Coursera is not the first learning platform to offer free e-learning in response to the pandemic. CompTIA announced March 23 it would give displaced professionals, students and anyone else with interest free 30-day access to learn the fundamentals of IT, and a slew of other firms have offered free resources, as well.
As Coursera noted, learning has played a significant role in organizational resilience. Maine Gov. Janet Mills, for example, removed restrictions on certain state job-training funds to "rapidly provide" free online training to workers. Individual workers have taken to online learning as they ride out the pandemic, too. Interest in Udemy's growth mindset course surged 231% between March and April, the company said.
As the pandemic continues to unfold, e-learning will likely retain importance. "Companies that have been resistant to moving select workshops and legacy development programs online will find that they can conduct these programs in a digital format with greater impact, more engagement and at a lower cost," Drew Remiker, senior instructional program manager at NovoEd, previously told HR Dive.
