eduMe acquires ‘TikTok for Learning’ platform

80% — circa 2.7 billion — of the world’s workforce is deskless.

And despite three-quarters of that number spending most of their working day using technology, Emergence data shows that 60% are unsatisfied with the technology they use citing it as slow, inefficient, and hard to use.

It’s hardly a good way for training and development to take place: which according to Gartner stats, over half of the workers want in the flow of work and on-demand.

Deskless dreams do come true

When it comes to training delivery for deskless workers, things do look set to change.

That’s because eduMe, the deskless training platform, has announced the acquisition of Playbook, another learning tech platform that developed a TikTok for Learning format.

Already integrated into eduMe’s core product, Playbook is able to deliver immersive, standardized training via QR codes and other means as and when workers need it.

Speaking about the acquisition, Jacob Waern, CEO and founder of eduMe says: “The vast majority of them [deskless workers] aren’t given the necessary tools and training to be successful.

“We believe everyone has the same right to be successful at work. We have made consumer-grade technology available to everyone, in the flow of their everyday work. By doing this we’re setting the new standard for what deskless workforce learning looks like.”

Microsoft Teams integration

Alongside the acquisition announcement, eduMe has also revealed a product integration with Microsoft Teams. This will allow Microsoft Teams users to create, access, and track training directly through Microsoft Teams states eduMe.

Liz-Leigh Bowler, modern work product lead at Microsoft, says this integration should also help workers learn using a familiar format that also allows them to stay in the flow of work on a platform they recognize and where their other tools are stored.

She notes: “Frontline workers deserve an excellent employee experience, but most shift workers are still having to learn on the fly and in really antiquated formats.

“This is not only stressful and frustrating to the worker, but also a missed opportunity for organizations to offer tools that relieve stress and build loyalty, ultimately increasing employee retention.”

Microsoft Teams is the most widely used collaboration app in the world with 280 million monthly active users.

The eduMe PlayBook acquisition follows the London-headquartered firm’s 2022 $20 million Series B funding from Workday Ventures, the venture arm of Workday. eduMe’s partners already include Uber, Marriott, and Vodafone.

For those interested in how learning evolves for deskless workers, watch this space.