In a recent webinar, we sat down with Uber’s Global Product Marketing Manager, Andrew Dinh, to talk about the power of remote training, effectively distributing education on a global scale and Uber’s holistic approach to onboarding and retention.
Since implementing a mobile-first microlearning strategy in partnership with eduMe, the platform has seen an 8% rise in productivity and a decrease in driver partner reactivation time by 30%.
To find out how they achieved this, you can watch the full webinar with Andrew & eduMe CEO Jacob Waern, or carry on reading for the main takeaways from the discussion.
Uber’s workforce spans the world and is highly diverse, but they all have one thing in common: their time is precious. Flexibility and the ability to work around individual schedules is a key selling point for the ride-sharing platform, with 86% of their drivers saying they wouldn’t be able to drive without it.
Uber finds success by being highly strategic in both what information they surface, and how and when they do this. Which learning content does each driver or delivery partner actually need? What is the most convenient way for them to access it? Having this training material surface within the Uber driver app at a relevant moment allows driver and delivery partners to learn on the go and in their own time, on the device they are familiar with and use day-in and out.
Andrew also highlighted the importance of providing training that is relevant and helpful.
“A really good example of this is targeting: identifying the people who actually need the information, allowing them to self-serve and decide whether or not they want to learn more by exploring the content on their own instead of just being bombarded with information.” - Andrew Dinh, Uber
While traditional desk-based workers are more accustomed to consuming longer-form training materials, the average driver or delivery partner on the Uber platform is more limited with their time. Especially for those depending on Uber as a secondary source of income, engaging and snappy learning material is key.
That’s where microlearning comes in. Uber has seen great results from employing this learning mechanism, by switching from long-form emails to concise, engaging formats (e.g. video) that replicate the way we are increasingly consuming content. Focusing on more visual, interactive content that drivers and delivery partners can complete in just 2-3 minutes has been highly effective in driving engagement and long term comprehension.
“Since launching the microlearning strategy we’ve seen very high engagement and actually extremely high return engagement, meaning that someone who has completed one module is very likely to complete another module because they’ve already experienced it and seen the value of it.” - Andrew Dinh, Uber
Making the user experience as seamless as possible is a key focus at Uber. Traditional Learning Management Systems (LMS) are often clunky, requiring extra logins and producing a drop in engagement at the very first hurdle. In fact, 80% of workers are fed up with using passwords, while 92% would be more interested in using newer technologies such as smartcards or tokens.
Luckily, there’s an even more innovative solution. Using eduMe’s seamless link feature has allowed Uber to curb this issue and reduce unnecessary friction. By fully eliminating the login experience, drivers are able to access eduMe from the Uber app and learn within their own platform, then get straight back to earning.
“That seamlessness is really critical when people have very little time and a short attention span, when you’re out doing a job and need to take a part of this information. What we’ve seen here and elsewhere is that introducing this seamless aspect has increased completion rates almost four fold.” - Jacob Waern, eduMe
What is eduMe?
eduMe is a mobile training tool used by deskless workforces around the world. Our customers include Uber, Deliveroo, Gorillas, gopuff & Wolt.
Put simply - how easy it is to use and how effective it is. Faster onboarding, quicker time to productivity and a safer workforce are all benefits our customers see. Take a look at an explanation video here.
How have Uber been so successful in improving productivity, retention and safety at such a global scale? By democratizing content creation.
Andrew reflected on the importance of empowering team members at the headquarter, regional and local levels to create training for their workers, as they are the ones who understand their needs best.
“As the platform becomes more robust, and as the needs are more differentiated, I think it’s really important to enable people within the organization who are closest to their customers.” - Andrew Dinh, Uber
While opening up content creation to a wider group brings its challenges, namely quality control and consistency, Uber’s strategy moving forward is to give their partners within a region the flexibility to create content that is consistent with the overall global narrative, brand, look and feel of the app.
“You need that holistic view and control at an HQ level but you also need to empower a market to make it relevant to them and engaging for the end audience.” - Jacob Waern, eduMe
In a crowded, competitive market like ride-sharing, Uber needs to constantly build platform preference so that drivers see them as the best provider.
“It is no secret that Uber in almost every market has a very strong competitor. So how do you build platform preference for independent contractors to choose your platform over another for work?” - Andrew Dinh, Uber
The solution that they found with eduMe was to make the user learning experience as engaging, convenient and relevant as possible, ensuring that drivers know how to be successful and reach their earning goals through Uber.
Want to find out what eduMe can do for your workforce? Get in touch below and receive a free demo 👇