At Microsoft Learn, we recognize the importance of continuous learning and skill-building. The skills portfolio that professionals need to thrive in today’s workplace is significantly different than it was a few years ago. According to the World Economic Forum Future of jobs 2023 report, the skills required for a job role are expected to change by 44% in the next five years.
We know that you’re seeking to build in-demand technical skills to stay ahead in your career, and it can be hard to figure out how to get started learning a new skill or technology. We also know that organizations need to move at the speed of today’s technology, and it’s challenging for team leads and trainers to find the right guidance and content to skill up their teams. Additionally, team leads are also looking for new ways to monitor and encourage the progress of individuals, all of whom learn at their own pace.
Accelerate learning with Plans
Today we introduce Plans on Microsoft Learn, which help learners, teams, and organizations accelerate the achievement of their learning goals using curated sets of content combined with milestones and automated nudges to keep learners focused and motivated. With Plans, you can progress through carefully structured curricula to build new skills, making the most of the high-quality content on Microsoft Learn. Experts who are familiar with Microsoft technology can create new Plans. (For detailed instructions on how to create Plans, check out Overview of Plans.) Team leads and others who are responsible for building skills in their organization can copy and administer existing Plans.
Some of the key features of Plans include:
- Learning outcomes. Clear learning outcomes specify the skills that a Plan is designed to help build.
- Milestones of content. Thoughtfully created milestones of Microsoft Learn content across a wide variety of training and resources, along with the recommended number of days to complete them.
- Optional email prompts. These reminders help keep learners on track with their skill-building goals (for learners who opt in to receive emails from Microsoft Learn).
- Tracking and reporting. Plan creators and team leads can invite individuals or groups of learners to work through a Plan that includes progress tracking and reporting.
Stay on track with Plans
If you’re a learner looking to deepen your understanding of specific technologies, expand your skill set, or even take your career in a different direction, we’ve got you covered with Plans, which combine the most relevant content for specific technologies and business scenarios.
When you find a Plan you like, select Start and work through it at your own pace or finish in the recommended number of days per milestone. Along the way, if you opted in to receive emails from Microsoft Learn, you receive helpful email nudges to keep your momentum going. (To opt in, in your Microsoft Learn profile, go to Settings and then provide your preferred email in Manage email preferences.) As you progress through the Plan, take breaks when you need to. To pick up where you left off in a Plan, select Resume. Plans that you’ve started and those that you’ve completed are listed in your Microsoft Learn profile. To learn how to start and complete a Plan, check out the video Plans on Microsoft Learn: Learner Perspective.
Make our Plans your Plans
As a team lead or trainer, when you find a Plan that’s a good fit for the skill development goals of your organization or learning community, make it your own—just copy and publish it. (On the Plan page, in the header, select Copy and then follow the instructions.) You can edit and customize the Plan before you publish it. After you publish a Plan, you can invite individual learners or learning groups to it. When a learner starts a Plan, that Plan can no longer be edited. This control helps to ensure that learners have a reliable skill-building experience. You can track learner progress in the reporting, both as a summary and as a downloadable report. Plans that you’ve copied or created are listed in your Microsoft Learn profile. To learn how to administer Plans that you own, check out the video Plans on Microsoft Learn: Team Lead Perspective.
Explore a growing library of Plans
Our library of Plans on Microsoft Learn will continue to grow as more experts create them. To get started with Plans today, explore Microsoft Learn Career Paths, where we have specially curated Plans for 15 career paths. Plus, discover Microsoft Learn for Organizations, where 8 Plans cover the latest technology-related topics and training for teams, including skill-building for Microsoft’s AI apps and services. We look forward to sharing more news and updates about Plans in the coming weeks.
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