High demand, but few suitable offers – the transformation of work, digitalization, artificial intelligence and much more are creating new requirements. New skills need to be acquired in order to cope with changing work tasks. Hence, the fast pace of change poses a challenge that is also changing the need for further training. Learning and further training are one of the key factors for developing new skills.

But it is not just demand that is increasing, it is also the requirements for further training. They are becoming more specific, both thematically and in terms of the target group. Workplace learning is gaining greater significance. Consequently, extensive and comprehensive further training courses cannot be implemented. As a result, they are carried out less frequently. Overall, there is a risk that continuing education will not take effect if the learning opportunities do not meet demand.

On the one hand, learning opportunities and further training should be geared to the requirements of the employees and, on the other hand, also take into account the organizational learning conditions.

If those prerequisites are not considered, further training can fail. That is why it is important to adapt learning and further training to the individual needs. Specifically, training designers need to know the specific target group, the companies and the conditions for learning as precisely as possible.

For a systematic and structured examination of these needs the Design Thinking methodology can be a helpful tool.

Design Thinking usually aims to better understand user needs and thus initiate an innovation process. Agile methods are originally used to find creative and innovative solutions that are based on the needs of users. In six phases of an iterative process, the first steps are:
(1) understanding,
(2) observing and
(3) synthesizing the findings.
On this basis,
(4) ideas are developed.
For selected ideas,
(5) prototypes are constructed and then
(6) tested.

Based on the Design Thinking approach a concept was developed which comprises five steps, from understanding to developing an idea for tailor-made learning:
1. Gaining information from an interview
2. Summarizing and structuring the information
3. Further synthesizing the information in an empathy map according to hearing, seeing, saying, thinking and feeling
4. Generating ideas in a brainstorming session, first individually and then together in the group
5. Selection of the idea or merging of different ideas as a solution to create tailor-made-learning

Between April and June 2024 the concept was implemented several times with participants from the education sector. With the help of a moderator, a group of at least four persons worked together in the process. Throughout the training session, participants worked interactively on a real-world case. The feedback clearly demonstrated that the Design Thinking methodology opens up new perspectives that can also be used sustainably in the development of learning formats.

The article presents the steps of the developed training concept and the methods used. Moreover, it outlines the requirements for continuing education in the transformation and shows how the Design Thinking methodology can be used as an approach for tailor-made learning development.

Acknowledgement:
The approach is part of the project “Zukunftszentrum Brandenburg”, funded by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the ESF+ and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Energy.

Keywords: Learning, education, design thinking, development, transformation.