When it comes to training, the majority of African platforms we spoke to are going it alone and both designing and delivering training initiatives in house. We did, however, come across a handful of examples in which platforms have partnered with third-party training organizations to reduce the burden of in-house training. Here we discuss three different partnerships:
EduMe: In-app mobile training solution for Uber
Rifat: Driving academy that is helping Go-Jek train its drivers on safe driving practices
Arifu: Interactive SMS-based learning tool providing DigiFarm farmers with access to educational content on best farming practices and financial literacy
EduMe: In-app mobile training solution for Uber drivers
Uber’s partnership with EduMe has enabled it to provide continuous learning to drivers through a mobile training solution. EduMe is a Workforce Success platform used by companies to train, engage, and communicate with their workforces.
Example of EduMe’s mobile training for Uber
After launching with Uber in Johannesburg, the EduMe partnership quickly scaled to all of sub-Saharan Africa and is now available for Uber drivers in more than 15 markets around the world.
The online training is designed for mobile delivery and based on bize-sized, interactive content, with modules including videos and text content as well as short quizzes that consolidate learning.
Initially focused on onboarding training, EduMe now offers support along the whole driver journey, with triggered content sent to drivers as they reach—or struggle to reach—certain milestones. For example, if a driver’s rating falls below a certain threshold, they are pushed to complete an online course on customer service via the EduMe platform. Drivers receive a link to the relevant online course in the Uber app, or via SMS or email. Course completions are tracked on a real-time basis by Uber, meaning that they can be linked to important metrics such as ratings and number of trips taken.
To assess the impact of EduMe’s mobile training, Uber offered drivers in Johannesburg a choice between attending in-house training and the mobile platform alternative. The shift from in-person training to mobile not only resulted in benefits for drivers but also in cost and time savings for Uber, helping to reduce the pressure on their support centre and get more drivers on the road, quicker. Read EduMe’s case study for more details.
Rifat: Driving academy helping Go-Jek with defensive driving training
Launched in 2014, Rifat Driving Labs (RDL) offers “defensive” (i.e., safe) driving training for motorcycles and cars. For the past four years, the Indonesian ride-hailing platform Go-Jek has partnered with RDL to train its drivers on safe driving, pre-trip inspection, practical driving techniques, and soft skills (such as responsibility, patience, and empathy). To date, over 300,000 GoJek drivers across 17 cities have gone through the RDL defensive driving program, which trains approximately 10,000 new drivers each month.
Photo credit: www.money.id
Similar ride-hailing platforms in Nigeria are also investing heavily in face-to-face training for their drivers, with some looking to third parties for help. Gokada, one of the leading on-demand motorcycle-hailing platforms in Lagos, recently partnered with a defensive driving academy to help deliver face-to-face driver training at scale. As a result of the partnership, Gokada has been able to reduce in-classroom and in-the-field training down from seven days to three and, in turn, work towards its ambitious growth targets.
Arifu: Interactive SMS-based learning tool providing DigiFarm farmers with access to educational content
Arifu, an SMS-based learning platform, has partnered with DigiFarm—a digital platform for Kenyan farmers run by Safaricom—to provide farmers with access to educational content. Farmers who sign up with DigiFarm can access a variety of SMS training modules, from farming best practices to financial literacy. Since launch, Arifu has counted over two million interactions on their DigiFarm learning platform.
In addition to the use of an appropriate access channel (SMS) for farmers, Arifu’s training content stands out because it has been developed through a sophisticated human-centered design process to ensure that it is relevant to and suitably designed for farmers.
The educational content has not only helped improve farming practices but has also built trust and buy-in from farmers. This has been crucial for DigiFarm as it begins to layer more sophisticated financial services, such as lending, into its product offerings.
Final thoughts
While our research has only scratched the surface of platform-led upskilling on the African continent, these partnership models provide insights into how and when platforms look to third parties to relieve some of the training burden and how third parties are slowly starting to realize this potential. In our discussions with platforms, both one-on-one and in workshops, we heard enthusiasm for solutions in which third-party experts could be counted on to design and deliver training.
But although some partnerships are in place, there appears to be an overall dearth of suitable partners. Most platforms agree this is a major challenge. It appears more needs to be done both in terms of helping to connect platforms with suitable providers and improving the quality of outsourced, third-party training options.
EduMe is a Workforce Success platform used by modern companies across six continents to train, engage, and communicate with their workforces. By having effective learning and relevant information in the palm of their hands, the workforces at companies like Uber, Airbnb, Vodafone, and Deloitte are empowered to perform at their best.