Brakes unites its nationwide workforce, connecting employees everywhere.

Social learning for 10,000 users

Historically, Brakes managed learning & development for their office-based teams through a platform that solely focused on delivering and tracking compliance training.

The L&D team at Brakes wanted something much more engaging that was accessible to everyone, from drivers and warehouse employees to their commercial teams. It had to be able to foster a social learning experience, align with the way people learn in their personal lives, and support the delivery of a blended learning strategy. Thrive was the natural first choice.

Supporting remote learners

Brakes soon launched Thrive to their contact centres in a phased rollout to maximise buy-in. Word quickly spread due to its success, and the commercial team also wanted to get involved – but COVID-19 hit just as they began the wider roll-out. With the majority of their staff suddenly working from home, Brakes decided to fast track roll out to all 10,000 learners, including operational and frontline staff.

Using a range of different content including videos, live coaching sessions, microlearning, and articles, the team could help their staff through this uncertain time by quickly providing training on relevant topics like mental health, managing remote teams, and communication.

Results and impact

In just the first week of launch, Brakes experienced an impressive 75% engagement – despite the lockdown measures and many staff being furloughed. 

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Throughout everything, Brakes’ L&D team managed to maintain engagement as Thrive became the natural go-to destination for useful content. So what does the future hold? The team at Brakes plans to continue supporting remote workers, as well as digitise their leadership training so that it can be delivered virtually to their employees. Due to the success of their partnership with Thrive, Brakes' parent company Sysco undertook a global rollout of the Learning Platform for 80,000 users.

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