In this round‑table discussion, the participants explore how to balance synchronous, asynchronous, and hybrid learning experiences within an Architecture‑Engineering‑Construction (AEC) organization using the Synthesis LMS and the Newton community platform. Speaker A explains the value of on‑demand video content for scaling expert instruction while noting the loss of real‑time interaction, and raises the question of when to schedule live or hybrid sessions to preserve relationship‑building. Speaker B describes how their team is restructuring the Newton learning community into distinct typologies—on‑demand, program‑based, mentorship, and learning‑event sections—so that learners can intentionally select the appropriate modality and L&D can design new programs with a clear framework. Nicole shares a recent live performance‑management training, highlighting why sensitive, high‑impact topics benefit from in‑person sessions with interactive tools (e.g., Slido) followed by recorded references and toolkits for later access, and reflects on the trade‑off between time investment and multiplier effect. Christopher Parsons builds on this by proposing a flipped‑classroom model: deliver foundational content on‑demand, then offer targeted synchronous follow‑ups (one‑on‑one, role‑play, scenario work) for new hires or ongoing reinforcement, ensuring consistency while preserving personal interaction. The conversation collectively surfaces criteria for choosing learning formats, the importance of intentional design, and practical examples of implementing a mixed‑mode learning strategy in the AEC context.
Chapters
We've mentioned a few times, and for anyone who's like not super familiar with at least the Synthesis LMS, it's on-demand learning. So videos, lessons that you can interact with on demand. So asynchronous. You're not in the room with Russell. You're watching a video of Russell, which extends Russell's reach and allows him to be Russell with 100 people a year without totally depleting him and giving everyone the same high-quality experience, but not actually being able to ask Russell a question in the moment, which is also really valuable. And so one of the things that I've been thinking about, we've been navigating, is when do we do synchronous moments and when do we do asynchronous moments? And when do we really intentionally build some moments for hybrid learning where you do something asynchronous, you watch the video with Russell, but then you sit down and you talk with your PM about Project Finance, or you have 30 minutes with Russell and all the other new hires on a Friday to ask questions in a synchronous moment, because we don't want to lose that. You know, we want to build relationships and connections, and I don't think having videos breaks relationships and connections at all. But I also know that there's this other part of it too. So I'm curious what you both think about that, and if this is something that you're starting to form an idea on today, and it's also okay if that's not the case, it might be something that will be figuring out over the next couple of years. And like, no doubt that will be true as well.
We're thinking about that as we speak. So redoing our whole learning community on Newton, our synthesis platform, to have it be across typologies of learning and not just focused on programs that learning and development may be offering. So right now it's heavy TF Academy focused. And so we're literally having an on-demand learning section in the community. We're having a program-based learning in the community. We're having mentorship as a path. We're having learning events as a different section to actually do all of that and have people understand we have all of these different ways of learning. And so if you want to learn in an asynchronous manner, you go into the on-demand section and these are the tools that you have. And that's where for example, the LMS will live. But if you really want a synchronous experience, look at the Academy and see all of the scheduled and planned opportunities that you can do that in person or hybrid. And so it's caused us to really accelerate getting this way of thinking and getting this out to the studio sooner because we didn't have all of these different types of learning before. So it's, it's really pushing us to create our framework, whereas we always, we were, you know, typically too busy. We didn't have a framework. We were just doing, let's do this and let's do this. And now we're thinking in a framework methodology of, okay, if we're bringing this new program on or making it, what type of learning do we want to make it? So it's allowing us to be intentional to make sure we've got balance across all of those.
Yeah, this is very top of mind for me right now because we actually just, just this week we did a live training on performance management. We have a new performance management process. And because of the sensitivity of performance management, we thought it would be better to do that, have an in-person one, get all the managers together and have it be a little bit of a moment. And also you can do a little bit more of that. Now we're going to take time for reflection. Now we're going to do a Slido and get your answers to these questions and see what everyone thinks. That interactiveness really adds a lot of value. And then we're going to follow up with— we're going to record a recorded version that's just for reference. And then all the P's and toolkits will be on the Commons for follow-up. And so I'm trying to learn from that. It was really successful and it made me think like, when do we do this? Because I can also see myself being like, these videos are so great. I'm just gonna do videos from now on. So I think there's something about when it's really something new, something that's really new and changing the way we do business. Like we gotta get people together to talk about it and learn about it together. And then we can have recordings in the future. Whereas I don't need to get everyone together to talk about how to do Deltek VantagePoint stuff. No need for me. To live present on Deltek. We can have office hours and we can have the videos about how to do things. And so, mm-hmm. Yeah. Just really thinking about when the value of getting people to spend an hour and a half of their time with us can really have a multiplier effect. That's when we should do it. But it's, it's a balance cuz it is taking people's time and getting a bunch of people together at one moment.
That's, it's an interesting lens, Nicole, like the, the idea that if it's a big change and something new, that you would do it that way. And I like— but then, you know, you're going to have a new employee join you 4 months from now who wasn't part of that and 2 more 6 months from now. And so they can do a purpose-built on-demand thing. But I'm wondering if you end up still doing like a flipped classroom type thing a little bit where here's the kind of content around how we're doing performance, but then I still want to meet with you one-on-one afterwards to kind of talk through questions or do some role-playing or scenarios or whatever that might be. So you don't have to deliver the basics over and over again. but like you can have the higher level conversation about what it means.
That's a great point. And that's something I'm wondering too, is how to get those pause for reflection, write things down, talk with your partner, or the more interactive elements of it into the video-based learning is, is something I'll be kind of exploring as we move forward with this.
Well, one thing I should say just about the platform is for those that aren't in it, including you, Nicole, like, uh, your, your team is, you can have different lesson types. So you can have a video, but then the next lesson could be book a meeting with Nicole for 30 minutes to kind of talk through this. And then you mark that as complete. Then you go to the next thing, or go read these SOPs, mark that as complete, then go to the next thing. So video is going to be one of the core technologies, but you could involve people in that flow that somebody could have an assignment that they have to go complete and then come back. So there's ways to have a more hybrid, um, kind of multimodal.
