Closing the Completion Gap: Improving Outcomes in Online Skills Training

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are central to Canada’s economy. Still, their ability to compete depends in part on developing the skills required to respond to labour shortages, technological change, and productivity pressures. Despite the importance of workforce development, SMEs are less likely to participate in formal training and often have limited time and resources, along with competing operational demands.

Digital learning provides more flexible and accessible workplace training, but access alone does not guarantee participation. Existing workforce development approaches are plentiful and address different barriers, but their reach and effectiveness vary, requiring SMEs to navigate available options to find relevant training.

This report draws on previous DI research on SME workforce training and the findings of Skills Bridge project, a pan-Canadian digital learning platform meant to provide SMEs with flexible access to relevant online courses. Using this data, the authors examined the enablers and constraints to SMEs’ engagement in online workplace training. Skills Bridge, which is funded by the Future Skills Centre and delivered by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the Diversity Institute and Magnet, provides a useful case to examine barriers and enablers.

The authors found that time and opportunity costs remained the most persistent barriers to SME engagement in online training. Time constraints are compounded by uncertainty about skills needs and how training can address business priorities. SMEs valued short, interactive modules, flexible learning pathways and trusted intermediaries, but also identified a need for guidance in selecting and applying training. The findings highlight the importance of supporting SMEs across the learning journey, from identifying skills and training needs to applying learning in the workplace. 

This project’s findings point to opportunities to strengthen the learning journey for SMEs. Skills Bridge addressed common barriers to engagement in digital learning by providing short, modular, curated learning pathways and trusted intermediary networks. However, SMEs still had to decide which learning was most relevant, whether it was important enough to prioritize alongside immediate business priorities, and how to apply new learning in practice. This suggests that effective digital learning depends not only on how training is delivered, but on how well SMEs are supported before, during, and after learning.

For funders and program designers, these findings suggest that reducing the direct costs of training is important but not sufficient to increase sustained engagement and participation. Program models must consider not only affordability and accessibility, but also supports that address SMEs’ barriers, including limited time, capacity, and resources and supports their learning journey.

Future programming may incorporate higher touch supports alongside digital learning. Mentoring, coaching, or structured follow-ups could give SMEs more opportunities to connect training to business challenges and practice new skills. Testing these approaches could help identify where additional support is most valuable across the learning journey.