The future of workplace engagement isn’t in your LMS—it’s in Esports

Corporate social learning has been a buzzword in HR and L&D for years, yet most organisations still haven’t figured out how to make it work. Despite investing in new learning platforms, champion models, and internal social networks, engagement remains low and impact is questionable at best.

Why? Because most companies are forcing social learning instead of actually building communities where learning happens naturally.

At E-Learning Fusion, I tackled this head-on—breaking down why traditional corporate learning isn’t working and how organisations can take inspiration from the multi-billion-dollar Esports industry to create engaging, digital-first learning cultures.

This blog breaks down the key ideas from my talk, giving you practical insights into why your employees don’t care about your learning programme—and what you can do about it.

The engagement crisis in corporate learning

We’re heading for an engagement and leadership crisis in the workplace. By 2025, Gen Z will make up 25% of the workforce, and they don’t engage with learning in the same way previous generations did.

But most companies? They’re still rolling out PowerPoint-heavy training sessions and dull internal LMS courses, wondering why engagement is abysmal.

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Instead of adapting to new ways of learning and leading, organisations are trying to force old-school training models into digital spaces—and it’s failing.

Rather than creating digital-first, engaging learning spaces, many companies are forcing employees back into offices, not because remote work is ineffective, but because they haven’t figured out how to engage and lead digitally.

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Why corporate social learning is broken

Social learning should work in organisations. It does work—just not in the way companies are doing it.

Here’s why corporate social learning keeps failing:

1️⃣ L&D shouldn’t “own” social learning

Social learning happens organically. When L&D tries to force it, it falls flat.

2️⃣ Technology doesn’t create culture

Just because an LMS or LXP has a social feature doesn’t mean employees will use it. Culture is built through behaviour, not technology.

3️⃣ The champion model is outdated

Relying on a handful of “champions” to push learning isn’t scalable. It’s not how real digital communities form.

4️⃣ Ignoring how people actually learn

Employees already engage in self-directed, community-driven learning on YouTube, Twitch, and Discord. Instead of reinventing the wheel, organisations should take inspiration from these platforms.

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What Esports can teach us about learning and leadership

EEsports is a $4.8 billion industry, with millions of players and fans engaging daily. But the real magic isn’t in the competitive gaming—it’s in the content creators who build thriving digital communities.

These Esports content creators aren’t just playing games; they’re:

✔ Building communities of thousands (sometimes millions) of engaged followers
✔ Creating learning cultures where people improve their skills together
✔ Leading digital-first conversations without ever meeting their audiences in person

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If we want to fix corporate learning, we need to learn from industries that already know how to engage digital audiences.

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How I brought Esports into corporate

At the start of the year, I was at a networking event (and a few drinks in) when I declared, “I want to sponsor an Esports team.”

A friend quickly pointed out that I didn’t have nearly enough money for that.

But that conversation led me to 1J Esports, a team that develops Esports players and content creators, helping them transition into bigger organisations.

I partnered with them to study how Esports content creators build communities and influence engagement—and we discovered something game-changing for corporate learning:

• Esports creators naturally develop skills that corporate leaders struggle with in digital spaces
• They know how to build followings, create learning content, and engage audiences at scale
• They’re digital-first leaders—something most businesses still haven’t figured out how to create

This work led to the development of a framework for integrating Esports-inspired learning into corporate environments.

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The creator cone: A new way to build social learning cultures

To help organisations rethink their approach to social learning and leadership, we developed The Creator Cone—a scalable framework inspired by Esports content creators.

The five elements of The Creator Cone:

1️⃣ Community management – The foundation of any learning culture.
2️⃣ Live streaming – Engaging, real-time virtual events (not just boring Zoom calls).
3️⃣ Long-form content – Deep-dive YouTube-style explainers.
4️⃣ Short-form content – Quick, high-impact video clips (think TikTok, Reels, Shorts).
5️⃣ Microcontent – Social media posts, mini-blogs, and email insights.

By starting with community first, then layering in content, companies can create digital-first, scalable learning cultures that employees actually want to engage with.

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Why this works: A corporate experiment

We tested this approach with two companies—one ignored it, and the other embraced it.

1️⃣ A large pharmaceutical company ignored the framework

• They handpicked influencers instead of letting employees self-select
• Most people didn’t engage because they had no motivation
• The initiative failed—proving that you can’t force social learning

2️⃣ A domestic appliances company followed the framework

• Employees volunteered to take part
• 100% of participants created and shared videos
• The initiative won multiple awards

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The takeaway? Empowerment, not enforcement.