Dive Brief:

• Kroger is rolling out a training system for associates designed to provide individual workers with customized learning experiences based on their individual needs, according to a Tuesday press release.
• Based on a learning platform provided by Axonify, a Canadian employee-training company, the system uses a mobile app and requires less than five minutes of a worker's time per shift.
• Kroger is launching the training program, known as "Fresh Start with Axonify," as it looks to bring on thousands of new employees in a competitive labor market.

Dive Insight:

The new learning program is designed to let workers gain skills in small chunks rather than require them to dedicate large amounts of time to develop their knowledge. The system delivers individualized, game-oriented training sessions that workers can access during their workday, according to the announcement.

Kroger is using the system, which it is rolling out in phases, to educate workers about topics such as how to recognize fresh produce and to educate them on the company's diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, according to Chain Store Age, which first covered the news. Kroger plans to expand the program to about 300,000 employees by October, the publication reported in July.

Like other employers hoping to hire new employees, Kroger, which has about 500,000 associates, has recently been facing challenges in its efforts to fill roles — and the grocer is pointing to opportunities for training and development as key attractions for potential job applicants.

When it announced plans in June to hire 10,000 new associates, Kroger noted that on-demand, role-specific training and resources are among the range of benefits it offers workers. "We want to meet our associates where they are and provide them with tools and pathways to grow as individuals and with our organization because the jobs of the future will grow and evolve just like our business," Tim Massa, Kroger's senior vice president and chief people officer, said in a statement at the time.

But while Kroger was able to quickly bring on more than 100,000 new workers early on in the pandemic, the retailer has lately had a more difficult time convincing people to join its ranks. As of early August, the grocer had offered positions to just 5,000 people in connection with its effort to hire 10,000 workers, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.