The Real Reason Content Libraries Fail

When content libraries fail in L&D, it’s often for two key reasons: the content isn’t very good and the volume of resources makes it hard for L&D to apply the library effectively.

Common complaints we hear about off-the-shelf libraries are that the content is too cheesy, it’s too formal and it’s too scripted, so learners disengage and it becomes an unused tool.

It’s one of the key reasons we work without scripts. Bringing in real experts and either letting them speak directly to camera or coach real people through real challenges on camera.

But for so many L&D teams, the challenge lies in the application of whichever content library they already have.

Large volumes of resources combined with limited support can make it difficult to turn content into meaningful learning experiences.

These issues underpin the 5 most common reasons that content libraries fail:

1. Overwhelming employees with choice

2. Lack of support from the library provider

3. Not aligning the library with organisational priorities

4. Treating the content library as a standalone resource

5. Content that lives outside the learning ecosystem

If you’re in L&D and looking for a library of human content backed by the human support to make it succeed, you can check out inrehearsal for free.

And if you want more guidance on using content libraries in L&D, read The L&D Content Library: Why Most Fail & How to Fix It

1. Overwhelming employees with choice

Many organisations assume that more content equals more learning.

Employees are given access to thousands of resources without any structure or guidance on how to navigate them.

But without structure:

• Learners don’t know where to start
  
• The library feels overwhelming
  
• Employees choose not to engage at all

This can be framed as giving learners choice or autonomy…

But without guidance people suffer from choice fatigue and many use that autonomy to choose not to learn.

High-performing libraries balance access with structure. They provide:

• Curated pathways that add structure
  
• Recommended resources to help L&D teams enable learning
  
• Custom curations to connect the right resources with the right challenges.

Access and autonomy work best when they’re supported by clear direction.

2. Lack of support from the library provider

It’s a big ask to expect L&D teams to suddenly have access to all these resources and know how to use them effectively.

But this is typically what happens by default.

Once the library is live, there’s just not enough support to use the resources effectively to solve challenges in the organisation.

So the challenge becomes:

• Finding the right resources
  
• Connecting content to business priorities
  
• Designing learning experiences around the content
  

This leaves L&D teams responsible for navigating the entire library themselves.

What L&D teams are crying out for is a content partner who can help them in:

• Surfacing the most relevant content
  
• Curating resources around key skills
  
• Activating learning across teams

At inrehearsal, we work with 250+ leading L&D teams and see first-hand the difference that support and curation can make to the effectiveness of a content library.

3. Not aligning the library with organisational strategy

When L&D teams don’t know the library in detail and the content provider isn’t providing enough support…

It’s hard to be strategic. You can’t see how the content can support your organisational priorities.

Which is a shame because this is often how the effectiveness of L&D teams is measured.

Without clear alignment to:

• Capability frameworks
  
• Leadership priorities
  
• Strategic skill development
  

Pitching the value and getting buy-in become more difficult. So does showing impact.

But when content is connected to real organisational goals, engagement becomes much easier to sustain.

For example, Softcat are aligning inrehearsal with their key skills priorities.

“We’re looking at what skills do people need to develop throughout their career, what capabilities do they need to get from the role they’re in now to the role they want to be…” – Daryl Wood, L&D manager at Softcat explains.

And they’re mapping the training and development opportunities available to those skills, including content from the inrehearsal library.

“The inrehearsal boxsets have been brilliant because we can identify the skills that people actually need in their roles, and we can align some of those videos to say…

“If you’re looking to top up on this capability, check out this boxset, check out this podcast, and people can then be doing those little bits throughout the year to continuously push their skills.”

4. Treating the content library as a standalone resource

Another common mistake is treating the library as a separate learning tool rather than part of the wider learning experience.

Many employees consume content from the library, but it rarely appears in the rest of their learning experiences, such as:

• Internal workshops
  
• Coaching sessions
  
• Team discussions

The most successful organisations embed library content into broader learning initiatives.

Alzheimer’s Society do this by supporting sessions from internal experts with content from external experts:

“ I encourage facilitators to think about pre-work via inrehearsal. So is there something you can watch to set the scene? I also encourage them to highlight inrehearsal for the post-session, so there’s asynchronous learning as part of that.”

“I do that when we have speakers and I do that when I run any sessions too. I’ll always say, these are the inrehearsal resources and sessions that support what we’re talking about now.”  — Amie Boylan, Income & Engagement Academy Lead.

5. Content that’s disconnected from the learning ecosystem

The goal should be to embed new content into the existing learning ecosystem to minimise disruption.

The more we ask employees to change their existing behaviours to access content, the harder it becomes to engage them.

Some libraries introduce:

• new platforms
  
• additional logins
  
• extra administrative work for IT teams

High-performing libraries integrate into the systems organisations already use, such as:

• LMS platforms
  
• LXP environments
  
• intranets
  
• internal collaboration tools

This makes learning easier to access within everyday workflows and minimises the behaviour change required to engage with the content.

When Content Libraries Actually Work

Content libraries work when content that’s designed to engage employees and support their growth is used in the right way.

That means providing structure so employees aren’t overwhelmed by choice.

It means aligning learning to strategic priorities and skill development.

And it means embedding content into existing learning experiences and systems so people can access it naturally.

When these pieces come together, a content library becomes far more than a catalogue of content. It becomes a practical way for organisations to build the human skills their people need.

If you want to see what this looks like in practice, you can explore our guide to what a high-performing content library looks like.

Or, if you work in HR, L&D or people and talent development, you can check out inrehearsal for free.