In an international group like Advans International, which operates in six African countries and employs more than 3,500 people, skills development is a strategic priority. Beyond the technical training required for microfinance professions, employees also need to strengthen their managerial, interpersonal, and behavioral skills to better support clients, teams, and projects.

To address these needs, Advans relies in part on the Edflex digital learning platform.

A Learning Solution Tailored to a Group Operating Across Six Countries

With operations in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, and Tunisia, Advans works in diverse environments where training needs vary depending on job roles, local contexts, and levels of responsibility.

Many employees regularly travel to remote areas and may face connectivity challenges or limited access to digital infrastructure. In this context, providing access to a flexible and accessible online learning platform is an important way to support continuous learning.

Today, around 500 employees across the Group regularly use Edflex. The platform is primarily deployed among managers at both headquarters and branch network levels, complementing existing training programs.

Developing Managerial Skills and Soft Skills

Advans already offers training initiatives focused on the technical aspects of microfinance and financial services.

Edflex addresses a complementary need by helping employees strengthen cross-functional skills, particularly in management, communication, leadership, and personal development.

Through a multilingual content library, learners can access a wide range of learning formats, including:

– Videos

– Podcasts

– Articles

– Thematic learning pathways

This variety enables employees to tailor their learning experience to their individual needs and schedules.

Driving Engagement Through Active Learning Promotion

Providing a learning platform alone is not enough to ensure long-term adoption. At Advans, learner engagement is also supported through local initiatives led by each subsidiary.

Dedicated Learning & Development teams help employees make the most of the platform, promote available content, and organize activities that encourage participation.

Recognition initiatives have also been introduced, including certificates awarded to the most engaged learners.

The goal is to promote self-directed learning and foster a culture of continuous skills development throughout the organization.

Encouraging Results

The program is currently delivering strong engagement indicators:

– An 85% training completion rate

– An average of approximately seven hours of learning per user

Some subsidiaries stand out for particularly high participation levels, highlighting the importance of local support in the success of learning initiatives.

The Key Role of Managers and Senior Leadership

Advans’ experience also demonstrates the importance of managerial and executive involvement in promoting learning.

Managers play a critical role by recommending relevant content to their teams and encouraging professional development. At the same time, senior leadership helps embed continuous learning into the company’s culture by actively supporting and valuing training initiatives.

This collective commitment strengthens platform adoption and enhances employee engagement.

Towards a More Personalized Learning Experience

In the coming years, Advans aims to further develop its learning strategy around several key priorities:

– Personalized learning pathways

– Greater use of new technologies and artificial intelligence

– Gamification mechanisms to boost learner engagement

The objective remains the same: to ensure that every employee has access to the most relevant resources to develop their skills and better support clients and the markets in which Advans operates.

Learn More

Discover the full testimony of Elisa Diakité, PMO within the Transformation Department at Advans International, by watching the video published on YouTube and reading the case study produced by Edflex.