How to enhance knowledge and skills
We
are all familiar with the refrain: Management finds employee performance to be
slacking off while certain routine matters are flagging. What are the common
responses to an issue and what are needed to provide or revive knowledge and
skills within an organization? The typical answer, of course, is training.
While effective, if designed and implemented right, one would think at some
point whether training is the only solution, and how does it really impact on
the business strategy.
Many
companies, especially the more progressive ones, now look at learning solutions
as an integral part of their business strategy. They adopt a broader
perspective and approach for assessing and meeting their organizational
requirements. Based on my experience with some of these organizations and their
leaders, I have chosen three key principles, which I now put forward to other
companies for consideration and, if deemed appropriate, apply them. They are:
Make
the Learning & Development (L&D) group your internal business
consultants
The
L&D group is often looked at in an organization as just a provider of
training and seminars. This calls for a change in mindset, from being a
training provider to an internal consultant. As consultants, their value comes
from them being able to understand the “business” of the company, including how
it operates, its product and service offerings, its constituents, its business
strategy, etc.
Thus,
when a problem that is initially identified as a training issue is given to the
L&D group, they should first find out what the business and performance
requirements are, determine the issues and the root causes of such problems,
and only then recommend the appropriate solution. In some cases, it may turn
out to be outside the scope of L&D. This should be fine. But thinking only
like trainers, on the other hand, would often limit them to the discussions
they have with you and their solutions might just be too focused on the
training needs. That will prevent them from seeing the bigger, truer picture.
So,
how do you make them consultants? Make the L&D group your business partners,
and encourage the group to ask questions; the right questions. Typically these
questions are open-ended at first, so that they will encourage a broader
discussion of the issue. Questions like, what keeps you awake at night, what is
the problem you are trying to solve or what does success look like, may seem to
be simple and trite, but it really opens up the discussion to explore the
different areas that may be contributing to the needs or even beyond.
Provide
a variety of learning solutions, not just training
Learning
solutions, unlike training, provide a broader perspective that considers a
wider array of learning approaches—experiential, social, and structured
programs—typically referred to as the 70-20-10 Principle that were introduced
by the Center for Creative Leadership, to enhance organizational competencies.
In this model, training is just one of, but not the only, solution.
So
how do you apply the 70-20-10 Principle? Consider ways by which your
organization can enhance the learning experience. You can implement on-the-job
programs through secondment, cross-team postings, or individual
swaps/exchanges. These assignments can even extend to clients or external
organizations. You can also cascade a coaching and mentoring process where
constant feedback and knowledge sharing is done across all levels. It’s about
building a culture and structure where your employees seek and are able to
learn by application and from others, through programs or ad-hoc opportunities.
Align
the learning strategy with the business strategy
Learning
can be strategic as well as tactical. A major difference between the two is
that strategic learning focuses on supporting the organization’s vision and
strategy, while tactical learning focuses on addressing performance gaps.
Strategic learning is long-term and tied up to organizational metrics while
tactical learning is short-term and measured through team or individual
performance indicators, typically around productivity, quality, and timeliness.
Training done across the organization is not necessarily strategic unless it is
aligned with organizational outcomes and goals.
So
what do you do to start aligning your learning programs into strategy? A useful
first approach is auditing your learning initiatives. Determine which of those
initiatives support your strategy and which address specific team or individual
performance needs. It’s a simple method to see where the gaps are, but it
really challenges you to evaluate whether the effort and resources are being
channeled to where they make the most impact and sense.
As
we strive to direct our organization forward, there has to be a deliberate
effort to realign our learning perspective and paradigms. Positioning L&D
closer to the business core, and providing a wider range of learning
experiences, will help increase organizational effectiveness, improve
employees’ morale as well as the company’s chance of success.
Mon
San Jose is a director with the knowledge management group of P&A Grant
Thornton, a leading audit, tax, advisory, and outsourcing firm in the
Philippines, with 21 partners and over 700 staff members.
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Library
Khaitan & Co
Note | If anybody use these post for forwarding
in any social media coverage or covering in the Newsletter please give due
credit to those who are taking efforts for the same.
No comments:
Post a Comment