Chief Learning Officer - January 2008 - (Page 31)

productivity preferred way to learn. The retirement of baby boomers is revealing a pent-up demand from younger learners for more self-directed, technology-based learning and resources. Evolution of Learning Today, progressive companies are rethinking their strategies. Learning is no longer a discrete “event.” Training doesn’t just happen once a year. Learning organizations are expanding their scope to better serve the realities and ongoing information needs of individual employees. This means learning must become as natural as e-mail — arguably the most ubiquitous of all business tools — blending content in meaningful ways. The most successful organizations are weaving learning into the fabric of their employees’ daily lives, making it an inherent part of the workday. This includes giving employees a means to tap into the right amount of the right resources at the right time. This means making a variety of learning assets — from mentors and knowledge bases to instructor-led training and simulations — more easily discoverable and consumable in ways that are consistent with the mission of the learner. This approach is paying off. Individuals who continue to learn and develop their skills are often the most successful in their careers. place occurs where the least support is available. Research from the U.S. Department of Labor shows that 70 percent of workplace learning occurs through informal learning modes, whereas 30 percent of workplace learning occurs through formal learning programs. To maximize learning effectiveness, organizations must enable users to access answers as soon as questions arise. Studies on learning have shown repeatedly that information gleaned at the highest point of need is most likely to be retained. Likewise, organizations are seeking ways to weave learning into how employees work naturally to make it less ominous. “Bite-sized” nuggets of targeted learning content, such as a relevant chunk of a course, a job aid or a section of a book, are a more palatable and effective way of consuming information. However, it’s equally important to provide learning structures that can blend content in meaningful ways. To that end, organizations are now integrating easily consumable bits of knowledge into business workflows. This model of on-demand learning allows employees to solve problems in real time as they arise, without departing from their normal day-to-day functions. By applying this methodology, learning becomes the connective tissue between the corporate mission and the employees charged with carrying it forward. This connected learning methodology requires a robust portfolio of content and an array of learning tools and technologies that go beyond the capabilities of a traditional learning management system. Content and technology can no longer be viewed as stand-alone components: The value of the content comes not only from its inherent qualities, but also from the management, delivery and customization tools that are used to provide it. For example, a large network computing firm created a learning portal, federated with a whole host of vetted repositories of information that the company has licensed or approved. Employees can conduct a search and receive a list of key sections from trusted books, wikis, blogs, courses and other learning assets, ranked by relevancy. By bringing valuable context to information, along with an easy way to access it, the company has improved upon the use of learning assets. A large storage system provider took this one step further. The company found that while instructor-led and Web-based training were useful for driving a common baseline of skills, they left a gap when its sales team needed to find an answer right away. The organization decided to distill training materials into the PRODUCTIVITY continued on page 51 The most successful organizations are weaving learning into the fabric of their employees’ daily lives, making it an inherent part of the workday. Looking to the Future Corporate learning is evolving on numerous levels. Businesses have traditionally focused on providing basic learning resources for their workforces, but today, learning departments are focused on becoming more strategic. By enhancing employees’ business acumen, companies are gaining a distinct competitive advantage. According to a recent report by the Aberdeen Group, businesses that embraced a best-in-class training approach were 95 percent more likely to improve customer satisfaction, 77 percent more likely to improve employee performance and 65 percent more likely to improve workforce turnover. These organizations were characterized as those that had a learning and development strategy with buy-in and support from senior management; alignment with the organization’s overall strategic plan; active promotion of programs to those who could benefit from participating; and integration of learning with both performance management and assessments. One important training best practice involves achieving the right balance between formal and informal learning. Formal learning, where most money and effort has traditionally been spent, only addresses a small fraction of the learning spectrum. Most learning in the work- 31 January 2008 I www.clomedia.com I Chief Learning Officer http://www.clomedia.com

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Chief Learning Officer - January 2008 Editor’s Letter Table of Contents Imperatives Selling up, Selling Down Strategies Take Five Environment Sips of Knowledge at E. & J. Gallo Winery CLO Profile Productivity UST Global: Opening Employees’ Eyes to New Learning Tactics Applying CRM Concepts to E-Learning Human Capital Capital One: Experiences in Innovation Learning Solutions Macy’s: Using Feedback to Develop One Leader at a Time Case Study Business Intelligence Advertisers’ Index Editorial Resources In Conclusion

Chief Learning Officer - January 2008

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