Chief Learning Officer - February 2008 - (Page 52)

business intelligence A Look Ahead: The Training Industry in 2008 Susan Lee In his Psalm of Life, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote, “Trust no future, however pleasant!” In spite of that admonition, the CLO Business Intelligence Board has some predictions about what the learning industry can expect in the coming year. And overall, things are looking, well, pleasant. More companies realize that training can create higher performance and can be an enabler of corporate strategy and transformation. As the learning industry looks back on a year of accomplishments, it also has to keep an eye on the major trends that will shape its environment in 2008. The forecasts of Chief Learning Officer magazine’s Business Intelligence Board are overwhelmingly positive, but there are a few findings that might come as a surprise to learning practitioners. Most organizations are optimistic regarding employee development for 2008. Generally, people are optimistic about the future, but specifically, the two most common reasons for optimism in 2008 are an increase in support from senior management and a heightened demand for training and development (see Figure 1): • Increase in support from senior management: More companies realize that training can create higher performance and can be an enabler of corporate strategy and transformation. In addition to improving employee skill sets to work more efficiently, training shows employer commitment to employees. Employees then become more engaged and work both smarter and harder, creating a win-win situation for the employer and the employee. Also, an effective learning organization can help position a company as an employer of choice — a critical designation in today’s competitive market for talent. • Heightened demand for training: The heightened demand is arising from current and anticipated workforce shortage. As competition grows for skilled labor and qualified talent, there is more emphasis on employee development and “train to retain.” In today’s knowledge-worker-led world, talent is a key differentiator among companies, and the ability to train employees effectively is a necessity. February 2008 LMS and Knowledge Management Increase Impact on Training While many of the most impactful activities for 2008 are the same as they were in 2007 (see Figure 2), there are a couple key differences — learning management systems (LMS) and knowledge management have each become more important. The LMS is fast becoming the single most important learning technology investment for I www.clomedia.com I Chief Learning Officer 52 Susan Lee is a research analyst for IDC’s worldwide learning services research group. She can be reached at editor@clomedia.com. http://www.clomedia.com

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Chief Learning Officer - February 2008 Editor's Letter Table of Contents Business Impact Trends Best Practices Effectiveness Guest Editorial Learning Solutions Home Depot: Building Better Associates CLO Profile Environment Realizing the Vision of “One Philips” Tactics Sun Microsystems’ Next-Generation Worker Video Game Recruiting Tool Productivity The Regence Group: Blended Measurement Human Capital NASA: A Case Study in Technical Leadership Development Case Study Business Intelligence Advertisers' Index Editorial Resources In Conclusion

Chief Learning Officer - February 2008

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