Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2017 - 37

Yes, Even Soft Skills

rate of change

WHERE WE ARE: THE NEED TO OPTIMIZE FOR LEARNING

Learning faster and
governing smarter
We Are Here
Human Adaptability
Technology

time
Source: Eric "Astro" Teller's idea explained in Thomas Friedman's "Thank You for Being Late," 2016.

Enabling Strategic
Transformation at Scale
Think of your organization as a pyramid.
At the very top is the C-suite, strategies are
devised, executive leadership programs
are launched and culture initiatives are
incubated-often intended to stave off
the impacts of digital disruption. But
what happens to these efforts outside of
episodic leadership retreats? Too often
they fail to make an impact across an
organization and enter the graveyard of
failed corporate initiatives. One reason
they aren't successful is that while these
critical initiatives are high-touch at
the top of the house, cascading them
throughout an organization is an afterthought at best. But what if everyone at
every level of an organization could get
the right training for their role, at the
same time, from managers on down to
the front line?
A global consumer goods manufacturing
company deployed just such a cascading
approach across their workforce to
support their bold change transformation
vision, to great success. They used high-

SOFT SKILLS
ARE CRITICAL TO
EFFECTIVELY LEADING
RESPONSES TO
BUSINESS DISRUPTION.
touch, in-person workshops across the
top echelon, but cascaded that same
information, urgency and mindset shift
through blended learning to middle
managers, and pure digital learning
experiences designed for the rest of
the organization. This way, everyone in
the company heard the same message,
received the right content for them, and
applied the objective of the strategic
change to their specific work context.
The lesson here for organizations is that
you can get everyone on the same page
when things change, and fast.

The essential imperatives of digital
disruption - speed, global reach, user
contribution, etc. - combined with
ever-more
engaging
technologies,
mean that virtually all skills can now be
trained effectively via online modalities.
Fortunately for us all, because there are
now compelling online learning options
beyond point-and-click PowerPoint
presentations, soft skills can be learned
very effectively online. Which is key,
because soft skills are increasingly
critical to effectively leading responses
to business disruption today. But they
are among the hardest skills to learn,
and old models have serious limitations.
Enter digitally disruptive new learning
approaches.
Venerable
training
companies such as Miller Heiman Group,
VitalSmarts, Mandel Communications,
and more are embracing the latest,
most
engaging
online
learning
techniques to help their customers
develop sophisticated interpersonal
and communication skills. VitalSmarts,
for example, cites advantages to online
versus classroom learning, such as the
opportunity for the learner to set their
own pace and learn over time, the
ability for moderators to provide
individualized attention to learners,
and enhanced collaboration between
learners within a cohort of learners.
In conclusion, in this context of
accelerating
digital
change
and
complexity, learning organizations
are critical enablers of organizational
success. Learning professionals have
an incredibly important role to play
helping the people they serve adapt
to a changing world faster, utilizing
those disruptive modern modalities
and technologies to face down the
challenges of organizational disruption.
It's quite an exciting time to be
in learning!
Sam Herring is CEO of Intrepid Learning.
Email Sam.

T R A I N I N G I N DUSTR Y MA GAZ INE - BUSINESS OF LEARNING 20 1 7 I WWW. T RAI NINGINDU S T RY . C OM/ MAGAZ I NE

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2017