Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2019 - 13

JULIE WINKLE GIULIONI

PERFORMANCE
MATTERS

CLICHÉ OR CLARITY?
3 EXPRESSIONS THAT CAN
ENHANCE YOUR LEARNING EFFORTS

There are plenty of hackneyed phrases
in the workplace. After a season or two
on "buzzword bingo," most of these lines
are retired.

done endeavor. They also scanned the
landscape and saw significant changes
ahead - changes that were going to
occupy leaders' attention.

Yet, in learning and development (L&D),
there are a few tried-and-true sayings that
are making a comeback, offering a fresh
perspective on corporate learning.

Rather than rolling out more content, this
organization reinterpreted the concepts
that training had already delivered. They
contextualized it to the current challenges
leaders were facing, and they offered it
just in time with actionable strategies and
tools to take what they had introduced
earlier a step further.

Here are three expressions that are
making a comeback in the learning space:
1. "LESS IS MORE."
Often, we're tempted to layer more
content atop the learning that we've
already delivered to build greater skills.
We do this even as we acknowledge
that our initial efforts have barely
begun to impact individual and/or
organizational performance.
As a result, L&D professionals are
doubling-down on current and past
content to deepen understanding and
highlight applications.
One company recently recognized the
need to enhance its leaders' coaching
abilities. It developed and delivered
training that introduced leaders to five
coaching mindsets and laid a foundation
for strong relationships, productive
conversations and developmental results.
While the reaction of many might have
been to offer additional training on the
coaching process, or direction on how
to engage in dialogue, this team took a
step back. They recognized that building
a coaching mindset was not a one-and-

This organization's "less is more" approach
is transforming how leaders think about
their mission ... as they experienced
less resistance and invested less in new
resources, they saw more results.

IN SOME CASES, A
TIRED EXPRESSION
CAN ACTUALLY BE
A TRUISM.
2. "IT'S NOT WHAT YOU KNOW; IT'S
WHO YOU KNOW."
In
today's
digital
environment,
access to information is table stakes.
Nearly everything we might or want
to know is a few keystrokes away.
Consequently, knowledge no longer
distinguishes employees.
What does? Relationships. Relevant
networks are the new knowledge.
L&D functions that recognize this reality
are responding creatively and strategically
as they facilitate human connections.

T R A I N I N G I N DUSTR Y MAGAZ INE -TRENDS 2020 I WWW.TR AI NINGINDU S T RY . C OM/ MAGAZ I NE

Common strategies for building these
connections include:
* Driving learners toward social platforms
where content and contacts can grow.
* Implementing cohort-based learning
that builds community and skills.
* Creating coaching pairs who support
and hold each other accountable.
Emphasizing connections is a gamechanging strategy that highlights the
importance of knowing the who over
the what in today's workplace.
3. "WHAT'S OLD IS NEW AGAIN."
L&D leaders are looking to work with
what they have, as many organizations
already possess volumes of training
material. Do classic skills need to be
consistently reinvented?
For many organizations, the answer to
this question is no. Certainly, there are
opportunities to refresh, and rearrange
elements, but if the core content is
aligned, it's appropriate to leverage
previous investments.
L&D professionals who embrace these
three expressions can transform them from
hackneyed phrases to powerful learning
hacks for improved performance.
Julie Winkle Giulioni has 25 years of
experience working with organizations
worldwide to improve performance
through learning. Email Julie.

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Training Industry Magazine - November/December 2019

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